oedipus.

In the short play Oedipus Rex, Oedipus struggles with defining his identity because he does not comprehend his past. Such an identity crisis is parallel to the way society would act if they had no recollection of their age. Before Oedipus understood his identity, he was not only confident, but content with who he believed himself to be. As he addressed his city he proudly proclaims, "here I am myself-- you all know me, the world knows my fame: I am Oedipus" (7-9). His proud definition of his own self reveals that he does not need to know the truth to portray his identity, regardless of how wrong he is. This is similar to how the absences of labeling age as a number would allow people to blissfully act as they wish. 

In this case, ignorance form the truth allows for people to flourish as supposed to restricting oneself to the negative connotations that come with the truth, whether it be Oedipus's painful fate or an age old number. Oedipus is warned by the Shepard that "if you are the man he says you are, believe me you were born for pain" (13004-5). An undesirable fate could have been avoided if Oedipus did not seek the truth, similar to how a lack of association with age creates an open mind. It is not that the ignorance of age will physically change one's appearance... for a person’s body will continue to age regardless of what the mind believes the body to be. Oedipus, even when he was unaware of the meaning behind his past, still suffers from swollen feet and scars. Regardless of his physical attributes, he remains mentally sane until he comes to the realization of his past.

What we choose to believe is a detrimental factor towards shaping who we are. It's wrong to think that the social connotations that come with age are left to define who we are and change our mentality towards our behavior. Oedipus is a keen example of how the human mind is capable of seeing only what it wants to see; he saw what he thought was the truth and believed it until he was told otherwise, thus destroying every mental ideal he once held. Without the label of age, people will be more inclined to act as they please and not grow mentally old into a standard that others hold with age.