With people living longer all over the world, ageing has beenframed as a socio-economic problem. In Brazil, older people areexpected to remain healthy and autonomous while activelyparticipating in society. Based on ethnographic research in SãoPaulo, Ageing with Smartphones in Urban Brazil shows howolder people in a middle-class neighbourhood conciliate theseexpectations with the freedom and pleasures reserved for the ThirdAge. Work is what bonds this community together, providing a senseof dignity and citizenship. Smartphones have become of greatimportance to the residents as they search for and engage in newforms of work and hobbies. Connected by a digital network, theywork as content curators, sharing activities that fill theirschedule. Managing multiple WhatsApp groups is a job in itself, aswell as a source of solidarity and hope. Friendship groups helpeach to download new apps, search for medical information andguidance, and navigate the city. Together, they are reinventingthemselves as volunteers, entrepreneurs and influencers, or theyare finding a new interest that gives their later life a purpose.The smartphone, which enables the residents to share and discusstheir busy lives, is also helping them, and us, to rethink the veryrepresentation of ageing. |