The Third Chapter: Passion, Risk, and Adventure in the 25 Years After 50

Went to the Brattle St. Theatre tonight with a friend to hear a lecture by the author, Sarah Lawrence-Lightfoot. While her topic was on the developmental theory and experience of the older generation, I thought it provided a fascinating bookend to much of what I had learned last semester in my Student Development Theory course.

She raised an interesting point that so much developmental theory focuses on human growth to mid-life, as this is perhaps the Bodhi tree enlightenment of human development, but through comprehensive interviews conducted with 40 individuals in their 50's-70's, she argues that there is a highly invigorating and crisis-driven developmental stage to be found later in life (the "Third Chapter"). Using Erikson's stages and the concept of a struggle of moving from one stage into the next, Lawrence-Lightfoot states that it's perfectly natural to recognize the "death" of the younger stage, mourn its passing, and look to being reborn, in a sense, in the latest stages of our life.

She spoke of an interview she gave over the phone, and could tell her interviewer was young, so she asked her how old she was. The interviewer replied, "27." The author was amused and said that she was surprised her interviewer could still be so interested, to which she replied that her book gives a sense of optimism and freedom- that 50 and beyond is not an age of descent, rather one of curiosity-driven ascension.

As someone in their late twenties, this was actually a very uplifting lecture. There have moments in the last year where I've been fraught with unrelenting thoughts of my own mortality, but thinking of "being old" in a different context as Lawrence-Lightfoot describes is empowering.

The moderator asked if the author had noticed any patterns regarding race, gender, etc., and she said that men seemed to be looking for stability, a return to normalcy and calm, whereas most women described some interest in getting out in the world- taking flight, specifically. She described how one man said it was as if he was canoing back to shore, he passes his wife in a rowboat out to the middle of the lake. It was an interesting and illuminating metaphor.

At the conclusion of her lecture, she spoke of how technology is coming into play, and described how her son taught his grandmother how to use email. Not just how to use it, but to embrace and not fear the technology surrounding it. I wanted to raise the question if she thought this millennial generation, so saturated by technology, will actually continue to embrace and utilize technology in our Third Chapter, or if we might see some kind of backlash Luddite response - if our generation will unplug itself in our golden years.

All in all, a very thought-provoking lecture. I think I might actually pick up a copy of her latest book at the library if I can.