Generally
most people are very obsessed with age - other people's, and especially
a woman's. As if a person's intelligence, personality, ability,
capability, and in all other aspects depend totally on a determining
figure, that of his or her age. As if they have never come across an old
man or woman of 25 who think their life is over and do nothing about
it, or young man or woman of 70, 80 or 90, who think they are capable of
anything and everything, and act upon all their proposed projects with
unstoppable energy and zest.
Diana Athill was definitely a young lady of 91, who was in 2009 awarded Costa prize for her biography, in which she constituted a very intelligent and emotional account of what it means to get old; candid without falling into self compassion, detailing indignities that old age brings but also the compensations. Just think, old age is really not so bad considering the alternative! Diana Athill, editor of great editors like Philip Roth, John Updike, Margaret Atwood, Brian Moore and Norman Mailer, certainly had plenty to write about of her very long and intense life of love, passions, successes and tragedies, also been objects of many and diverse books of memories. Her book 'Somewhere near the end' was chosen for the prize of Costa, her own biography, well worth reading even if you are nowhere near old age. She had the courage to classify herself as selfish, lazy, also admitting that loyalty is not her favourite virtue, preferring 'intellectual charity' (I got to think deep on this definition) and, 'not always faithful'! Under her 4 cardinal principals of how she valued books: brevity, precision, lucidness, and transparency, her books include fiction and non-fiction: 'An unavoidable delay', 'Don't look at me like that', Making believe' and 'Stet' which tells her editorial world, published in 2000. She lives alone, in Primrose Hill, the most elegant district of London. She says getting old is the biggest surprise of her life!! Although she, amongst many other people of her age but remaining active both mentally and physically, has proven that age is nothing more than just numbers.
Tags:oldage,biography,
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