Disciplining Bodies

By Slevin, Kathleen F

This article explores ways that men in later life may attempt to retain or regain notions of youthful manhood-in particular, by disciplining their bodies through exercise or dieting. Sexual orientation is also a focus because it shapes experiences with manhood and with aging. Because heterosexuality is venerated and homosexuality stigmatized, gay men may experience old age differently compared to heterosexual men. Throughout the paper, I draw on unpublished empirical data collected through intensive interviews with a group of fifty-two heterosexual and homosexual men who are in their 60s, 70s, and 80s. Interestingly, at least for this small, nonrandom sample of older, mostly privileged men, exercise and diet, the health behaviors I explore in this paper, evidence no discernable differences between gay and heterosexual respondents. Both groups of respondents attempt to deal with the stigma of aging bodies by engaging in fitness activities and body maintenance techniques that emphasize youthful appearances. Of course, relations of power shape relations between gender, age, race, sexuality, and the body; variability in aging experiences is the norm, not the exception.

BODIES, AGING, AND AGEISM

While the ways that people experience their bodies have garnered significant attention in recent decades, until recently, scholarship has largely ignored aging bodies (Calasanti and Slevin, 2001; Fairdoth, 2003; Katz, 2005; Slevin, 2006). Cruikshank (2003) also reminds us that despite the body’s critical role as a marker of age, even social gerontologists have given it scant attention in understanding how we experience the aging of the body, except in cases of disease and illness (Cruikshank, 2003). Tge researchers who have focused on the bodies of people in later and even mid life have primarily emphasized loss of function; the emphasis has been on a "narrative of decline" (Gullette, 1997). Indeed, because commonplace physical experiences with aging bodies are ignored, older people experience their bodies in an environment of "profound cultural silence" (Twigg, 2000, p. 115).

Yet, the story of aging is intimately connected with the meanings we ascribe to our aging bodies. Indeed, these meanings are critical to making sense of age and aging (Laz, 2003). Laz (1998) also reminds us that age is an accomplishment, that it is more social than chronological.

At the same time, the body has definite biological and physiological characteristics-bodies are more than social constructions-they do age and we do eventually die (Turner, 1996). Within literature on the body, scholars have given little attention to empirically exploring the accuracy of their broad and often sweeping theoretical claims (Williams and Bendelow, 1998). There has been little attention to "the voices that emanate from the bodies themselves" (Nettleton and Watson, 1998, p. 2). With the exception of a sizable volume of empirical literature on chronic illness and disability, the embodied experience of people in their everyday worlds is absent.

In our culture, growing old and being old are constructed as a problem, and we are now led to believe that not only can we chart the paths of how we grow old, we can go farther and decide whether we do it at all. Apparently, technology has trumped biology; growing old has become the new century’s solvable problem (Cruikshank, 2003). Accordingly, the widely preached exhortation to accept old age with grace is, in feet, no longer supported by practice (Gilleard and Higgs, 2000). Indeed, nowadays-at least in many Western societies-old age is seen as a pathology and stigmatized; more and more, it is viewed as a personal failure-one that especially affects those who lack the requisite economic resources or physical abilities to partake of the consumerism that surrounds aging (Katz, 2005). Consumerism touts desirable bodies as those that are young, toned, and thin; the media convey to us that to be young and beautiful is to possess the most desirable form of cultural capital. Indeed, Bordo (1993) reminds us that taking care of one’s physical appearance has long been a moral imperative in Western societies: self-control and will power are symbolized in muscular, trim, at bodies, and overweight bodies are symbols of laziness and lack of control. Furthermore, we have witnessed an accelerated breakdown in the demarcation between mature and youthful bodies; increasingly, consumer messages suggest an ageless obligation to discipline bodies through diet and exercise throughout the life course. Consequently, the body has become central in the framing of age-resisting cultural practices and in defining individuality; exercising, dieting, cosmetics, and cosmetic surgeries are pushed as strategies to resist growing old (Gilleard and Higgs, 2000). All of these strategies emphasize being fit, staying young, looking young, or at least not looking old. These strategies are the linchpins of "successful aging"; they allow those who engage in these activities to be judged "productive" in old age (Faircloth, 2003; Oberg and Tornstam, 2001). Indeed, current standards of successful aging ". . . stretch the anxieties of middle age across the life course" (Marshall and Katz, 2006, p. 77).

To what extent do the cultural messages described above influence how older people experience their aging bodies? Empirical knowledge on the topic is quite sparse, especially for men over the age of 50; it is even more scarce for older gay men. Yet, we know that cultural domination is never complete and that older people may elect in various ways to resist ageist messages that emphasize youthful bodies. That said, we need to acknowledge that even resistance strategies are determined by the hegemonic cultural norms of youthfulness. Hegemony is insidious because it is internalized (Gagne and McGaughey, 2002). Perhaps this mechanism helps explain the findings of two studies that are important for our focus: First, Grogan’s (1999) empirical data found that respondents thought they would look younger if they were thinner. Second, Oberg and Tornstam (2001, p. 21) found that, for their respondents, keeping a youthful look becomes more important with age."

