“Through Tattered Clothes” – Shakespearean (?) Sonnet
“Through Tattered Clothes Small Vices Do Appear” (Before Going Out Almost Anywhere)
Even nearing ninety, she changes,
then changes again; electric rollers
a must as twixt mirror, clothes, eye ranges–
“They just treat you better,” (some shoulders
padded, all lined) “if you dress up a bit.”
The sins she tries to hide: that she was poor
as a child; that she lived on a rick-
ety run-down farm that had no power,
no water–she switches to yet another
suit, navy better cover for that farm’s house–
And her sister, never quite right (a shudder)
in an age when right (beneath her bright, bowed blouse)
was required–and all her lifetime’s care
of her– smoothed now beneath the just-curled hair.
************************************
I swore not to do prompts for a while — just too busy–but here’s a sonnet (of sorts) written for Kerry O’Connor’s challenge on Real Toads to write something based on lines from Shakespeare and also posted to Imperfect Prose (though not prose) where Emily Weirenga writes about how we are held by thepast. In this case, my title is taken from some favorite lines from King Lear (Act IV, Scene VI):
“Through tattered clothes small vices do appear;
Robes and furred gowns hide all. Plate sin with gold,
And the strong lance of justice hurtless breaks:
Arm it in rags, a pigmy’s straw does pierce it.”
Tags: " With real toads, "Through Tattered Clothes Small Vices Do Appear, clothes remake the childhood, emperor's new clothes sort of?, manicddaily, Sonnet Based on King Lear lines, Sonnet based on Shakespeare
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ManicDDaily 
June 27, 2012 at 9:45 pm
running from her past still at near 90….i def know some people that fit this bill…those that had little early on that do anything to stay away from it now…
June 27, 2012 at 9:47 pm
Yes- I’m not sure running away is right description. But people can be very wounded by difficulty. k.
June 27, 2012 at 9:47 pm
I should say in this case – lots of people definitely do run away. (I should say “def” now that I’ve learned it.) k.
June 27, 2012 at 10:19 pm
I like how you’ve utilized parenthesis!! Works well great poem!
June 27, 2012 at 10:36 pm
Thanks, Hannah. k.
June 27, 2012 at 10:46 pm
🙂
June 28, 2012 at 12:04 am
she becomes crystal clear in this sonnet, precious even. i think when we simply allow people to be who they are, the world becomes an easier place to navigate. ~jane
June 28, 2012 at 6:15 am
Yes, thanks. k.
June 28, 2012 at 5:11 am
I love a sonnet which breaks the “rules” – I believe that it’s our duty as contemporary poets to reinvent this old fave.
Shakespeare was so good at analyzing human nature, and creating the most accurate cameo roles to demonstrate the human condition, and you have done just that in this poem. This person seems so real and believable, I thought: I know someone exactly like this, as I read. Add to that the skill with which you have constructed your lines…
I loved this piece.
June 28, 2012 at 6:15 am
Thanks so much, Kerry. k.
June 28, 2012 at 6:24 am
What I found interesting was the first stanza where she changes things, philosophizes saying that people treat you better if you dress up a bit. Her appearance is still important at 90. I have known old people like that…and actually I do think it is true. It truly is sad though that a person of 90 would be still worried about childhood difficulties and trying to overcome them. By this time a person should have accepted and moved on instead of being ‘stuck’ in the past! Thought-provoking write here.
June 28, 2012 at 6:27 am
Thanks, Mary. k.
June 28, 2012 at 7:16 am
Nice take on the old lady, hiding her sins, and dressing up so people will treat her right ~ There is dignity and honesty here ~
http://a-sweetlust.blogspot.ca/2012/06/mid-summer-nights-dream.html
June 28, 2012 at 9:17 am
She went from dirt poor to having status. Good for her and, if she has so many clothes she can switch and swap and change about, good for her again. 90 years old is a marvelous age.
Nice read K 🙂
June 28, 2012 at 10:02 am
Thanks – yes, I meant it to be a sympathetic poem, not critical–thanks. k.
June 28, 2012 at 9:37 am
This went straight to a personal connection..my mother at 92 is still most absorbed in ‘appearance’……
This is topical and lovely, K,….and stings to the bone.
Lady Nyo
June 28, 2012 at 10:01 am
Yes, thank you, Jane, for reading and commenting. k.
June 28, 2012 at 12:02 pm
I absolutely love what you did with this…..the focus on the outer perfections to hide the perceived inner imperfections……really well done.
June 28, 2012 at 3:09 pm
nice exploration of the “small tatters” quote, especially as regards its truth quotient – does it mean anything if we’re able to hide our ‘flaws’ from others when we are our worst (& possibly, only) critics? it’s quite sad, but very well done, Karen
June 28, 2012 at 3:25 pm
Thanks, Ruth, for your thoughtful comment. k.
June 28, 2012 at 4:25 pm
really, really nice! i know a few woman like this 😉
June 28, 2012 at 4:47 pm
A great deal of insight here. I’ve known many an old woman like this. And you’re right, Kerry’s challenge was irresistible. I’ve been unable to write anything due to illness, but had to try this one, with the Bard providing such a wealth of words to prompt us.
K
June 28, 2012 at 7:03 pm
This is so neatly done, Karin–as others have said, you make a real person move through the lines in front of us, and you also make the King Lear quote contemporary and relevant(as it already is, but in language and example, I mean.) And a very musical bit of writing as well. I also picked a Lear quote, but not as, ahem… uplifting.
June 28, 2012 at 7:04 pm
Whoa, now I’m curious – thanks. I wasn’t very ironic here, but went for simple – I’ll go check yours out. k.
June 28, 2012 at 11:24 pm
For me, it has a lyrical quality which I love 😀 It feels like Shakespeare, when I read it…he would be thrilled with what you have done! Amazing~
June 29, 2012 at 10:47 pm
i love re-reading your work, friend, letting it soak deep. you use the english language so intelligently. bless you.
June 30, 2012 at 6:29 am
Thanks so much, Emily.
July 1, 2012 at 10:54 pm
One gets wiser with age…. but I guess that isn’t always the case. I hope to be able to chuck all my worries and insecurities to the wind and be able to be myself in another… 30 years. 🙂