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Ian Reid: “Aging is taboo, immortality is terrifying.”



Gets Line Reid in dispersion (AdN) that puts the reader himself in place Penny, an old woman who has been living alone for years After the death of his partner, after a minor accident at home, he sees him from day to day Trapped With three other inmates in a noisy dorm which you are not allowed to leave. Classification is inevitable Psychological suspense His new novel though the Canadian writer appreciates it Don’t call it that excitement. Because the celebrated author I am thinking of quitting smoking (which has emerged as one of the most watched films on Netflix, directed by Charlie Kaufman) draws attention to topics such as aging, “still taboo,” and the loss of physical and mental capabilities that often act out.

On arrival at the dorm, everything looks nice, the bed is comfortable, and the food is delicious. But there is an unnatural force that prevents Penny from doing something as normal as going outdoors. Others dictate what your life should be like. This is Terrifying And it scares me, says Reed (Canada, 1980) in an exclusive interview via video conference. It’s more real than being chased by a madman with a knife.

“I write about my concerns and questions. Such as the disastrous social pressure to stay forever young, which devalues ​​old age. Our culture fears getting old. And the possibility of losing control of your life when it is accompanied by cognitive decline worries me,” he admitted.

“in dispersion Two versions of the story coexist. On the one hand, you think it’s all part of Penny’s mind deteriorating with age, but on the other hand, you’re skeptical and you think that something strange is going on in this dwelling and that the landlord, Shelly, is an evil force,” admits the writer, who goes further and raises Reflection in eternity: “Although it may not seem so to people, What’s scarier than getting older is getting older. He’s creepy. Eternity has an undeniable allure. There is more to see than the search for the Holy Grail and the Fountain of Eternal Youth, but it seems like hell to me. What makes life attractive is that it has a beginning and an end.“.

What makes life attractive is that it has a beginning and an end.

Writing was, and still is, a part of the Reid family environment. “My father taught English philology and my mother wrote children’s stories.” Her sister has also published books, including, she says, “a book about how she hates the perception of being a vase woman and what it means to be first lady”: She is married to the president of Iceland, Guðni Th. Johannesson. “My brother-in-law is an academic and historian. Iceland is a very small country, everyone knows each other and they said to him, ‘You’re smart, why don’t you run for president?'” He smiles.

But who influenced you to write? dispersion She was her grandmother. “I had a close relationship with her. She was widowed very early. But around the age of 100 she fell down, like Penny, and started to suffer from some dementia. We decided to put her in a nursing home. I was touched by the courage she had which changed because I was living alone in The same house for many years, ever since I was a nurse during World War II. That was my first contact with lodgings. There I saw people who, despite some perceptual impairment, were able to establish relationships with other people.”

Epidemic and housing

He finished the novel just before the epidemic. “It was a sad coincidence – regret – that in Canada the same thing happened as in many other countries with nursing homes, where many people died of the Corona virus. It revealed the conditions in which they work and How insignificant the elderly are. I just hope we learned something.”

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Reid, along with producer and director Minhan Baig, is Putting the final touches on the script to take it to the cinema dispersionfrom his point of view that “the accumulated knowledge and experience of the elderly is not valued enough. On the other hand, physical appearance and vitality are valued.” It’s sad and it’s wrong -emphasis-. There are economic interests: since we are born we receive messages asking you to do this or take another to see yourself younger and better. My grandmother felt very fortunate to have lived so many years even if it meant giving up some things. We forget that we are not guaranteed to get old“.

We forget that we are not guaranteed to get old

The protagonist wanted to be a painter but put her career on hold because her partner, a famous artist, ended up shadowing her. “In the history of art, it is common to find pairs of artists in which the man is the one who is considered a true artist. This is reflected in all aspects of society. What do we value? A professional who sells? Penny is also a good artist.. We must not allow the opinions of others to influence us.” on your art.”

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