The Cult of Youth
Anti-Ageing in Modern Britain

The first account of anti-ageing and rejuvenation in modern Britain, exploring hormones, diet, electrotherapy, exercise and skin care.

James F. Stark (Author)

9781108705974, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 15 December 2022

264 pages
22.9 x 15.2 x 1.4 cm, 0.389 kg

'It is a rare book in our field that gives voice to characters as diverse as Linus Pauling, a public servant with the London City Council, and Elizabeth Arden. The Cult of Youth could be lauded on this achievement alone. To his credit, Stark has given us many other reasons to be impressed with this book and to expect its wide reception and citation.' Patrick M. Walsh, Journal of the History of Biology

In this major new study, James F. Stark provides the first historical account of the most dominant ideas, practices, and material cultures associated with anti-ageing and rejuvenation in modern Britain. With a focus on the interwar period, his study uncovers the role of the commercial world in influencing attitudes towards ageing and youth. Stark argues that the technologies of anti-ageing, their commercialisation and their consumption made rejuvenation a possible and desirable aim in a period of socio-political instability, mechanised conflict and extending lifespans. Ultimately, Stark offers an innovative historical account, which draws together bodies, gender, science, medicine, advertising, and ageing, and shows how the quest for youth was transformed by social anxieties about an ageing population and economic crisis.

1. Introduction
2. Hormones, 1918–1929
3. Diet, 1918–1929
4. Electrotherapy, 1925–1932
5. Exercise, 1930–1939
6. Skin care, 1930 and beyond
7. Conclusion
8. Postscript.

Subject Areas: History of medicine [MBX], Medical profession [MBD], Social & cultural history [HBTB], History: specific events & topics [HBT], History [HB], Humanities [H]