Line #71 Main/AgingTropes


1	->'''''Age''': That period of life in which we compensate for the vices that we still cherish by reviling those that we have no longer the enterprise to commit.''
2	-->-- ''Literature/TheDevilsDictionary''
3
4	Characters growing older and its consequences. See also RetirementTropes. The tropes themselves are [[JustForFun/IThoughtItMeant not necessarily]] [[DeadHorseTrope Dead Horse Tropes]].
5
6	See also PlotTime.
7	----
8	!!Tropes:
9	[[index]]
10	[floatboxright:
11	'''Categories:'''
12	+ AdultTropes
13	++ EarlyAdulthoodIndex
14	++ {{Elders}}
15	+ AgeDissonantIndex
16	+ AgeismTropes
17	+ AppearanceAngst
18	+ BirthdayTropes
19	+ ThisIndexWillLiveForever
20	++ {{Immortality}}
21	+ {{Youngsters}}
22	++ BabiesBabiesEverywhere
23	++ PubertyTropes
24	++ TeenageTropes
25	]
26	* AbsurdlyElderlyFather: Fathers are too old to have children.
27	* AbsurdlyElderlyMother: Mothers are too old to have children.
28	* ACupAngst: A young girl is self-conscious about not having large breasts.
29	* AdultsAreUseless: Children are the only ones intelligent and competent enough to deal with their problems.
30	* AdultsDressedAsChildren: An adult tries to impersonate a child.
31	* AgeAppropriateAngst: A character's age determines what is appropriate for them to angst over.
32	* AgeCut: A MatchCut that portrays a character growing older.
33	* AgeDownRomance: Character's age rapidly changes, allowing new romance options.
34	* AgeInappropriateDress: Someone wears clothes that they're typically considered too young or too old to be wearing.
35	* AgeInsecurity: An older character is insecure about their age.
36	* AgeIsRelative: The more competent or mature you are, the older you look.
37	* TheAgeless: A character who does not age.
38	* AgingWouldBeHipster: A middle-aged character who desperately tries to convince people they're still hip.
39	* AlwaysAChildToParent: A parent has trouble treating their children like adults as they mature.
40	* AndYourRewardIsInfancy: The story ends with the main character becoming a baby.
41	* AnimationAnatomyAging: Animated works make the difference between ages more noticeable.
42	* BabyMorphEpisode: An episode where a character gets turned into an infant.
43	* Bittersweet17: A 17-year-old's ComingOfAge.
44	* BloodBath: Bathing in blood to stay young.
45	* BornAsAnAdult: A character is a full-grown adult at birth.
46	* CharacterAgedWithTheActor: A {{Revival}} or ReunionShow takes place the same number of in-universe years after the end of the series as in real life, to account for cast aging.
47	* ChildlessDystopia: Life becomes miserable without children.
48	* ComingOfAgeStory: The story is about a child or adolescent learning to mature.
49	* CoveringUpYourGray: Dyeing your hair to hide the fact that you're going gray.
50	* DigitalDeaging: Digital effects used to make an actor/actress look younger, typically for {{Flashback}}s or {{Prequel}}s.
51	* DreadedKidsTable: The kiddie table becomes insufferable as a character matures.
52	* DualAgeModes: Character shifts between ages.
53	* ElderlyAilmentRambling: The elderly are all too eager to share their medical conditions.
54	* ElderlyImmortal: An immortal being who was already elderly when they gained immortality.
55	* EmotionalMaturityIsPhysicalMaturity: Emotional maturity automatically equates to physical maturity.
56	* EmotionalRegression: Reverting to an immature emotional state.
57	* FeelingTheirAge: A character feels their age.
58	* FictionalAgeOfMajority: Important steps in a character's life.
59	* FirstGrayHair: Someone becoming old is first signaled by finding that their hair is starting to turn gray.
60	* FirstPeriodPanic: A preteen/teen girl has her first menstruation. It marks her transition to womanhood.
61	* FountainOfYouth: Someone ends up becoming significantly younger.
62	** DeathByDeaging: Becoming so young they stop existing or die.
63	* FreshmanFears: Characters in their first year at a secondary or tertiary educational institution face struggles and fears of their school or university.
64	* GlassesOfAging: A character with glasses becomes older over time.
65	* GrowingUpSucks: Characters believe that growing up is unfair because all the things they could do as kids they won't be able to do as adults anymore.
66	* HairTodayGoneTomorrow: A character's aging is illustrated through flashbacks to when they had more hair.
67	* HarmfulToMinors: Something harms minors in ways that it wouldn't someone over the age of majority.
