Descriptions
- Penny Colman
- Mar 19, 2017
- 2 min read
When we entered a medical supply store, the woman standing behind a long counter was focused on putting staples in a stapler. Our approach did not solicit her attention. Aware that the store was closing in ten minutes, I asked, “Do you have a knee sleeve?” Continuing her task, she brusquely replied, “Who’s it for?” “Me,” I said. Aware that the store was closing in ten minutes, I added, “and if tell me where they are, I’ll go see what you have.”” u can’t!” Still fussing with the stapler, she snapped, “You can’t.” “Why not,” I asked. “They’re locked in a closet.” Typically I would have had no patience with someone like that, except I was distracted by her appearance: dark dyed hair, very bright red rouge, very bright red lipstick, an effort, it seemed to camouflage what I guessed to be her 70+ age. Back in the car (yes, I got the knee sleeve), Linda and I compared our impressions: “Sour,” said Linda. “Very red rouge,” I said. The experience prompted me to tell Linda about my ongoing project of compiling physical descriptions from nonfiction sources, e.g. The New Yorker articles. It has been sometime since I looked at my list, so when we returned home, I opened the file and reviewed it. Here’s one example from each category:
Body, – rattle-boned; Complexion – neither pale nor tan;Hair – unkempt; Face – laugh-lined; Eyes – usually filled with humor, but not today; Eye Brows – thick, fierce; Nose – like the prow of a ship; Mouth – thin, full, curved down; Cheeks – cheekbones as sharp as knives; Ears – asymmetic; Chin – cinder-block; Smiles- sweet grandmotherly; Teeth- gleaming; Voice- the equivalent of a nasal air honk; Neck – scrawny and ropey; Personality – not prone to soapboxes; Appearance – disheveled
Also when I’m writing about a historic person, I collect descriptions of them written by their contemporaries. For example here is Arthur Schlesinger, Jr’s description of Frances Perkins: “Brisk and articulate, with vivid dark eyes, a broad forehead and a pointed chin, usually wearing a felt tricorn hat, she remained a Brahmin reformer, proud of her New England background . . . and intent on beating sense into the heads of those foolish people who resisted progress. She had pungency of character, a dry wit, an inner gaiety, an instinct for practicality, a profound well of religious feeling and a compulsion to instruct . . .”
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