Wrinkles and Wisdom: The Impact of Expression on Aging
The Edwardian beauty guide, Practical Face Treatment and Natural Beauty, was published circa 1900 and provides helpful hints for preserving our beauty at any age.
As we age, our skin's natural production of collagen and elastin declines. This decrease in elasticity contributes to the formation of wrinkles. But not all is lost! “Good looks” come down to a number of factors, and we can be proactive and methodical in our self-maintenance:
But what are good looks? In what lies their magic charm? Fortunately in this, as in many things, tastes differ, and no two opinions exactly coincide. From some standpoints, features are everything; from others, expression; others again, coloring; and so on. Now features are almost unalterable, but with expression and coloring very much can be, and now-a-days, is done.
Expression. Do women and girls ever give thought to this emphatically important attribute? Do they care at all whether people think them sweetly amiable or sourly ill-tempered? Do they realize that, in these days of -ologies and -onomies, their faces are an open book for any casual reader to study? And that it is not only the superficial character that engraves itself in legible lines, but the real underlying motives and actions, the conscious or unconscious reflections of the brain penciled on the countenance, resulting in wrinkles and lines which are also indicative of premature age; i.e., exhaustion of muscles and nerve tissues, and consequent lack of nerve control. Horizontal lines on the forehead come from continual lifting of the eyebrows, parallel lines from contracting or knitting them; lines round the eyes, from screwing them up; lines at the side of the nose, and down the side of the ear, from enervation of the cheek muscle; drooping at the corners of the mouth, from chronic discontent or ill-temper, generally both; and worry is responsible for all these together. Don't worry or show it. In very many instances these index signals are greatly depending on the will to prevent, for they are frequently just neglected tricks of facial contortion developed into habit. Perhaps one notices a puckering up of the brows and remarks, "How you are frowning." In nine cases out of ten the response will be, "Am I? I did not know it, I was thinking--," and then came the discovery how very unnecessary it is to frown and what terrible lines are being made. Having once been pulled up though, it is found out by degrees how very often the trick recurs, and consciousness of it generally commences an effort to discontinue the disfigurement by those with the proper amount of respect for their personal appearance and the feelings of others. It should always be borne in mind that it is not ill-advised vanity and conceit, but amounts almost to a National duty for everyone, man, woman, or child, to appear, and be, their very best at all times; incumbent on all, within their means--not necessarily with extravagance--to add to, not detract from, the symmetry, harmony, and fitness of things. Even the poor can be clean, tidy, and a joy to look upon, though nothing worth doing in this world can be done without perseverance and taking a little trouble. The moral influence of the cheerful countenance, typical of brave self-reliant contentment, plays no mean part in the Battle of Life.
In this excerpt, the guide’s author, an anonymous “London Specialist,” stresses the significant impact of facial expressions on our appearance. The author contends that negative emotions like worry, anger, and discontent prematurely age us by leading to the development of wrinkles and lines. To counteract this, we are urged to be mindful of our facial expressions, consciously avoiding habits such as frowning and squinting. This practice, the author says, not only promotes a more youthful appearance but also projects a positive and confident image. The author leaves us with the following thought: caring for one's appearance is not merely a matter of vanity, but a form of self-respect and consideration for others.