MASCULINITY AND OLD AGE

Normative notions of masculinity are strongly tied to youth and to heterosexuality, to physical and sexual prowess, to economic production. Standards of manhood typically presume young men or men not beyond middle age (Calasanti and King, 2005), ignoring older men. The growing literature on "masculinities," which criticizes stereotypical views of manhood, reminds us that multiple forms of masculinity exist-that there are many different ways to be a man based on the various intersections of class, race/ethnicity, and sexuality. Such recognition does not imply similar status for all, however.

Connell (1995) reminds us that at any one time it is likely that one form of masculinity is culturally exalted. But even given its preferential status, scholars caution that ". . . hegemonic masculinity may not be the lived form of masculinity at all" despite the fact that it is a powerful, even dominant script, against which men judge themselves and others (Thompson and Whearty, 2004, p. 6). Beneath the preferred ideal lie other, subaltern masculine forms (e.g., nonwhite, working class, old, gay). These subaltern, or subordinate, variants of masculinity are defined as inferior and inadequate (SpectorMersel, 2006). For instance, men who reveal their homosexuality frequently find that their masculinity is assumed to be questionable; homosexuality is routinely associated with gender inversion (Rosenfeld, 2003). Gay men are frequently "demasculinized," or feminized-and, the arbiters of this feminizing are often gay men themselves (Slcvin and Linneman, 2007).

Talk about hegemonic notions of manhood leads us to explore how as men, both heterosexual and gay, age, they negotiate these standards-especially in light of the fact that increasingly they become consumers rather than producers and come to occupy feminized spaces (the home) rather than the workplace (Meadows and Davidson, 2006). Scholars who have studied aging men in these regards provide varying responses to how men deal with growing old and being men. It is critical, however, to emphasize that much of the scholarship is theoretical in nature and lacks empirical verification. Some scholars argue that men are emasculated by old age: To many people, aging is a negation of masculinity, and thus older men become effeminate over time" (Thompson, 1994, p. 13). Others suggest that as they age, men adapt, they renegotiate, they create alternative images and definitions of masculinity (Meadows and Davidson, 2006; Slevin and Linneman, 2007; Thompson, 1994). Still others suggest that hegemonic masculinity scripts conclude in middle age (Calasanti, 2004), and that old age is understood as contradicting masculinity. Older men are "an invisible, paradoxical and unmasculine social category" (Spector-Mersel, 2006, p. 68; Thompson, 1994). Thus, scripts for masculinity in old age are uncertain and ambiguously perceived, if not ill-formed; older men not only constitute an ambiguous social category, they "live in a hybrid state" (Spector-Mersel, 2006).

What do we know of gay men as they age? Again, while literature is sparse, a common theme throughout suggests that gay men experience "accelerated aging" (Wahler and Gabbay, 1997). Gay male culture is highly commodified (that is, treated as a marketable commodity)-even more than heterosexual culture-and reveres a masculine ideal that is young, muscular, and beautiful. One consequence of this is that homosexual men consider themselves and other men to be "middle-aged and elderly. . .at an earlier age than heterosexual men" do (Bennett and Thompson, 1991, p. 66). Again, empirical data that examine how gay men actually experience this phenomenon are both scarce and contradictory (Jones and Pugh, 2005). STRATEGIES FORAGING: MEN’S HEALTH BEHAVIORS

One way to manage one’s aging body, to adhere to hegemonic ideals, is to attain or maintain a youthful appearance by engaging in fitness activities and other body maintenance techniques (Oberg and Tomstam, 2001). Accordingly, we might expect that those older men who decide to engage in fitness and exercise regimes, whatever their sexual orientation, will share some of the same gendered and ageist notions of ideal masculinity that are touted by the culture at large. The data in my own study described above shed some light on the topic, but in doing so they also illuminate the need for additional data on how older men manage their aging bodies within an ageist and homophobic culture.

