care of them. They sit in the sun in summer and they sit by the fire in winter. They do not speak often, for they are weary. The Old Ones know that they are soon to die. When a miracle happens and some live to be forty-five, they are the Ancient Ones, and children stare at them when passing by the Home of the Useless. Such is to be our life, as that of all our brothers and of the brothers who came before us.

This is the unproductive and unsatisfying existence of man in this world: he is born, he suffers, and then he dies. 

The first reason for such a short life expectancy is that there is nothing to live for in this world. The Old Ones have already lived an unfulfilling life, and being in the Home of the Useless certainly does not enhance their lives. With nothing to look forward to, they might as well die.

Another reason is that the Old Ones are not allowed to be productive (hence the name of their institution, the Home of the Useless). It is true that there is little in this world for them to do that does not involve manual labor, so the options are limited; however, having something, anything to do would automatically increase their will to live.

Finally, they are broken men and women by the time they reach forty. They are broken in every way, as they have been forced to do what is required with no regard for their own desires--if they still have them. While their bodies are taken care of and they are able to sit in relative comfort, they have nothing in their spirits which brings them joy. Their bodies are fed but their souls are starving. 

The major point of this society's existence is for all men to work for the benefit of all mankind. Work-this doesn't mean to play or to relax. Every minute of a person's life in the society in which Equality is born is planned out from the day s/he is born to the day s/he dies. The only time a person is allowed to rest is after the age of 40. The people are driven to work out of a united desire to be useful to the society. As seen throughout the story, though, they also work out of fear of what might happen if they don't obey the rules to work and to conform with society's demands and requirements. By the time a person is 40, Equality explains that "at forty, they are worn out. At forty, they are sent to the Home of the Useless, where the Old Ones live. The Old Ones do not work. . . They do not speak often, for they are weary. The Old Ones know that they are soon to die" (28). Thus, it can be inferred from words like "worn out" and "weary" that the toll placed on their bodies in this society may be ruthless; the stress of their lives must be highly demanding as they work every day and live under fear.

Furthermore, living a life for someone else cannot be that satisfying. Without families or the opportunities to seek after one's dreams would be sad and lifeless. Who would want to continue for longer than needed if life didn't represent one's own choices and desires? Equality's society takes choice away from the individual. If an individual cannot choose to live as s/he sees fit, and in the pursuit of happiness, then there's no reason to live. Equality doesn't say this in the book because he doesn't know any better until the very end of the story. By that point, he's just realizing the beauty of life as seen through taking risks when making choices. He chooses to be with Liberty because of the joy it brings him, but he also must face the repercussions of that choice; one being the fact that he cannot live within that society and be with her at the same time. He must leave the society if he wants to stay with her. Also at the end of the book, they are expecting a baby, which is another aspect of life that was denied them.

People must be able to make their own choices in life; if not, then life isn't worth living. It can be inferred by the fact that people only live to be 40-45 that a person really cannot thrive in a society such as this due to the limitation of free will and the stress placed upon them that work is the only meaning of a person's life.