In the hierarchy of masculinities, old men and gay men are clearly subordinated. Many assume, therefore, that old gay men are doubly stigmatized; however, we argue that the picture is decidedly more complex. In this article, we explore the bodily experiences of aging through analysis of intensive interviews with 10 gay men who are in their 60s, 70s, and 80s. We focus on the interpretations and strategies these gay men use to make sense of their aging bodies. We identify several themes relating to how these men think about their own bodies, the bodies of other gay men, and their place within gay communities. Their aging corporeal experiences allow us to examine ageist notions about aging and being old and to explore how this thinking, which valorizes youthfulness, shapes their aging experiences.

This article uses a feminist framework to explore embodied aging by analyzing indepth formal interviews with 57 men and women in their 60s, 70s and 80s. Emphasizing intersectionality, I focus on the interpretations and strategies these men and women use to make sense of their aging bodies. Their aging corporeal experiences allow me to examine ageist notions about aging and being old and to explore how this thinking, which valorizes youthfulness, shapes their aging experiences.

Keywords: ageism / age relations / race / sexuality / class An inadvertent but pernicious ageism burdens much of women's studies scholarship and activism. It stems from failing to study old people on their own terms and from failing to theorize age relations-the system of inequality, based on age, which privileges the not-old at the expense of the old (Calasanti 2003). Some feminists mention age-based oppression but treat it as a given-an "et cetera" on a list of oppressions, as if to indicate that we already know what it is. As a result, feminist work suffers, and we engage in our own oppression. Using scholarship on the body and carework as illustrative, this article explores both the absence of attention to the old and age relations, and how feminist scholarship can be transformed by the presence of such attention. Neglecting Old AgeFeminist scholars have given little attention either to old women or to aging (Arber and Ginn 1991), despite Barbara Macdonald's work in the women's movement in the 1980s and her plea that old age be recognized (Macdonald and Rich 1983); despite the increases in absolute and relative numbers of those over age 65, and the skewed sex ratio among old people in the United States; and despite the shifting age ratios in nations worldwide. In her NWSA presidential address at the turn of the century, Berenice Carroll showed where Women's Studies had been and where it will head in the new millennium. She discussed the challenges of women of color and lauds the more recent inclusion of lesbian studies. Nowhere, however, did she mention aging issues (2001). The number of women's studies scholars engaged in work on later life is still so small that those with any interest in aging can count them; the rest (probably the majority)

This article reviews empirical research on women in retirement since 1976. The articles studied are categorized into four main areas: Women's Attitudes and Orientations Toward Retirement, Women's Preparation and Planning for Retirement, Women's Retirement Timing: Factors Related to Decisions to Retire, and Women's Adjustments to and Experiences in Retirement. Omissions and problems in the literature are identified and examined. Special attention is given to theoretical and methodological issues. The authors suggest new emphases and directions to strengthen research in this area.