In a message dated 11/13/01 9:57:33 AM,
jeremiahealy@earthlink.net writes:
<< Just a thought on "sociopathic sidekicks:" Does
anyone think that authors who use them (and I've had a couple
that were close myself, such as Nino in SWAN DIVE and Primo
Zuppone in SHALLOW GRAVES and INVASION OF PRIVACY) are really
just protecting their "hero" characters from having to jump
from the frying pan of honorable killing to the fire of
murder?
>>
I think at times, it is a way of
demonstrating how close "the good" is to
"the evil," (Spenser and Hawk in the various Susan
soliloquies on the subject) It's the "Secret Sharer" thing,
used to play with the limits and boundaries of "good" and
"bad." (Cole & Pike in LA Req.) It can also be a means of
having the hero recognize, "there but for the grace of God,
go I."
(Easy and Mouse).
Much of the time, however, I think it
is an easy way of allowing the hero to keep his activities
above the mud (most of Cole and Pike, all of the Lehane
books, and especially Harlen Coben).
Jim
Blue
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This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : 13 Nov 2001 EST