Re: RARA-AVIS: The Talented Mr. Ripley

From: Robert Elkin ( rictusaporia@yahoo.com)
Date: 30 Mar 2007


Re lack of empathy: Ripley exhibits thus what psychology might call a "flattening of affect"--&
"missing" is a suspect term, given social treatment of others with his sexual orientation...& aren't there a number of scenes in the series where Tom just "loses it" & ends up killing people? (Sorry--It's been a few years since I've read these amazing books--RIP PH)

--- Tim Wohlforth < timwohlforth@opendoor.com> wrote:

> What makes Ripley work is precisely that he isn't
> crazy. He is just
> missing a part in his emotions called "empathy." And
> he is not alone
> in lacking this emotion. Some Ripleys run countries,
> other
> corporations, still others are con artists like
> Ripley. And I believe
> this was Highsmith's dark point.
> On Mar 30, 2007, at 5:59 PM, Michael Robison wrote:
>
> > Dave Zeltserman wrote:
> >
> > I guess you could argue Lou Ford and Nick Corey
> are
> > complex--although describing them as deeply
> psychotic
> > would be more accurate.
> >
> > *************
> > I haven't read Pop. 1280, but I've been feeling
> > another Jim Thompson coming on. Lou is certainly a
> > wild and crazy guy, isn't he?
> >
> > I just finished Highsmith's Talented Mr. Ripley.
> In
> > the layman-judging-sanity category, I didn't see
> > Ripley as crazy. The closest I saw to crazy was a
> > couple minor bouts of panic.
> >
> > miker
> >
> >
>
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> [Non-text portions of this message have been
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>

 
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