--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Stages of life are artifacts. Adolescence…" description: "\"Stages of life are artifacts. Adolescence is a useful contrivance, midlife is a moving target, senior citizens are an interest group, and tweenhood is ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aa7/jill-lepore-4886_adolescence_stages-of-life-are-artifacts-adolescence_3206778.png" --- # Stages of life are artifacts. Adolescence is a useful… ![“Stages of life are artifacts. Adolescence is a useful contrivance, midlife is a moving target, senior citizens are an interest group, and tweenhood is just plain made up.” quote by Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aa7/jill-lepore-4886_adolescence_stages-of-life-are-artifacts-adolescence_3206778.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aa7/jill-lepore-4886_adolescence_stages-of-life-are-artifacts-adolescence_3206778.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aa7/jill-lepore-4886_adolescence_stages-of-life-are-artifacts-adolescence_3206778.png) > “Stages of life are artifacts. Adolescence is a useful contrivance, midlife is a moving target, senior citizens are an interest group, and tweenhood is just plain made up.” [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Life stages are social constructs that help us understand development but are not fixed realities. **In simple terms:** Life phases are labels, not absolute truths. Key Takeaway Use stages as guides, not limits. Themes sociology development identity culture Mood analytical thoughtful critical Type sociological inspirational When to use this quote - education - career planning - parenting - policy making Key Concepts social constructs life phases age categories Questions to Reflect On - How do you feel about the label of your current life stage? - What benefits come from seeing stages as fluid? A Different Perspective Rigid stage thinking can restrict personal growth. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Adolescence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adolescence/) [Age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age/) [Generations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/generations/) [Goals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goals/) [Interest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interest/) [Interest groups](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interest-groups/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Midlife](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/midlife/) [Senior citizen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/senior-citizen/) [Senior citizens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/senior-citizens/) [Stage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stage/) [Stages of life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stages-of-life/) [Youth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/youth/) ## Related quotes > [Mainly, the more faddish and newer stages of life are really just marketing schemes. Tweenhood. The young old. The quarter-life crisis. You can sell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/mainly-the-more-faddish-and-newer-stages-of-life-are-really-just-2/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [Mainly, the more faddish and newer stages of life are really just marketing schemes. Tweenhood. The young old. The quarter-life crisis.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/mainly-the-more-faddish-and-newer-stages-of-life-are-really-just/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [The older that we get and the different stages we go through in life, it seems like we become different people. But I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-rue/the-older-that-we-get-and-the-different-stages-we-go-through-in-life/) [Sara Rue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-rue/) > [At some stages of your life you will deal with things and at others you are overwhelmed with misery and anxiety.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigella-lawson/at-some-stages-of-your-life-you-will-deal-with-things-and-at-others/) [Nigella Lawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigella-lawson/) > [There are three stages of life: youth, maturity, and 'My, you're looking good!'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-d-eisenhower/there-are-three-stages-of-life-youth-maturity-and-my-you-re-looking/) [Dwight D. Eisenhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-d-eisenhower/) > [There are stages in life in which you have to bring things to a close because of motivation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerard-pique/there-are-stages-in-life-in-which-you-have-to-bring-things-to-a-close/) [Gerard Pique](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerard-pique/) > [“There are many forms of love as there is moments in time, and you are capable of feeling them all at different stages of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-alder/there-are-many-forms-of-love-as-there-is-moments-in-time-and-you-are/) [Shannon Alder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-alder/) > [“There are five stages of life. We live to learn, love, to loose and eventually we die. How will you go about living? The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/v-ronique-m-lafont/there-are-five-stages-of-life-we-live-to-learn-love-to-loose-and/) Véronique M. LaFont > [“Everyone propels at different stages of their life. Just keep calm, work on it and wait on your right moment!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hopal-green/everyone-propels-at-different-stages-of-their-life-just-keep-calm/) [Hopal Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hopal-green/) > [Everyone has a friend during each stage of life. But only lucky ones have the same friend in all stages of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-has-a-friend-during-each-stage-of-life-but-only-lucky-ones/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You see there are different stages to life and in each inividual stage you become the person you are and grow even stronger.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-lee-riner/you-see-there-are-different-stages-to-life-and-in-each-inividual/) [Justin Lee Riner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-lee-riner/) > [Yes, the experience of all stages of life are valuable, not just of youth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-petrie/yes-the-experience-of-all-stages-of-life-are-valuable-not-just-of/) [Daniel Petrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-petrie/) > [“Each of these thoughts which you have chance to read from mein... came stages in my life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deyth-banger/each-of-these-thoughts-which-you-have-chance-to-read-from-mein-came/) Deyth Banger > [Stages of life: 1) You believe in Santa Claus. 2) You don't believe in Santa Claus. 3) You are Santa Claus. 4) You look like Santa Claus.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/stages-of-life-1-you-believe-in-santa-claus-2-you-don-t-believe-in/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [None of my own experiences ever finds its way into my work. However, the stages of my life - motherhood, middle age, etc. -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-tyler/none-of-my-own-experiences-ever-finds-its-way-into-my-work-however/) [Anne Tyler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-tyler/) ## More by Jill Lepore > [Weirdly, there have been a lot of critics of conservatism, but very few critics of innovation. As a culture, we are deeply paranoid about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/weirdly-there-have-been-a-lot-of-critics-of-conservatism-but-very-few/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [History is only written from what remains.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/history-is-only-written-from-what-remains/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [The study of history requires investigation, imagination, empathy, and respect. Reverence just doesn't enter into it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/the-study-of-history-requires-investigation-imagination-empathy-and/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [Well-reported news is a public good; bad news is bad for everyone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/well-reported-news-is-a-public-good-bad-news-is-bad-for-everyone/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [The very first television ad targeted to women was produced by the Eisenhower-Nixon campaign in 1956. It includes footage of a woman supervising her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/the-very-first-television-ad-targeted-to-women-was-produced-by-the/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [Republicans were more pro-choice than Democrats up until the late 1980s.