Abstract

The appreciation of art, music, dance, theatre, drama, and the humanities is not relegated to only the young. The elderly can have the same appreciation of pictures, a concert, a symphony, and a good book as anyone younger. This paper requests an examination into this realm and implores an investigation into how to provide the elderly with opportunities to enjoy beauty and aesthetics, and the importance of these elements to their quality of life. Needed research agendas will be explored.

In the realm of gerontology, there is a lack of theorizing about how the elderly or those who are aging appreciate, or learn to appreciate the arts and the humanities. This paper will review some of these concerns and reflect on the need for empirical investigation into this realm. All too often, the elderly are confronted with a number of perhaps health problems or ambulatory problems which restrict their ability to attend concerts, visit museums and explore other parts of the world in appreciation of culture, churches, panoramic views and vistas and the literature and poetry of other nations of the world. On the other hand many individuals remain able to attend literary events, savor paintings, and learn about the Impressionists and other forms of music such as baroque or symphonic music.

There needs to be a concerted effort to assist those who are still interested in learning about the arts and the humanities, and those who may want to reminisce and review prior learning’s from other courses. Seniors and their spouses need to be encouraged to delve into new realms of deep appreciation of whatever realm of beauty they are most interested in. For some it may be the architecture of a certain time period, for others it may be a certain singer, for example Frank Sinatra or Duke Wellington, and still for others-they may want to glance back and again hear on You Tube the rock and roll of the 1960’s and re-experience the Beatles.

Such endeavours should be understood and perhaps even empirically investigated. The arts and humanities contribute to the quality of life for many individuals and continue to enrich the lives of many people in many ways-auditorially, visually, spiritually and in other ways.