Where does the following text come from: “She had other little confessions of affection, too, that she made from time to time; always with a little hesitation, as if understandably delicate about bearing her heart; she told her love of color, the country, a good time, a really interesting play, nice materials, well-made clothes, and sunshine.”
I’ll give you a hint, a line from the same story: “I love flowers’, she said, in one of her little rushes of confidence.”
Okay, I’ll concede; it’s from the ever so clever Dorothy Parker and her story, “Too Bad,” written in July 1923.
Although I’m aware that I’m opinionated and pretty verbal about it, many of my convictions swing between grey and light grey. Except for one- fictional social commentary doesn’t get much better than that of Dorothy Parker. I’m re-reading one of her anthologies right now, and am trying to digest how, though almost all her stories were written over half a century ago, her astute, often biting, observations on the bourgeoisie, married life, and emotional daily scenes continue to be relevant and on point.
Although I nearly idolize Dorothy Parker and her witticisms on ordinary realities, and I’d like to think that if I were ever to meet her, I could come up with something better to say than, “Oh, snap!” I can’t imagine her drinking wine. If she were to come over for a drink, I’d likely pour her a vodka neat: clear, strong, sharp and straightforward. Naturally, she would then tell me that drinks and prose have nothing to do with each other.
