I think the appeal of the McGee series is that, more than
most, McGee grew and changed and developed through the years.
The McGee one encounters in PURPLE is not the one you find
in, say, THE EMPTY COPPER SEA. And that's true of McGee's
relationships with women as well.
As for PURPLE, I agree it's not one of the better
installments in the series. The first few were written all at
once, and show obvious signs of experimentation. I don't like
PINK or RED that much either, tell you the truth -- things
pick up a lot with GOLD.
doug
--- Bludis Jack <
buildsnburns@yahoo.com> wrote:
> Jim Winter said:
>
> >>One thing I found off-putting was
McGee's
> attitude towards women. When reading McGee,
one
> accepts that he's a tad condeescending
toward
> women, and in the first two books, some of
them
> push back.
>
> >>In this one, McGee is put next to
characters
> even
> more brazenly sexist than he is, and
MacDonald
> tries to use this to make McGee look more
noble.
>
> Doesn't work. He just comes off as slightly
less
>
> an asshole than the other men around
him.<<
>
> It was the times. Most men were assholes
toward
> women back then and some of those who are
still
> around from that time haven't learned. We
love
> our grandfathers and fathers, but they
are
> genrally on good behaviour around us and
ours.
> They haven't learned new attitudes, they've
just
> learned to shut up about them.
>
> The reason I know this is because as
ongoing
> research of the times I talk to people of
that
> era. WW II vets in particular.
>
> For his time, McGee was caring. And like many
men
> from that time, any woman who made love to
more
> than one man in her lifetime--unless her
first
> husband died--was a slut.
>
> I think we are more conscious of John D's
bias
> because he covers the subject of relationships
in
> a different way than Ross. We don't think
of
> Spillane in that regard because we know he is
a
> flaming asshole in most regards, which is
why
> some love him. Marlowe, Spade and the Op
> generally have a disregard for women. To
them,
> women are not very important and when they
are,
> they are femme fatales.
>
> One of the sadest reads of Chandler is
"The
> Poodle Springs Story" in which Chandler to
my
> observation is pussy whipped. Yes, the book
was
> finished by Parker, but the early part, the
part
> that Chandler wrote, was set it up that
way.
>
> I suppose that one reason I always come to
the
> defense of John D. is that I loved his work
when
> I read it as a kid--he was like my old man.
It
> had been years since I read him and I read
him
> again a few months ago. I do have to admit I
had
> to bring him down from the pedistal in
many
> regards, but primarily as a writer.
>
> I'd better get a copy of BLACK MONEY.
Ross
> MacDonald, who I always thought was too much
for
> figures of speech, may be better than I
remember
> him. To the best of my memory, I read the
two
> writers practically back to back.
>
> Jack Bludis
>
>
> =====
> Shamus and Anthony nominee
> http://www.jackbludis.com
> "Shadow of the Dahlia"
>
===== Doug Bassett
dj_bassett@yahoo.com
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