An elderly person is an elderly person.
Before proceeding to analyze the meaning of the term elderly , let's know its etymological origin. In this case, we can establish that it derives from Latin, specifically, from the word “antianus”, which can be translated as “it is from before”.
An elderly person is an elderly individual . This is someone who belongs to the so-called elderly and who is close to death, according to the life expectancy that a human being can have.
There is no exact moment in which a subject becomes old. By convention, it usually establishes the beginning of old age at 65 years of life . Thus, those who are 65 years old or older are elderly. However, there are people in their 80s who are fully active, while people in their 50s already feel the passage of time in their bodies .
General characteristics of an elderly person
At a general level, it can be said that an elderly person experiences a detriment to their body. All the functions and capacities that were displayed during youth and that reached their maximum level of development in adulthood, begin to deteriorate . Thus, it is common for an elderly person to have difficulties moving and memory problems, for example.
The increase in life expectancy and the improvement in quality of life have meant that, in recent decades, the number of elderly people has grown throughout the world. Although it is the final stage of life, the stage is no longer associated with passivity: on the contrary, it is intended for the elderly to maintain an active life within their possibilities and to be integrated into the community .
Precisely due to the increase in the number of elderly people, there has been a notable increase in the number of nursing homes that exist and even in the number of people who are dedicated to caring for these elderly people. Taking into account that there are elderly people with very different needs, these professionals must adapt to them. Thus, they can dedicate themselves to preparing their food, helping them with their hygiene and daily care tasks, assisting them with everything they need because they do not have mobility, monitoring their illnesses and ailments...
Due to the deterioration that the passage of time produces in the body, the elderly often have difficulty moving around.
Assessment of elderly people
According to culture , the elderly are often valued for the wisdom they acquired from experience. In other cases, however, the elderly are looked down upon and the youth are highlighted.
We cannot ignore the fact that in many cultures, being elderly means being associated with values such as intelligence and wisdom. A good example of this can be discovered, for example, in the television series “Charmed.” In this there is a group, “The Elders” , who are responsible for monitoring the witches and telling their “white guides” when they should act to direct them along the right path.
In addition to all of the above, we cannot forget the existence of a story titled “The Terrible Old Man.” It is a short horror story written by the famous author HP Lovecraft in 1920. It takes as its protagonist an old man who lives isolated in a very old house about which there are numerous legends.