Descrição
This article aims at discussing the role of elderly grandparents who take care of their grandchildren in contemporary times. With this segment of the population being commonly referred to as people in the ‘third age’, we give special attention to the elderly grandparents and we analyze their social role in the family context. This study is a result of bibliographical research as methodology and intends to contribute to the theoretical thinking on the theme, based on the works of the following authors: Bauman, Beauvoir, Camarano, Christopher Lasch Giddens, Iamamoto, Lopes, Osterne, Petrini, Sarti, Szymanski and Vitale. These authors discuss the role of elderly grandparents in modern society in which multiple actors rearrange the family structure. The results of this study indicate that family as an institution is subject to constant change, being organized and reorganized in its roles and functions to meet the challenges posed by the modern world, amid the uncertainties and dynamism. Thus, with the turmoil of the globalized world, we highlight the relevance of the role the elderly grandparents play in their grandchildren’s lives.||O presente artigo tem como objeto de reflexão os idosos avós, que cuidam de seus netos, na contemporaneidade. A esse segmento da população reconhecida por terceira idade, com um recorte aos idosos avós, refletimos sobre a função social que ocupam, no âmbito familiar. O método utilizado foi a pesquisa bibliográfica que trouxe contribuições para embasamento teórico os seguintes autores: BAUMAN, BEAUVOIR, CAMARANO, CHRISTOPHER LASCH GIDDENS, IAMAMOTO, LOPES, OSTERNE, PETRINI, SARTI, SZYMANSKI e VITALE. Nesses autores foi possível situar o lugar dos idosos avós na sociedade moderna em que atores múltiplos reordenam a estrutura familiar. Através do presente estudo, constatou-se que a instituição família passa por constantes transformações, sofrendo organizações e reorganizações em seus papéis e funções, ao enfrentar os desafios impostos pelo mundo moderno, em meio as suas incertezas e dinamismo. Destarte, em meio às turbulências decorrentes do mundo globalizado, destaca-se a relevância que esses avós idosos exercem na vida dos netos.Keywords: Paul Ricoeur. Greeks x barbarians antithesis. Foreigner. Alterity. Xenophobia.A social role of elderly grandparents in contemporaneity:a preliminary analysis of family structureAbstractThis article aims at discussing the role of elderly grandparents who takecare of their grandchildren in contemporary times. With this segment of the population being commonly referred to as people in the ‘third age’, wegive special attention to the elderly grandparents and we analyze their socialrole in the family context. This study is a result of bibliographical researchas methodology and intends to contribute to the theoretical thinking onthe theme, based on the works of the following authors: Bauman, Beauvoir,Camarano, Christopher Lasch Giddens, Iamamoto, Lopes, Osterne, Petrini,Sarti, Szymanski and Vitale. These authors discuss the role of elderly grandparents in modern society in which multiple actors rearrange the familystructure. The results of this study indicate that family as an institution issubject to constant change, being organized and reorganized in its rolesand functions to meet the challenges posed by the modern world, amid theuncertainties and dynamism. Thus, with the turmoil of the globalized world,we highlight the relevance of the role the elderly grandparents play in their grandchildren’s lives.Keywords: Modernity. Family. Elderly. Intergenerational Relations.
