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American actress Frances McDormand on the fear of aging and how the desire to look younger deprives us of self-confidence and respect from others.
Frances McDormand turned 64 this year – a crowd favorite, she has played dozens of remarkable roles in film and theater and won many awards, including Oscars for Best Actress in Fargo, Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri and Earth nomads”.
In his infrequent interviews, McDormand often touches on the subject of age. She talks about the fear of aging openly, fearlessly and very accurately. Here are some of her most striking quotes.
Why the human race is in danger
“No one else has the desire to be an adult. No one sees a worthy goal in growing up. We have ceased to perceive the experience that comes with age as a gift. Something has broken in our society: it is indecent to look older than 45 – this applies to clothing, appearance, opinions expressed. Everyone dresses like teenagers. Everyone dyes their hair. Everyone is concerned about having a smooth face.”
About plastic surgery
“I didn’t “correct” anything in myself. Joel and I (the actress’s husband is director Joel Coen, one of the Coen brothers. – Ed.) We talked a lot about this topic. He has to literally force me to close my mouth so that I don’t say everything I think to my friends who have undergone plastic surgery. I become beside myself with fear and rage when I see what they have done to themselves.
About the strength that comes with age
“I feel much stronger and more confident now than when I was younger. I am a woman who is proud of what she has achieved. And I believe that my face and body reflect this confidence and strength.”
About age discrimination
I want to be a role model not only for young men and women – and not only in my profession. I don’t talk about my profession at all now. I believe that plastic surgery in the acting environment is something like professional deformation, the costs of harmful production.
I’m interested in starting a discussion in society – how to age with dignity? Why have we come to see this as a problem for individuals and not society as a whole? I think that ageism (age discrimination) is a disease of our entire civilization, not individual individuals.
About wrinkles – as pointers on the way
“My face is plastic, like rubber. It has always served me well, and especially with age. Wrinkles and folds are like a road map, on which all the routes passed, and I can use it at any time.
About what it’s like to look old
“It means that under your gray hair is a treasure trove, a huge catalog of cards with valuable information.”
Relationships with others in old age
“I want to be treated with respect and even reverence. I want to be the elder, the female elder. I have something to say and how to help. I want to share my experience, I want to be listened to. Then I will feel that I am valued, that I am needed.