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What Is The Theme Of Aging Issues In Last Vegas

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‘Last Vegas’ is a film about longtime friends Paddy, Archie, Billy, and Sam. They are four older men who reunite in Las Vegas to celebrate Billy’s upcoming marriage. While in Vegas they find themselves having to come to terms with issues related to losses in old age. The four main characters experience different variations of themes related to aging including fear, role loss, death of a spouse, loss of health, issues with informal caregiving, and issues with intimate relationships and friendships. The issue of losses in aging is a recurring theme found in aging theories, and this will be examined, along with coping and adjustments that are made related to role losses. Film Critique: Last Vegas The 2013 American …show more content…

Role Theory, an early theory in social psychology, based on the supposition that we are bound to concepts of ourselves expressed by the roles that we play in our lives, and that the loss of these roles affects how we age. In Last Vegas we see Paddy struggle with the loss of his role as husband and protector to his wife Sophie. Archie, also experiences the loss of his role as father and head of the family when his son begins to treat him like a child following a stroke. Difficulties in aging take place when our inner self perceptions, our needs and abilities do not blend with the commonly held age norms in society. Sam, Paddy, Billy and Archie reject the norms and losses associated with their age and roles, and their trip to Las Vegas for Billy’s wedding is a gesture of this rejection. When Paddy and Billy compete for the affections of Diana in Last Vegas, they are repeating a pattern of behavior that took place when they were boys. This behavior supports the Continuity Theory of aging, which suggests that people do not alter dramatically in personality or patterns of behavior as they age. Social Constructionism is an aging theory that insists that we internalize a diminished sense of self-worth in aging based on the ways in which others treat us. Stereotypes of older people as well as age norms shape one to believe in ultimately inform and dictate the way in which we treat older individuals. This treatment has little to do with the actual physical or cognitive ability of the older individual and merely reflects an accepted form of ageism. We see a form of defiance to what can be viewed as the greatest loss in aging; that of our individuality and uniqueness in character and

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