At 08:00 PM 22/01/2004 -0600, you wrote:
>David mentioned Easy Rawlins' desire to own property
and be a landlord. I
>think his craving for a normal life, and for
legitimacy, is a running thread
>through the books, at least the ones I've read. And I
thought that in BAD
>BOY BRAWLY BROWN he saw some significant changes that
go a ways towards
>achieving that. In particular, he gives a white cop
some information, and
>the cop takes his word for it, something Easy was
surprised at. And at the
>end of SIX EASY PIECES he's got his own office and is
thinking of becoming a
>legitimate PI.
"...a running thread through the books." I agree. But I'm not
sure the acceptance or legitimacy that you describe at the
end of SIX EASY PIECES is what Easy had in mind. At least not
earlier (and I cannot tell you which book now) when Easy's
struggle was to get away from the streets and their criminal
activities, something that white cops as much as black
neighbours constantly seemed to conspire to bring Easy back
to. I reminded me of that Godfather line, with Pacino
shouting "Everytime I try to get out..." etc. etc.
I've been digging into Iceberg Slim for an essay, and one of
the things I find remarkable about PIMP is how much the mack
culture is inspired by dominant white values. It's not
unusual that in being denied entry to a club, the human
response is often to want entry even more, and to mimic the
club's hallmark behaviours. PIMP describes the business so
thoroughly it should be required reading on MBA courses.
Human resources, using an experienced Board of Directors for
advice, product research, scouting and meeting the
competition- they're all there, and more. I cite this as
another aspect of this desire for a "normal" life, though
Slim's view of what's normal differs from Easy's. I'm
wondering if Mosley has Easy's POV, as he ages, come around a
little closer to Slim's. Slim took up the
"legitimate" life of a writer as he got older.
Best Kerry
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