Editor Katherine Swarts has compiled a sequence of essays in a for-or-against format that debate several issues relating to the aging population. One essayist claims that people are afraid of growing old, while another reports that we are becoming much less afraid of aging. Two essayists debate whether there is a remaining prejudice against the elderly. The essay from the Economist helps readers to understand that delayed retirement will minimize age-related economic problems while James H. Schulz reports that the opposite is true. Readers will engage their critical thinking skills in order to determine which sides of the debates they agree with, allowing them to develop well-rounded opinions.