diff -r f4e6e18cae4b Lib/optparse.py
--- a/Lib/optparse.py	Tue Mar 29 17:28:25 2011 -0700
+++ b/Lib/optparse.py	Wed Mar 30 20:52:20 2011 -0500
@@ -1131,6 +1131,11 @@
       prog : string
         the name of the current program (to override
         os.path.basename(sys.argv[0])).
+      description : string
+        A paragraph of text giving a brief overview of your program.
+        optparse reformats this paragraph to fit the current terminal
+        width and prints it when the user requests help (after usage,
+        but before the list of options).
       epilog : string
         paragraph of help text to print after option help