I suppose Slim's "The Man" to me because he was an amazing
stylist,
writing-wise. A true original. But he'd also want everyone to
know that
he was "THE Man," swaggering, self-aggrandizing, and probably
full of
shit. But, what's fascinating is that this way of
"signifying" persists,
especially in rap, and "Gangsta." And it's no coincidence
that guys like
Tupac Shakur were heavily into Slim and Donald Goines -- the
late rap
artist referred to both of them in his music. He lived it,
and he died
for it, just like Goines.
Slim's is a pimp personality -- and he prides himself on
"turning chicks
out," control, manipulation, and humiliation. It's dark, but
in a way,
it's also funny, because all of it's a "put on." After all,
if he were a
good pimp, he would've stayed in the life, right?
What excites me about writers is when I can infer things
about their
lives "between the lines," so to speak -- good and bad.
Ellroy's a
similar case -- you can't read any of his novels without
having the
feeling that he's a racist, misogynist, homophobe,
anti-Semite, etc. I
might not endorse that, but it still doesn't detract from the
power of
his books.
Dave
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