THE SHADOW DOLL
(This was sent to the bride-to-be in Victorian times, by her dressmaker. It consisted of a porcelain doll, under a dome of glass, modeling the proposed wedding dress.)
They stitched blooms from ivory tulle
to hem the oyster gleam of the veil.
They made hoops for the crinoline.
Now, in summary and neatly sewn --
a porcelain bride in an airless glamour --
the shadow doll survives its occasion.
Under glass, under wraps, it stays
even now, after all, discreet about
visits, fevers, quickenings and lusts
and just how, when she looked at
the shell-tone spray of seed pearls,
the bisque features, she could see herself
inside it all, holding less than real
stephanotis, rose petals, never feeling
satin rise and fall with the vows
I kept repeating on the night before --
astray among the cards and wedding gifts --
the coffee pots and the clocks and
the battered tan case full of cotton
lace and tissue paper, pressing down, then
pressing down again. And then, locks.
Image from http://farm1.staticflickr.com/176/432725493_ca243f14fd_z.jpg?zz=1
Maybe Boland believes this doll to be devoid of a full life and it's pleasures, " Under glass, under wraps... discreet about visits, fevers, quickenings and lusts". The bride-to-be obviously sees herself as the doll on the physical side of things, but maybe she also imagines herself as leading a life without joy, pain, lust etc. " the bisque features, she could see herself".
ReplyDeleteH. J.