Anthony:
Is Leigh Brackett writing from a female or male perspective?
She is often assumed to be male, but is her perspective the
same as her male contemporaries? I'm really not sure.
Is the anti-heroine of Miami Purity simply "a man in a
dress?" The book is very Jim Thompson-y, but I think there
are some interesting differences due to the changed gender of
the protagonist.
And is there a difference between Miami Purity (female writer
and protagonist) and Shooting Elvis (male writer, female
protagonist)? Both have female lead protagonists who get in
trouble by doing stupid things because of their
boyfriends.
And the Jack Early books, was it obvious to readers that they
were written by a woman before the name was reveal to be a
pseudonym?
I'm willing to believe that the most "macho" books, for lack
of a better term, like Spillane, for instance, are primarily
from (and for?) a male perspective; and I'm willing to say
that some books are primarily from
(and for?) a female perspective. However, I think we're
talking about a Venn diagram with a very large area of
overlap in the middle.
I've also wondered if, in general, women might not be better
at writing from a male point of view than men from a female,
simply because the male point of view has been so hegemonic
and women have been forced to work within it for so long that
they can ape it, while men have been more able to ignore the
alternative. Of course, the best writers of both sexes are
able to create convincing characters of either sex -- isn't
that part of being a good writer, creating good characters,
period?
Mark
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