Foppishness — how appealing it can be! I still recall with fondness the exaggerated airs put on by the "Scarlet Pimpernel" in one of the classic movie treatments of the book. At one point the principal character (in his regular-life non-heroic rôle of Sir Percy, an upper-crust twit) is describing in verse, with ostentatious limp-wristed gesticulation, his secret alter ego:
| "They seek him here, they seek him there, They do not find him anywhere. Is he in heaven? Is he in -—? [pauses as he points downward] That demmed elusive Pimpernel!" |
(... precise lyrics vary, depending on the mood of the production; above from memory ...)
TopicLiterature - TopicHumor - 2003-05-13
(correlates: NothingnessShowsThrough, Projectile Precision, ThatDepends, ...)