Secular/existential rather than literal damnation. Like
Lovecraft's great gift to horror fiction (to make up for all
the damage his most sedulous stylistic heirs have wrought),
expanding upon Poe's, to put the focus on the slightly
different darkness and the greater lack of certainty we face,
now that monolithic churches are not the default choice for
society at large. TM
-----Original Message----- From: Robison Michael R CNIN
[mailto:
Robison_M@crane.navy.mil]
I've been thinking about noir. Oftentimes the origin of noir
fiction is pegged in the early Thirties, pointing to works by
James Cain, Paul Cain, Raoul Whitfield, and even Faulkner.
Can you think of any noir characteristics that separate these
works from earlier ones by Conrad, Dostoyevsky, Shakespeare,
or even Greek tragedy?
I'm not really looking for an argument over the definition. I
like both Jim's "dark and sinister atmosphere", and Jack
Bludis's "screwed". I'm simply looking for some justification
for noir beginning in the Thirties instead of two thousand
years ago. And if you are thinking of the "alienation of
modern man", you better come on strong with it because I need
some convincing. ;-)
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