Most parents want their children to be obedient and polite. Not Angelina Jolie, People is reporting. Jolie has her hands full with six kids: Maddox, 17; Pax, 15; Zahara, 13; Shiloh, 12; and 10-year-old twins Vivienne and Knox. During an interview on BBC Radio4’s Today , Jolie opened up about letting her children explore who they are, as well as talked about how she herself acted in her adolescence.
“[My kids] all have a good rebellious streak that is wonderful and curious,” Jolie shared. “I don’t want them to be perfectly behaved little people that just say what’s absolutely appropriate because I say so … they have to find themselves.”
Jolie says she also had that same rebellious streak growing up, and it helped shape her identity today.
“I was a bit of a young punk,” she said. “I loved the idea of fighting for something you believe in however hard, and being brave in your life in your choices, and doing something your own way. And I don’t feel I’ve changed much at all, in fact.”
Jolie certainly has brought that outlook into adulthood, seeing as she discussed many of her humanitarian efforts in the interview. She’s an ambassador for the U.N. Refugee Agency and takes her position very seriously. Jolie explained how, in a sense, her humanitarian efforts could be considered rebellious.
“Today, there’s a lot of focus on people focusing on their selves — their needs, their opinions, their sculpted news — and maybe the new rebellion is to hold to your values and to understand policies and politics, and fight for your fellow man,” she explained. “Maybe that actually is the rebellion.”
As for her children, she tries to keep them informed as possible, but they don’t find out things the typical way most teenagers do. For instance, no one in the family has a Facebook account. Still, Jolie talks to her kids about social media and deciphering what is real and what is not. She explained how her kids have a different insight that many kids don’t, as the children have seen lies about themselves in tabloids, so they “have a very odd sense of who’s telling the truth and what the truth really is and what they actually believe or trust.”
While Jolie considers it important to be aware of international issues, she shared that since her kids come from different backgrounds, they are able to educate each other. Shiloh, for example, is attempting to learn Maddox’s home country’s language, and Vivienne has expressed wanting to live in Zahara’s home country. While their family may live an unconventional life, it can’t be said that their bond is different than any other family.