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/republicans-were-more-pro-choice-than-democrats-up-until-the-late/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [It feels silly to watch endless hours of winter sports every four years, when we never watch them any other time, and we don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/it-feels-silly-to-watch-endless-hours-of-winter-sports-every-four/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [Historians once assumed that when childhood mortality was high, people must not have loved their children very much; it would have been too painful.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/historians-once-assumed-that-when-childhood-mortality-was-high-people/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [When carrying a concealed weapon for self-defense is understood NOT as a failure of civil society, to be mourned, but as an act of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/when-carrying-a-concealed-weapon-for-self-defense-is-understood-not/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > ['Doctor Who' is, unavoidably, a product of mid-twentieth-century debates about Britain's role in the world as its empire unravelled.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/doctor-who-is-unavoidably-a-product-of-mid-twentieth-century-debates/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [“Still, it strikes me that, taken together, they do make an argument, and it is this: the rise of American democracy is bound up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/still-it-strikes-me-that-taken-together-they-do-make-an-argument-and/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [One day, I was playing 'The Game of Life,' the board game, with a mess of kids, and I wasn't quite sure how, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/one-day-i-was-playing-the-game-of-life-the-board-game-with-a-mess-of/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [Mainly, the more faddish and newer stages of life are really just marketing schemes. Tweenhood. The young old. The quarter-life crisis.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/mainly-the-more-faddish-and-newer-stages-of-life-are-really-just/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [“Politics is a story about the relationship between the past and the future; history is a story about the relationship between the past and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/politics-is-a-story-about-the-relationship-between-the-past-and-the/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [Not long before my mother died, I found a long-lost portrait of Jane Franklin's granddaughter, Jane Flagg, aged nine - oil on canvas -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/not-long-before-my-mother-died-i-found-a-long-lost-portrait-of-jane/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) [Explore all 105 Jill Lepore quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) ## More Adolescence quotes > [They must move from a psychological state of victimization to a psychological state of accepting responsibility. The Palestinians must leave behind their revolutionary adolescence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-shavit/they-must-move-from-a-psychological-state-of-victimization-to-a/) [Ari Shavit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-shavit/) > [Having children truly ends adolescence. We are all either parents or children: responsibility-takers or those who demand from others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-shapiro/having-children-truly-ends-adolescence-we-are-all-either-parents-or/) [Ben Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-shapiro/) > [Teenage girls are extremists who see the world in black-and- white terms, missing shades of gray. Life is either marvelous or notworth living. School…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-pipher/teenage-girls-are-extremists-who-see-the-world-in-black-and-white/) [Mary Pipher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-pipher/) > [Teenagers complain there's nothing to do, then stay out all night doing it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-phillips/teenagers-complain-there-s-nothing-to-do-then-stay-out-all-night/) [Bob Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-phillips/) > [The idols of one's adolescence tend to endure - you never forget how you worshipped them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/molly-ivins/the-idols-of-one-s-adolescence-tend-to-endure-you-never-forget-how/) [Molly Ivins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/molly-ivins/) > [Being an adult is the ability to postpone a want for the sake of a family need.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hogan/being-an-adult-is-the-ability-to-postpone-a-want-for-the-sake-of-a/) [Chris Hogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hogan/) > [The donning of the ear buds marks the beginning of teen life, when children set off on their own for the passage through adolescence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amity-shlaes/the-donning-of-the-ear-buds-marks-the-beginning-of-teen-life-when/) [Amity Shlaes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amity-shlaes/) > [Adolescence is when the very worst and best impulses in the human soul struggle against each other for possession.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-stanley-hall/adolescence-is-when-the-very-worst-and-best-impulses-in-the-human/) [G. Stanley Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-stanley-hall/) > [Most adults would not dream of belittling, humiliating, or bullying (verbally or physically) another adult. But many of the same adults think nothing of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-steinberg/most-adults-would-not-dream-of-belittling-humiliating-or-bullying/) [Laurence Steinberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-steinberg/) > [If you can't count, they can cheat you. If you can't read, they can beat you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/if-you-can-t-count-they-can-cheat-you-if-you-can-t-read-they-can-beat/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“He'd possessed all the key elements of a school shooter: hormones, misery, ammunition. People wondered how something like Columbine could happen. Jude wondered why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-hill/he-d-possessed-all-the-key-elements-of-a-school-shooter-hormones/) [Joe Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-hill/) > [ I remember realizing, when I did Little Women \[1994\], that that was the only time girls that age were being written about. It was… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winona-ryder/i-remember-realizing-when-i-did-little-women-1994-that-that-was-the/) [Winona Ryder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winona-ryder/) > [Content without style is propaganda or adolescence. Style without content is decadence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-mae-brown/content-without-style-is-propaganda-or-adolescence-style-without/) [Rita Mae Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-mae-brown/) > [Adolescence is interesting. I mean, all of life is interesting and all of life is transitionary. But I think there is an exponential growth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-henson/adolescence-is-interesting-i-mean-all-of-life-is-interesting-and-all/) [Bill Henson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-henson/) > [“Yet GenX'er teens didn't slow down--they were just as likely to drive, drink alcohol, and date as their Boomer peers and more likely to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-m-twenge/yet-genx-er-teens-didn-t-slow-down-they-were-just-as-likely-to-drive/) [Jean M. Twenge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-m-twenge/) [Browse all 787 Adolescence quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adolescence/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Stages of life are artifacts. 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