68	* HistoricalLongevityJoke: Joking about a person's age by implying they were around during historical times.
69	* HollywoodMidLifeCrisis: Middle age period includes depression and self-doubt.
70	* HollywoodOld: A young and attractive actress plays the role of an elderly woman without alterations to her appearance.
71	* HumanlikeAnimalAging: Animals don't age like they realistically do.
72	* IGotBigger: A character underwent a growth spurt.
73	* ImmortalImmaturity: Being immortal doesn't stop you from behaving like a child.
74	* ImmortalityBeginsAtTwenty: The age you become immortal is 20.
75	* ImprobableAge: A character's age is inconsistent with their occupation.
76	** CompetenceZone: Certain age ranges are portrayed as useful as opposed to others.
77	* InnocenceLost: Your childlike sense of idealism vanishes.
78	* JadeColoredGlasses: Characters become wiser as they get older and as a result are more jaded to reality.
79	* LeavingTheNestSong: Songs about leaving home and the familiar behind, commonly because of growing up or moving on to a new stage in life.
80	* MaamShock: Referring to female characters as "ma'am" reminds them of the youth they lost.
81	* MerlinSickness: Aging in reverse.
82	* MistakenAge: A character's age is wrongfully assumed.
83	* MonoNoAware: All good things must come to an end.
84	* MusicAgeDissonance: Characters--children or old people--listen to music that is outside their age demographic.
85	* NeverGrewUp: Physical maturity does not prevent emotional immaturity.
86	* NotAllowedToGrowOld: Characters whose physical state remains childlike despite their technical aging.
87	* NotAllowedToGrowUp: Children and teenagers remain the same age regardless of how long the series lasts.
88	* NotGrowingUpSucks: An immortal being who stays a child is upset about never growing up.
89	* OdeToYouth: A song that embraces youth.
90	* OldDog: A dog who is getting on in years.
91	* OldMaid: An 'older' woman who has never been married or in a real relationship.
92	* OldPeopleAreNonsexual: Growing old should kill your libido.
93	* OlderAlterEgo: A character possesses an alter-ego older than themselves.
94	* OlderThanTheyLook: Someone's physical appearance is younger than their true age.
95	* OnlyFatalToAdults: Something harms adults in ways that it wouldn't children.
96	* OvernightAgeUp: Characters grows older overnight.
97	* PlotRelevantAgeUp: A child ages up for plot purposes.
98	* TheProblemWithFightingDeath: If you punch out death, it'll be furious eventually when you die.
99	* ProportionalAging: Living beings gradually grow and develop physical signs of aging across their entire lifespans to the respective rates of other species/races.
100	* PubertySuperpower: Being in the stage of puberty grants one powers.
101	* RapidAging: Someone becomes considerably older at a fast rate.
102	* ReallyWasBornYesterday: The character was born yesterday, jokes be damned.
103	* SeniorCreep: Elderly person with a detestable appearance and/or personality.
104	* SeniorYearStruggles: A senior has problems related to growing up and ending their schooling years.
105	* SexierAlterEgo: A character creates a beautiful alter-ego to make up for their ugliness.
106	* ShapeshifterLongevity: Shapeshifters live longer.
107	* SheIsAllGrownUp: A woman's puberty experience contributes to her presence at a reunion.
108	* ShortLivedOrganism: Lifeforms with unusually short lifespans.
109	* SicklyChildGrewUpStrong: Child who was asthmatic and sickly as a kid grew up into a badass.
110	* SoapOperaRapidAgingSyndrome: A character becomes significantly older between appearances with no explanation.
111	* SupernaturallyYoungParent: For supernatural reasons, a parent is (or at least looks) younger or the same age as their child.
112	* StrongerWithAge: Characters become stronger as they age.
113	* TeenageWasteland: Kids now have adult powers and responsibility and rule over adult society.
114	* TookALevelInCynic: Mainly as a result of their InnocenceLost, a character who was formerly a WideEyedIdealist sees how the world truly is and becomes cynical as a result.
115	* VagueAge: It's unclear or inconsistent how old a character is.
116	* WeAreAsMayflies: Humans are the shortest-lived intelligent race.
117	* WizardsLiveLonger: An expanded lifetime granted by a spellcaster.
118	* YoungerMentorOlderDisciple: An expert teaches an older person their skills.
119	* YoungerThanTheyLook: A character's physical appearance looks older than their true age.
120	* YouthIsWastedOnTheDumb: Young characters are more likely than their elders to engage in stupid, prohibited, or dangerous activities.
121	[[/index]]

Context Main / AgingTropes