Are you lonesome tonight? Exploring experiences of loneliness in older age through and with pop song lyrics

Horne, Maxine (2015) Are you lonesome tonight? Exploring experiences of loneliness in older age through and with pop song lyrics. Postgraduate Journal of Women, Ageing and Media (2).

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Abstract

My PhD is an ethnographic exploration of the experience of older people in the community dance sessions that I facilitate. Music is a key element of the sessions and this paper looks at how song lyrics might play a role in the sessions. I selected songs from across the decades, with lyrics that either suggested loneliness or friendship, to stimulate movement and conversation. The approach to using the songs varied: for some, the content of the lyrics was discussed before moving, for others, familiarity with the lyrics was assumed. Data was collected in the form of videoed movement (the dancers), reflective movement (the researcher) and writing reflecting on the movement and the conversations around the movement (the researcher). Can song lyrics facilitate creative movement exploration of a sensitive topic? Loneliness is a difficult topic to discuss and to publicly admit to feeling; perhaps a non-verbal mode of expression could make the process easier.

Item Type:	Article
Article Type:	Article
Additional Information:	Postgraduate Journal of Women Ageing and Media ISSN 2055-737X (Online) is published by the University of Gloucestershire. EDITORS: Josephine Dolan, University of the West of England Abigail Gardner, University of Gloucestershire Hannah Grist, University of Gloucestershire Ros Jennings, University of Gloucestershire © 2015 by Postgraduate Journal of Women, Ageing and Media. All Rights Reserved.
Subjects:	P Language and Literature > PN Literature (General)
Depositing User:	Anne Pengelly
Date Deposited:	14 Sep 2016 11:25
Last Modified:	02 Aug 2021 06:30
URI:	https://eprints.glos.ac.uk/id/eprint/3923

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