Abstract

BRAS, Ana Rita. Gone with the widowhood? The impact of the death of the husband on the role of women within the family. Forum Sociológico [online]. 2022, n.40, pp.59-71.  Epub July 29, 2022. ISSN 0872-8380.  https://doi.org/10.4000/sociologico.10535.

Despite the significant weight of the elderly population in the Portuguese society, there is still little scientific literature on their experiences, especially on widowed older women. In order to overcome this lack of knowledge, this paper discusses how widowhood impacts the role of women within the family.

This discussion is based on a range of contributions from different fields of studies - such as sociology of the family, women’s and ageing studies - and on the narratives of fifteen widowed women - collected through in-depth interviews.

The narratives of the women interviewed revealed a pattern in the way of living widowhood, which is present in all dimensions of their lives, mostly oriented to others and rarely to themselves. Their trajectories are marked by multiple inequalities and significantly shaped by traditional models and representations, proving that widowhood did not take everything.

Keywords : women; widowhood; aging; family.

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