Reducing sigma. One strategy that men sometimes use in the face of the ambiguity mat they face as older men in our culture is to resist such ambiguity by denying that they fit the category "old" (Gilleard and Higgs, 2000; Meadows and Davidson, 2006; Minichiello, Browne, and Kendig, 2000). Indeed, they may actively attempt to avoid or deny the stigma of old age. For instance, they may adopt a strategy of engaging in physical activities that deny or minimize the realities of their aging bodies. Sometimes the consequences can be deadly, as conveyed by Donald (age 70) when he told of his same- aged friend’s tragedy: "I had a good friend . . . whom I hiked with, who was determined to do 100 miles one day, and he had a heart attack and died beside the road." Trying to hold onto a bygone image of himself as an athlete who pushes his body may also signify lack of acceptance of aging. We see some of this behavior in the exercise regimes established by one of my respondents, Mark (age 64), who exercises at the gym for at least an hour almost every day and also runs six days a week for a total of 35-40 miles per week. A fanatic about his weight and diet (147 pounds, 6′ 1” tall, and 7 percent overall body fat), Mark called on a classic masculine metaphor of the body as a machine to be controlled in order to justify his behaviors: "[The body] is much like a car. If you don’t oil it and grease it and gas it and maintain it, it’s going to fell apart."

This statement illustrates another theme of modern aging, that living a healthy life is more than a choice-it is now a duty, it is a responsibility that we take charge of our bodies by practicing healthy lifestyles (Marshall and Katz, 2006). This idea is also implicit in my interview with Thad (age 80), who tells me that he continues a three-day-a-week walking regime despite the feet that "- it’s a little more difficult to do that now. But, I just push myself."

Controlling weight. Not all health behaviors associated with trying to maintain standards of hegemonic masculinity are negative in their consequences. Certainly, one can argue that adopting a lifestyle that involves regular exercise and weight control illustrates positive self-care at any age. No doubt reflective not only of constant anti-aging media messages but also of their relative class privilege and high levels of education, the majority of the men I talked with were very tuned-in to health and fitness issues; they were attuned also to concerns about controlling their weight. Like other older people (Hurd, 2000), they generally emphasized health, not looking youthful, as a motivator for staying active. Most described themselves as being in decent health, even when suffering from chronic conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease.

It was striking that only seven of the twenty-six men in my study judged themselves to be at their ideal weight. The remaining nineteen men defined themselves as overweight. The overweight range given by these men was from 2 to So pounds: seven men were 10 pounds or under, five were between n and 25 pounds overweight, and seven were between 26 and So pounds overweight. All were concerned to varying degrees about their weight. Whether they were heterosexual or gay appeared to make no discernible difference.

Interestingly, even the men who considered themselves at their ideal weight were also quite concerned that they stay at that weight. Several mentioned that they monitor their food intake. For instance, Daniel (age 68) talked about his motivation to stay at his ideal weight and how it was shaped by his desire to "look good, look trim-without wearing a girdle." For the overweight men (nineteen), the majority (eleven) claimed to diet (formal dieting as opposed to "watching caloric intake") on a fairly regular basis. For example, Thad (age So) was only 2 pounds overweight at the time of the interview and talked about how he will have returned to his ideal weight by the end of the week: "Anytime I start to put on weight, then I diet. Every morning I drink a can of Slimfast and then for lunch I’ll eat a Slimfast bar, bananas and fruits."

At age 82, John, 9 pounds over his ideal weight, was one of the oldest interviewees. When asked if he ever dieted, he quickly replied, "I sure do," and went on to talk about how he restricted his intake of desserts and sweets and told his wife not to buy his favorite cookies. Others talked at some length about their dieting challenges.

For example, Jake (age 78), 45 pounds overweight, struck a common cord when he admitted, "Yes, Fve been to Weight Watchers and I know the right things to do, but I don’t always do mem." Interestingly, Jake also demonstrated how contradictory and paradoxical issues of weight often are-both in relation to self and in relation to others. While quite content with his own overweight body, he exhibited and reinforced a common prejudice against others who are overweight He admitted that while he preferred to spend time with gay men his own age, he preferred them to be "slender?

EXERCISING

In addition to dieting, many of the men interviewed also engaged in some form of physical activity or exercise in order to remain healthy. A subtext in their narratives reinforces die theme of desire to keep their bodies as trim and fit as possible so that they avoid the stigma of looking like old men. For those who exercised regularly (fifteen men, out of the total of twenty-six), typical exercise took the form of running, walking, swimming, and workouts in the gym. For a few, golf and sailing were also mentioned as forms of exercise-illustrating the importance of financial means to keeping active. Running, by contrast, requires no specific financial capital. Thus, at age 69, Alex, who still worked part-time as a maintenance man, ran 2 miles each day, and Mark (age 64) ran 35-40 miks a week. For those who exercised regularly, mere was often a sense that it was not enough; that they had not met their obligation to suitably discipline their older bodies. Hence, Bart (age 67) expressed a common sentiment: "I don’t exercise as much as I should." Even those who do not exercise were at pains to tell me that they remained active in their daily lives. For instance, as Wayne (age 80) was keen to point out, "I don’t exercise but I stay busy? Jacob (age 73) was 30 pounds overweight and did not exercise. However, he anticipated that when the new YMCA opened in his town he would take up swimming again (he was on the swim team in college) because "I’ve got to get back in the pool. I’ve got to cut my weight down." Indeed, he was optimistic that in the future his body would look better than it did.

