The Misanthrope’s Corner

AMERICA has no peer when it comes to contradictions but we surpassed ourselves with our recent creation of what has to be the last of the red-hot oxymorons: the helpless, insecure femme fatale who never grew up. Delilah is now a poor kid who needs counseling.

Our sensuality is sealed under an adult-proof cap and any attempt to pry it off leads to failure and frustration. Monica Lewinsky’s porn version of spin-the-bottle moved one columnist to quote wistfully from Ben Franklin’s letter in praise of sex with older women, but nowadays that means Mary Kay LeTourneau, the 36-year-old Seattle grade-school teacher who gave herself to her 13-year-old pupil and had his baby. Authentic female voluptuousness is so scarce that we don’t even have anybody who can do the Carmen number right. If you want a fiery temptress with a knife in her stocking, you have to make do with Diane Zamora, identified in news stories as “the diminutive former midshipman.”

About the Author

Florence King

Florence King was a contributing editor of National Review.

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AMERICA has no peer when it comes to contradictions but we surpassed ourselves with our recent creation of what has to be the last of the red-hot oxymorons: the helpless, insecure femme fatale who never grew up. Delilah is now a poor kid who needs counseling.

Our sensuality is sealed under an adult-proof cap and any attempt to pry it off leads to failure and frustration. Monica Lewinsky’s porn version of spin-the-bottle moved one columnist to quote wistfully from Ben Franklin’s letter in praise of sex with older women, but nowadays that means Mary Kay LeTourneau, the 36-year-old Seattle grade-school teacher who gave herself to her 13-year-old pupil and had his baby. Authentic female voluptuousness is so scarce that we don’t even have anybody who can do the Carmen number right. If you want a fiery temptress with a knife in her stocking, you have to make do with Diane Zamora, identified in news stories as “the diminutive former midshipman.”