i said:
> when i read fiction, i'm
> looking for it to be "believable", and for it to
have some
> sort of depth to stir some emotion in me or make me
think.
> it looked to me like spillane was failing on both
counts.
************************************** and then randy said:
It's interesting you should single Spillane out on this. I
think this is endemic to crime fiction in general (including
many books mentioned here. Hammett and Chandler stories are
hardly filled with fleshed out characters with deep, textured
emotions).
At its heart, most crime fiction is very logical, and thus
the feelings of the characters are sublimated by their
motives (greed, lust, fear of being exposed). These are not
things I would count as well developed emotions, but more
like the most superficial of them. In most crime fiction, the
characters/suspects are merely vehicles to move the story
along, take you off the trail of the real
criminal..etc.
**************************************
i see your point, and with some books (especially
hammett's
_red harvest_), i would agree totally. but hardboiled is such
a big playing ground that it is hard to make almost any
generic statement. to me, marlowe is a spectacularly drawn
character. his one-liners express his cynical attitude, and
there are unspoken memories within him which churn him. i'd
say that marlowe is both complex and mysterious.
and a few of the contemporary authors, like t.j. parker or
james lee burke for instance, show their protagonists just
about drowning in emotions, introspection, and (i just love
the phrase) inner demons. block's scudder, too.
i gotta go... more lies later. ;-)
miker
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