I don't dress like a fop, it's true, but my moral grooming is impeccable. I never appear in public with a soiled conscience, a tarnished honor, threadbare scruples, or an insult that I haven't washed away. I'm always immaculately clean, adorned with independence and frankness. I may not cut a stylish figure, but I hold my soul erect. I wear my deeds as ribbons, my wit is sharper then the finest mustache, and when I walk among men I make truths ring like spurs.
You’ve likely crossed pathes with this character before, but in his more contemporary form. The 1897 play by the French poet Edmond Rostand goes by the title Cyrano de Bergerac and is based on the real-world Hercule-Savinien Cyrano de Bergerac, yet another French poet who lived centuries earlier and was known for his overly large nose.
Here’s his modern interpretation.
Originally published on The Minot Voice: January 12, 2015