Narratives of Care and Crisis: Representations of Aging, Dementia, and Intergenerational Responsibility in Contemporary Global Literature

Priya Sen

Department of English,

KK Wagh College, Maharashtra, India.

Abstract

With the global increase in aging populations and dementia diagnoses, there has been a surge in literary narratives that delve into themes of memory loss, caregiving, and intergenerational ethics. Modern global literature often depicts aging and dementia as intricate socio-cultural experiences rather than solely medical conditions, influencing identities, family dynamics, and moral duties across generations. This research article explores how contemporary novels, autobiographical writings, and transnational literary texts portray aging, dementia, and caregiving, emphasizing themes such as narrative fragmentation, ethical responsibility, relational identity, and the politics of memory. Utilizing interdisciplinary theoretical frameworks from gerontology, disability studies, narrative ethics, and medical humanities, the study examines significant global literary works that address caregiving challenges, emotional resilience, and evolving family structures.

The article posits that contemporary literature reinterprets dementia from a condition of decline to a realm of relational interdependence, exposing the tensions between autonomy and dependency, agency and vulnerability, and personal memory versus collective history. It also underscores how literary narratives create imaginative spaces to address cultural concerns about aging populations and moral duties toward older generations. Ultimately, these narratives shed light on the ethical transformation of care in modern societies, emphasizing compassion, reciprocity, and shared memory as essential to intergenerational responsibility. By integrating global literary representations with interdisciplinary scholarship, this research enhances the fields of literary gerontology, health humanities, and comparative literature, providing insights into how literature shapes cultural responses to aging and dementia amid demographic changes.

Keywords

Aging; Dementia; Caregiving; Intergenerational Responsibility; Medical Humanities; Global Literature; Narrative Ethics; Memory; Literary Gerontology; Disability Studies