Conversations with the men who were not regular exercisers revealed that they were also quite aware of the healthful benefits of exercise-especially if they were overweight. While they claimed to be unwilling to do the body work necessary to gain or regain a more youthful body image, their indifference or resistance was tinged with a certain amount of ambivalence:

Yeah, I could be better. I could tone up, I could lose weight, I could do a lot of things. But, I am not willing to go through what you have to go through to do it. (Victor, age 71)

Actually, this is terribly vain, but for my age I think I look pretty good. I could lose ten pounds and be happy but I am not going to obsess about it. (Peter, age 62)

Even for the two men who considered themselves the most overweight (75 and 80 pounds, respectively) and who claimed to be quite indifferent to their appearance, evidence contradicted their expressed lack of concern. Landon (age 71) loudly and cavalierly proclaimed at one point in our interview, "Look at my belly and say That’s a beauty!"5 but he later admitted that he did not like his big belly, that it was what he liked least about his aging body. Indeed, he talked several times about the fact that he was regularly defeated in his attempts to control his weight; he spoke of how he tried, unsuccessfully, to "watch what I eat" every day of his life.

LOOKING YOUTHFUL

Whether or not they exercised or dieted, the narrative themes of the interviews I conducted with the older men underscored the appeal of looking youthful or at least not looking old. Keeping healthy was one motivation in their daily lives, but not looking old was another. Social locations, including age cohort, appeared to make little difference in this regard. Overall, the interviewees were keenly aware of all of the positive cultural capital that accompanies youthful images. Tom (age 61) captured a sentiment that the men in this study would all likely agree when he stated, "Everyone wants to be young. Young is always ‘in,’ [it is] always cool to be young, it’s fashionable.’5 Such sentiments also seemed to shape Alan’s approach to aging. At age 75, he talked about how important it was for him to appear youthful, and he confessed that he had just devoted considerable time to figuring out how best to whiten his teeth in order to make his smile more youthful. Also, he had this to say about what guided him as he picked his clothes: "I want to appear as if I’m energetic and not a has-been, that I am current and with-it." Others were even more explicit about avoiding looking old. William (age 75) was adamant in this regard: "I don’t go around wearing old folks’ clothes." At age 80, Wayne also appeared to have such concerns on his mind: "I don’t dress like an old man." CONCLUSIONS

While the literature provides us with few direct cues about how men experience and negotiate their aging bodies, my limited data suggest some interesting observations-ones that bear exploration in additional studies. This article has briefly explored the experiences of aging men in general, and a sample of gay and heterosexual men specifically. The article has touched on some of the issues they face as they age in a society where hegemonic notions of manhood revere youthfulness. Specifically, I have examined some of the health behaviors my respondents engage in as they negotiate growing old. Throughout, I reveal the age relations that render the body a site of struggle and ambivalence as people age. It is important to emphasize, however, that the ways that aging gay men in my limited sample share common ground with their heterosexual counterparts do not negate the complicated ways body image and related behaviors as men age are shaped by sexual orientation (Rosenfeld, 2003; Slevin, 2006; Thompson and Whearty, 2004; Wahler and Gabbay, 1997).

Overall, the narratives of the older men in my study reveal how coercive are the norms of youthfulness and the accompanying emphasis on actively fighting aging bodies. Through the voices of these men, we learn how deeply age matters and how ageist notions of aging prevail As well, because most of these older men are privileged by being financially comfortable and retired, we come to appreciate that they have the time and resources to devote to fighting aging. For the most part, their bodies still function well enough to allow them to engage in activities that illuminate and reinforce the "cultural imperialism of youthfulness" that increasingly dominates our society (Laws, 1995) and notions of masculinity (Connell, 1995).

While there is no one universal experience with aging and with aging bodies, my exploration of how the men in my sample discipline their bodies through exercise and diet reveals some strategies common to these older men, whatever their sexual orientation. In some interesting ways, we see evidence that supports the notion of an ageless obligation to discipline bodies through exercise and diet throughout the life course. This evidence reinforces the claims of Oberg and Tornstam (2001, p. 26) that the "behaviors for people in different age categories are becoming blurred," and that ". . . people are becoming more alike in different periods of life." Thus, hegemonic standards of youmfulness and masculinity, which stigmatize old age and old men and highlight the desirability of being slim, trim, and active, increasingly apply to people whatever their social locations.

Attempts to retain or regain ‘youthful manhood.’

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Kathleen F. Slevin, PhD., is Chancellor Professor of Sociology, College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, Va.

Copyright American Society on Aging Spring 2008

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