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Work #991 · Late-mature

Old Age

Simone de Beauvoir
1970 (Gallimard) · French
Philosophical-sociological treatise · Twentieth-century French existentialism / sociology of ageing

Old age as a social condition systematically denied and degraded — what The Second Sex did for womanhood, La Vieillesse does for ageing

Attribute Fingerprint

Rows where works disagree are highlighted in gold. The full ontology grid is shown.

Attribute Old Age (Late-mature)
Time · Extent Infinite
Time · Ontological Status Substantival
Time · Grain Continuous
Time · Freedom Non-Deterministic
Time · Traversability Linear
Time · Dimensionality One
Time · Direction Uni-directional
Space · Extent Infinite
Space · Ontological Status Substantival
Space · Curvature Flat
Space · Dimensionality Three
Space · Locality Local
Matter · Extent Infinite
Matter · Ontological Status Substantival
Matter · Conservation Conserved
Matter · Dimensionality Three
Matter · Locality Local
Observer · Time Instance Single
Observer · Space Instance Single
Observer · Knowledge Extent Partial
Observer · Knowledge Retainment Partial
Observer · Physicality Embodied
Observer · Agency Both
Observer · Number Plural
Observer · Metaphysical Agency None
Observer · Moral Authority Experience
Observer · Theological Method
Energy · Extent Infinite
Energy · Ontological Status Substantival
Energy · Conservation Conserved
Energy · Dispersibility Irreversible
Information · Ontological Status Substantival
Information · Cosmic Conservation Conserved
Information · Personal Conservation Conserved
Information · Granularity Continuous

Dimension-by-Dimension Evidence

What each work's passages reveal about its stance on each of the six dimensions.

Time

Old Age

Life arc from birth to old age; historical time of changing social treatments.

Space

Old Age

Geographical-social spaces where the elderly live.

Matter

Old Age

The ageing body and the institutions containing it.

Observer

Old Age

Beauvoir as philosophical-sociological analyst.

Energy

Old Age

Diminishing biological energies; compounding social marginalisation.

Information

Old Age

Historical-comparative data, phenomenological descriptions, political-philosophical analysis.

Internal Tensions

Where each work's argument pulls against itself.

Old Age

Less politically successful than The Second Sex but recognised as major philosophical-analytical achievement; demographic ageing has made its concerns urgent.