look back at some of the taproots of
>: noir, such as Dante's "Inferno."
Bill Denton asked,
>
>Can you elaborate a bit on your comment about
Dante?
I ask, is this stuff people really want to know. But I
started it, so
a short bit. I was thinking of several things. Most
obviously, some of
the descriptions of teeming darkness, or trees that bleed, or
people who
look like or are transforming into lizards or insects. Then
some of the
stories of double dealing and fraud, the actions of betrayal
or anger, the
testimony of those who are lost and continue to "embody" the
sins that got
them there. Finally, the extra darkness that is added to such
actions when
one believes in sin and damnation--the sort of thing that
adds edge to the
writing of Graham Greene or maybe (?)Jim Thompson. [Even if
you fall away,
you might still have the guilt-edge to your treatment of
crime.]
I'm certain many gothic and some sci fi writers have tapped
Dante; I'd be
willing to bet some of our literate HB or noir authors have
too.
Bill Hagen
<billha@ionet.net>
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