Leisure and resistance in an ageing society

This paper examines the development of a dominant discourse on ageing in a culture which devalues the aged and excludes them from the productive sphere. Through literature, the media, language, humour and in social science theory, research and social policy the underlying assumption has been that ageing means deficiency and a necessary curtailment of physical activities and social involvement. In contrast, the developing discourse on leisure emphasizes both what a person can do rather than what she or he cannot do, and the importance of an individual's own choice of leisure experience. In applying Foucault's ideas on discourse and resistance, this paper argues that in the intersection of these contradictory discourses, resistance to ageism is possible. Specific case studies from qualitative leisure research demonstrate that various resistances to the dominant discourses on ageing can be made through leisure. Thus leisure presents the potential to challenge ageism and the self-fulfilling prophesy of underuse of physical and mental abilities in old age.