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

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