"My mother, she didn't believe in praise. She'd never say anything was great. I think that's quite Northern, to not make people feel too good. I didn't mind if she was proud of me or not, it didn't bother me. I was never trying to please her"
- Victoria Wood
About this Quote
This quote by Victoria Wood speaks with the concept of Northern stoicism, where people are not excessively meaningful with their feelings. Wood's mother did not think in praise, and never ever said anything was fantastic. This might be seen as a method of not making individuals feel too good, as if to secure them from dissatisfaction. Wood, however, was not troubled by her mom's absence of appreciation, as she was not attempting to please her. This might be viewed as a type of durability, where Wood was not depending on her mother's approval to feel great about herself. This quote speaks with the idea that we need to not count on external recognition to feel great about ourselves, and that we should have the ability to find our own self-confidence.