Towards a sociological imagination of menopause

This article presents the monograph Reimagining Menopause as a sociological response to the heightened public visibility of menopause in the West and the increasing attention it is receiving in the Global South in recent years. Employing C. W. Mills’ concept of the sociological imagination as a lens, the monograph examines how individuals’ and groups’ diverse lived experiences of menopause relate to and interact with contemporary cultural narratives and social discourses and structures. The articles in the monograph highlight the significance of the current visibility of menopause in challenging its historical invisibility, while also underscoring the limitations and exclusionary character of dominant ways of imagining menopause, ageing, femininity and the body. The article discusses the monograph’s contribution to sociological scholarship on gender, the body and ageing, to demonstrating the continuing importance and utility of the sociological imagination, as well as to advancing creative methods for reimagining social issues and domains, particularly those related to the body. The final section presents the central questions addressed by the monograph and outlines its three sections: (1) Current menopause imaginations: Narratives and actors; (2) Social imaginaries and lived experience of menopause; and (3) Reimagining menopause: Methods, modes, media.