Top 15 Fashion over 50 Blogs and Websites for Fifty Plus Women

Top 15 Fashion over 50 Blogs and Websites for Fifty Plus Women

Fashion Over Fifty is Number One on this list!!  Wow.

I am so honored.

Life Doesn't End at 50: Felicia and Edmundo's Unlikely Love Story Spans ...

Lauren Wasser: How One Model Lost Her Leg to Toxic Shock Syndrome and Fo...

A Facebook Sociological Study on Why European Woman seem More Comfortable Aging than American Women

WHY EUROPEAN WOMEN ARE MORE COMFORTABLE AGING

 THAN AMERICAN WOMEN 

Achetypes represent all aspects of human nature and are typically used in literature as a character, an action, or a situation that represents universal patterns of human nature. Carl Jung believed that at the root of every archetype is the “collective unconscious” of mankind. This “unconsciousness” may vary from race or culture, but it is shared by the entire culture or race. Today, it is fair enough to say that there is a very prevalent “collective unconsciousness” about Age in most cultures.

What are the literary archetypes for Aging Women? According to Jung, the older woman was known as the “Wise Old Woman”, or the Crone. In the United States, these two terms negate any femininity or sexuality. The implication of these are in fact, primarily asexual, and unattractive women that are no longer beautiful.


In European cultures, the Queen would also serve as an archetype of strength and experience. However, the Queen, arguably, has many more connotations of femininity. First, one must assume that she would have once been a princess.  She also has earned the right to wear her crown of jewels and robes of the finest fabrics. Not only does she have the right to wear her riches, but she is a powerful State Head to whom people must bow down and show respect. 

There is obviously a stark contrast between the Archetype of the Crone and the Queen. This lack of having the Queen as an Archetype can be seen in so many aspects of American culture. Not only are older women not thought of as powerful or commanding respect, but little respect is shown for women who even do carry a title. Most American would probably agree that women, especially in today's political climate, are not respected very much at all.

The Queen

The Crone

Obviously, the United States has never had a queen, and in fact it is only in the last 40 years or so that women have even held political office. Our patriarchal society has been slow to even accept women as equal to men, and certainly, we do not have the “collective unconsciousness" that the British do for their Queen Elizabeth.  Hence, we, as a newer democratic nation without a queen,  are left without a female archetype of any real strength or beauty. At best we have the wise grandmother who bakes cookies and stays home  dressed in a "house coat" or dresses that are matronly.

Needless to say, the Baby Boomers are resistant to old Archetypes. The generation that truly “rebelled” against the norms in so many ways, is now rebelling against the only archetype that is in their “collective unconsciousness”.  And so, we have a generation that is confused. We have no women to model or represent the humanity of our culture. In essence, we are in the process of carving out a new archetype for the aging woman in the United States.

Having a Facebook page, Fashion Over Fifty, of nearly 200,000 viewers, has given me a unique opportunity to see how conflicted and confused women are today. Some women remain traditional in their role of the Crone who should remain asexual and no longer interested in the youthful and vibrant young woman that she once was. Other women are in denial of the fact  that they are aging and it is fair to say that a good majority of the population is “youth obsessed”. Reading women’s responses to a sensual photo of an older woman posted on my page, one finds opinions ranging from disgust to elation.

Then there is the newer  archetype of the older woman who tries  to remain young by  having plastic surgeries and doing whatever it takes to still look young. There is even a look that these women have adopted as "youthful" with puffy lips and obvious signs of surgeries. This pretty much an impossible and unrealistic standard unless you can afford all that it takes.    Analyzing these women, it would seem that because we do not have a positive archetype, they are afraid that once they lose their youthful appearance, they will not longer be attractive. It is not mainstream in our culture that all women are valued for their intrinsic  beauty, which of course is our ultimate goal. 

There still remains the archetype of the Crone. These women are horrified of any photograph that may show an older woman in a sexual manner. Of course we have this because until now, as Jung might say, the Crone is the only archetype in our “collective unconscious”. Photos that are intentionally posted to rebel against this “norm” are met with expletives and derogatory remarks. In fact, women have most probably “unliked” the page due to the fact that it offends their sensibilities. However, if we do not try and "push the envelope, and possible offend some people, we will never see change.

Finally, you have the women who are blazing a trail to where they do not know. Today, as women who may live 30 to 40 years after menopause, they must redefine who they are once they can no longer bear children. It wasn’t that long ago that a common comical phrase  “Go granny, go granny, go granny, go.” meant that to see a "granny" do something fun was completely out of the norm. I would like to think that many women today are realizing that age is about attitude, and that they, unlike the Crone, are not limited in what they can do, or what activities they can or can't do, or in what they may wear.

If  only we had the archetype of the Queen, perhaps we would feel more powerful and proud of our age. Being a princess is not all it is cracked up to be. She must be subservient to the Queen, and has definite boundaries on her behavior. However, as the Queen, we bear the fruits of our labors and the successes of our kingdoms.The Queen is  regal and beautiful, she wears the finest clothing made., and may even have sex with the King. (If you have seen the movie "The Lion in Winter"  you may recall that  Katherine Hepburn's role as the Queen.  Olld and no longer a princess  she is  rivaled by a younger more beautiful woman. Despite the lure of this beautiful princess, King Henry II (Peter O'Toole) remains madly and passionately in love with her for all time.) 

Facebook has provided a new venue for a sociological study. This study clearly reveals that European women are more comfortable with aging than we are here in the United States. European women still see themselves as sexual beings and are as interested in fashion as any younger woman. In fact, older women have earned the right to have a designer bag. Who do these princesses think they are?

Let’s face it, growing older is scary. But, when women refuse to accept it and deny it, it frightens everyone, even  the younger generation.  They have no one to look up to as a female “archetype” who embraces her age. Hence, we cannot create a new Archetype. Wouldn’t it be nice if we could have a meeting and make a pact among all women to create a new “collective unconsciousness” where we would embrace our age and just have fun? Let's keep pushing this reinvention of Aging and Beauty in that direction, and everyone will be a lot happier. Come on America, I know you can do it.