Abstract

As a renowned diarist, novelist and poet in America, May Sarton wrote over fifty books before her death. Among all her works, she is most intelligent in writing journals. At Seventy is one of Sarton’s famous journal about ageing. In this journal, Sarton describes things happen in her later years and shares her inspirations with readers. On the one hand, Sarton wants to treat the process of ageing rationally, but on the other hand, she is afraid of being old and sometimes she has negative thoughts when she is in a bad condition. This thesis will make a deep analysis on Sarton’s attitudes towards ageing and her approaches to overcome ageing according the current ageing situation and the Third Age theory.

Keywords: At Seventy; ageing; attitudes; Third Age theory

Contents

Abstract

摘  要

1. Introduction-1

1.1 Brief Introduction about May Sarton and At Seventy-1

1.2 Purpose and structure of the Paper-1

2.Theories of Ageing-1

2.1 The Definition of Old People-2

2.2 Third Age Theory-2

2.3 Stereotypes of Ageing-3

3. Sarton’s Attitudes towards Ageing in At Seventy-4

3.1 May Sarton's Ageing-4

3.2 Positive Attitudes and Causes-5

3.3 Negative attitudes and causes-7

4. The Approaches to Overcome the Fear of Ageing-9

4.1 Writing-10

4.2 Gardening-11

5. Conclusion-11

5.1 A Summary of This Essay-11

5.2 The Value of the Rearch-12

References-13