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Beautiful woman Quote by Sting

“The alley is a pitch for about twenty women leaning in doorways, chain-smoking. In their shiny open raincoats, short skirts, cheap boots, and high-heeled shoes they watch the street with hooded eyes, like spies in a B movie. Some are young and pretty, and some are older, and some of them are very…” quote by Sting
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““The alley is a pitch for about twenty women leaning in doorways, chain-smoking. In their shiny open raincoats, short skirts, cheap boots, and high-heeled shoes they watch the street with hooded eyes, like spies in a B movie. Some are young and pretty, and some are older, and some of them are very old, with facial expressions ranging from sullen to wry. Most of the commerce is centred on the slightly older women, as if the majority of the clients prefer experience and worldliness. The younger, prettier girls seem to do the least business, apparent innocence being only a minority preference, much as it is for the aging crones in the alley who seem as if they’ve been standing there for a thousand years. In the dingy foyer of the hotel is an old poster from La Comédie Française, sadly peeling from the all behind the desk. Cyrano de Bergerac, it proclaims, a play by Edmond Rostand. I will stand for a few moments to take in its fading gaiety. It is a laughing portrait of a man with an enormous nose and a plumed hat. He is a tragic clown whose misfortune is his honour. He is a man entrusted with a secret; an eloquent and dazzling wit who, having successfully wooed a beautiful woman on behalf of a friend cannot reveal himself as the true author when his friend dies. He is a man who loves but is not loved, and the woman he loves but cannot reach is called Roxanne. That night I will go to my room and write a song about a girl. I will call her Roxanne. I will conjure her unpaid from the street below the hotel and cloak her in the romance and the sadness of Rostand’s play, and her creation will change my life.””

Sting

About This Quote

Source Novel: Unnamed urban narrative, 2020s

A vivid street scene juxtaposes aging women and youthful allure, while a theatrical poster inspires a personal love song for an imagined Roxanne.

In simple terms: Street life meets theater, inspiring a song about an idealized lover.

Key Takeaway

Create art from observed moments.

Themes

urban life theater loneliness desire age

Mood

melancholic reflective creative

Type

narrative inspirational poetic

When to use this quote

  • songwriting
  • visual observation
  • character study

Key Concepts

nostalgia idealization identity performance

Practical Applications

  • writing a song
  • reflecting on aging
  • exploring unrequited love

Questions to Reflect On

  • How does observation shape creativity?
  • What does the imagined Roxanne represent?
A Different Perspective

Idealized love may ignore real complexities.

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