What Happens When We Grow Old? The Elderly and the COVID-19 Pandemic

What Happens When We Grow Old? The Elderly and the COVID-19 Pandemic

Medha Rao

As readers, we tend to immerse ourselves in a story while maintaining a clear line between reality and fiction. While it may have been a wonderful read, we rest assured that our everyday lives look nothing like the bound pages we just put down. However, what do we do when that line starts to thin? The COVID-19 pandemic puts many works of speculative fiction into perspective. As resources dwindle and stockpiles empty, decisions are being made regarding who gets to live and who needs to die. Such is the current climate of the modern world, in which the world in Margaret Atwood’s “Torching the Dusties” has become the unfortunate reality for many.

In her short story, Atwood paints a gruesome picture for the members of Ambrosia Mansion, a retirement home of financially well-off members. We follow Wilma and Tobias as they experience the brutal “Our Turn” movement. The our-turners are a group of young individuals who feel that the elderly are a burden, having ruined the economy and environment for future generations. Because of this, they blockade supplies from reaching the retirement home. While local law enforcement does not support this movement, they are complacent. The protestors manage to stop the supply of fresh linens and force the employees to leave the building before ultimately setting fire to the retirement home. This fiery ending leaves the reader with a bitter taste as we realize that the members of Ambrosia Mansion died helplessly.[1]

The fate of the Ambrosia Mansion retirees parallels the fate of elder generations around the world. Ventilators have become a hot commodity as ICU wards overflow, and the elderly often do not make the cut. While we see many medical perspectives, there is one voice that is absent: the elderly. However, a possible response lies in “Torching the Dusties.” The running theme of “us versus them,” which lends itself to the idea of the elderly in hospitals as “burdens,” is starkly contrasted by the sentiments of Tobias, a character in Atwood’s story. It is quickly apparent that Tobias is an unabashedly opinionated member of Ambrosia Mansion who holds a disdain toward society’s youth while making the most of his old age. As the pandemic continues to take more lives, governments are forced to decide which lives are worth saving as resources dwindle.

When the “Our Turn” movement is introduced in Atwood’s piece, we immediately get a sense of their central message. The our-turners are filled with vengeance and a sense of bereavement as the economy and environment lay in shambles. The very name of their movement creates two sides to the issue: young versus old. They feel that the older generation “[killed] the planet with [their] own greed.”[2] These sentiments are not merely fiction, but are prevalent in modern society. The ill will between baby boomers and millennials has penetrated social media platforms, news outlets, campaigns, and dinner table discussions-turned-arguments. However, it was not done with mal-intent. Our elders did not scheme ways to obliterate the environment and economy. Why, then, are the elderly being denied access to life-saving equipment?

Ageism in healthcare is nothing new, although the COVID-19 pandemic has brought the issue to light. For decades, hospitals have had to decide which patients receive a second chance. Organ transplant lists often consider age and preexisting conditions that make an older patient’s second chance at life seem less valuable than a younger patient.[3] Yet this in itself is a paradox as preexisting conditions increase with age.[4] However, in this era of backordered ventilators and overflowing hospital beds, governments are creating plans for rationing patients admitted to ICUs.[5] One criterion is age, with another being how high their Charlson Comorbidity Index score is (a system that takes into account preexisting conditions).

A phenomenon getting more attention is the doctor-patient-family relationship.[6] Many times, doctors do not think about what the elderly patient wants. Instead, they listen to the family’s wishes and their pleas to save their loved one. Meanwhile, the patient would rather live comfortably (for however long that may be) instead of going through painful treatments to gain a couple more years to suffer through. Unfortunately, the elderly’s wishes are often overlooked.

Atwood’s portrayal of the elderly contrasts the beliefs that the our-turners and many younger members of our society hold in regard to elder generations. This gives way for questioning the morality of current policies during this pandemic. Is it right to treat the elderly with such antipathy that their medical needs are dehumanized? “Torching the Dusties” provides contextualization for the experience of the elderly that is relevant during the pandemic. It allows us the opportunity to understand what people at that age would be going through when their deaths are considered inevitable. Tobias is humanized through his optimism in the face of death, and the reader is empathetic to the experiences of the Ambrosia Mansion members. We see him deal with the fear of death by sticking to everyday routines and maintaining a semblance of his unique personality. This is very common advice in the coronavirus pandemic to promote a positive state of mind during a time that is causing immense amounts of stress.[7] Given that this is the way many people in the retirement home structure their days, it is important to notice the similarities in our lives under quarantine and the lives of retirees.

The pandemic has changed everyone’s lives in unforeseen ways. As we continue to navigate these uncharted waters, Atwood’s short story can serve as a reminder to hold compassion in our hearts for those tossed aside by our healthcare systems. With the fate of the world unknown, we can only hope for an ending much cooler than the flames that engulfed Ambrosia Manor.

References

1. Margaret Atwood, “Torching the Dusties” (McClellan & Stewart), 225–268. 2. Atwood, “Torching the Dusties,” 233. 3. Ethics Committee, “Ethical Principles in the Allocation of Human Organs,” U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, June 2015, https://optn.transplant. hrsa.gov/resources/ethics/ethical-principles-in-the-allocation-of-human-organs/. 4. “At Risk: Pre-Existing Conditions Could Affect 1 in 2 Americans,” Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, 2020, https://www.cms.gov/CCIIO/Resources/ Forms-Reports-and-Other-Resources/preexisting. 5. Adrienne Dunn, “Fact Check: Were Elderly Italians Left to Die? And Is Socialized Health Care to Blame?” USA Today, March 20, 2020, https://www.usatoday.com/ story/news/factcheck/2020/03/20/fact-check-were-italians-left-die-socializedmedicine-blame-coronavirus/2887743001/. 6. George Spaeth, “Treat the Patient—Not Just the Disease,” Review of Ophthalmology, 2015. 7. “How to Organize Time in Home Quarantine,” UNICEF, 2020, https://www. unicef.org/serbia/en/how-organize-time-home-quarantine.

-Medha Rao is a sophomore from Cary, NC, pursuing a major in Biostatistics as well as minors in Spanish and Chemistry.-