At 11:25 AM 3/12/02 -0500, you wrote:
>Except for tough guys like Parker
I'll give you Parker, though we could argue what makes
someone tough, along the lines of is one tough not to feel
fear, or if one overcomes fear. But Parker's a hard lad, no
question.
> and the various Thompson protagonists.
I don't think Thompson's protagonists are tough. Certainly
not the Killer Within Me. A man in tough circumstances okay,
but this is about a personality that is disintegrating. I
think a number of Thompson's books are about people who just
aren't up to life's challenge. And often what's interesting
is the reader may come to suspect that he/she might have the
same reaction in similar situations.
There's a very strong streak in hardboil of characters who
are in over their heads. Many of Leonard's characters are
people who think they're tough, but aren't. And these are
usually the ones who are anything but romantic or
sentimental.
>And their lack of sentiment is what renders them cold
and sociopathic (and to
>some readers, uninteresting).
The other way around, I think, if we're talking cause and
effect. But I agree, with Chandler and Hammet the question as
to whether the femmes will crack the dicks' noble codes
provides dramatic tension.
Kerry
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