Golden age (metaphor)

For the mythological meaning see Golden Age.

A golden age is a period in a field of endeavour where great tasks were accomplished. The term originated from early Greek and Roman poets who used to refer to a time when mankind lived in a utopia and was pure (see Golden Age).

Disambiguation

• The Golden Age is a book by John C. Wright ISBN 0812579844
• The Golden Age of DC Comics is a book by Les Daniels, Chip Kidd, and Geoff Spear ISBN 0810949695
• The Golden Age : A Novel is a book by Gore Vidal ISBN 0375724818
• The Immortal Bobby : Bobby Jones and the Golden Age of Golf is a book by Ron Rapoport ISBN 0471473723
• China : Dawn of a Golden Age, 200-750 AD is a book by James Watt et al. ISBN 0300104871
• "Golden Age": A song by Midnight Oil
• Golden Age of Detective Fiction, and era of detective fiction.

Golden Age in society

A society's Golden Age marks that period in its history having a heightened output of art, science, literature, and philosophy.

• Athenian Golden Age presided by Pericles
• Golden age of Latin literature, the period in Latin literature between Cicero and Ovid.
• Islamic Golden Age
• Chinese Golden Age, around 1000 AD. From the beginning of the Tang Dynasty to the end of the Tang Dynasty.
• Golden age of Jewish culture in Spain, period between 900 and 1100
• Siglo de oro:
  • the powerful Spanish Empire between 16th and 17th centuries
  • the later Spanish Golden Age of the arts in the 17th century.
• Golden Age of England presided by Elizabeth I of England.
• Dutch Golden Age, 17th century
• German Golden Age, German Empire, 1871-1914
• Polish Golden Age, 16th century, early 17th century
• Grand Siècle, the reigns of Louis XIII and Louis XIV.
• Golden Age of Piracy

Technology

A golden age is often ascribed to the years immediately following some technological innovation. It is during this time that writers and artists ply their skills to this new medium. Therefore, there are Golden Ages of both radio and television. During this nascent phase the technology allows new ideas to be expressed, as new art forms flower quickly into new areas:

• The Golden Age of Radio, early 20th century
• The Golden Age of Hollywood animation
• Golden Age of Arcade Games, the early 1980s to early 1990s
• Golden Age of Television (ca. 1950s)
• Golden Age of Aviation, period between the two World Wars, 1920s and 1930s.

Genre

Technology and creativity spawn new genres in literature and theatre. The onset of a new genre will be its Golden Age:

• Golden age of Swordplay, period of Sword skills between 16th and 18th century.
• Golden Age of Science Fiction, period from the early 1940s through the 1950s
• Golden age of the Italian Horror movie (ca. 1957-1979)
• The Golden Age of the British whodunit, early 20th century
• Golden Age of Comic Books, period between 1938 and 1945

Senior citizen

Companies will use "Golden Age" as a marketing euphemism to replace "Senior Citizen":

• Golden Age Passport, a National Park Service pass for citizens who are 62 or older.