The Southern Belle With the Spine of Steel
Posted by Sgt. Mom on 13th July 2012 (All posts by Sgt. Mom)
Stephen Vincent Benet nailed down the type, in his poem epic John Brown’s Body, in a phrase that has resonated with me ever since I read it so long ago that I don’t recall when I read it – the quintessential southern belle, who propped up the South on a swansdown fan:
Mary Lou Wingate, as slightly made
And as hard to break as a rapier-blade.
Bristol’s daughter and Wingate’s bride,
Never well since the last child died
But staring at pain with courteous eyes.
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Posted in Americas, Biography, History, Uncategorized | 3 Comments »
