But, doesn't booze signify something very different from
drugs? In the case
of Block, too, the fact that Scudder is a recovering
alcoholic plays the
same role as if he were drinking. It brings the element that
booze signifys
back into the text. And, if you've read the series, you've
read him
drinking, so that alcoholism is cojoined with recovery and
that feel that
booze brings to these stories is very much present.
I think it's an interesting endeavor, trying to tease out the
meaning of
booze, decyphering how it works in these stories, tracing the
chain of
signification.
I guess I've read, come to think of it, some hardboiled
fiction where
there's drug use, but it never did the same thing as
drinking. Alcohol does
something very different to the text.
______________________________
David A. Harvey
Freelance Columnist, Reviewer, Journalist&Editor
Exploring the meeting points of humanity&technology
1 Druim Moir Court 215/248-7469
Philadelphia, PA 917/767-6567 (cell/page)
19118
"Most people are awaiting Virtual Reality; I'm awaiting
virtuous
reality."
--Eli Khamarov , Lives of the Cognoscenti
> -----Original Message-----
> From: owner-rara-avis@icomm.ca [mailto:owner-rara-avis@icomm.ca]On
> Behalf Of BaxDeal@aol.com
> Sent: Saturday, August 15, 1998 3:42 PM
> To: rara-avis@icomm.ca
> Subject: RARA-AVIS: that which does not kill me,
leaves a
> nasty hangover
>
>
> >Are there any other books with alcoholic
detectives?
>
> off the top of my head, James Lee Burke's Dave
Robicheaux
> comes to mind.
>
> >It's interesting that it is always booze, never
any drugs.
>
> James Crumley's Shugrue smokes pot, snorts coke,
drops acid,
> although in his
> case, it seems more like a performance enhancer
rather than a
> monkey on his
> back.
>
> John Lau
> #
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