>Are there exceptions to the rule? Of course ... are
there readers who are
exceptions as well? Yes to
>that as well. Maybe I'm the exception to the
rule
>... some inherent psychic ability that tells me who
the author is and it
actually has nothing to do with
>the writing, but being able to tell the difference in
the writing
perspectives is just the most rational
>interpretation of that psychic knowledge ... I don't
think so.
>
>"Written on the Body" by Jeanette Winterson is touted
by the literati as a
novel who's protagonist is
>genderless and Ms Winterson is praised for her
superior writing ability at
being able to successfully
>accomplish this ... but from my reading perspective
the protagonist is
obviously a woman. To
>"give" specifics (if such things exist) would require
a rereading, but the
mannerisms and view are
>obviously not male ... well, the character isn't a
male then what's left
for the character to be?
>
>I'll look into the works you've listed and those that
others have listed
and take notes while reading
>them ... see what I can come up with. But while I do
that ... maybe some
of you believe there is no
>difference can come up with quantifiable evidence
supporting your view
beyond your opinion that it's
>so as well (that is what y'all are asking me to after
all ... turn about
is fair play) ... prove me wrong. :)
So, the smart thing to do would be to leave this discussion
to die. But I can't help noticing that you're completely
contradicting yourself here; in the initial post, by stating
that Grafton, Paretsky, etc., weren't really
"written in a female voice" or "from a female perspective",
you were stating that there's something beyond XX
chromosomes--in these cases, of both reader and
protagonist--that, to you, marks a "female
perspective".
Now, you're stating that "if the character isn't a
male, then what's left for the character to be?" This seems
to indicate that by default, female characters speak from
what you seem to be mentioning as some kind of monolithic
female voice. (And I am completely with Jess' earlier
comments on the multiplicity of female voices that are out
there.) You can't have it both ways--either you need
"XX-plus" which you claim not to have found in Grafton et
al., or you just need XX.
And as far as that goes, I'd argue that as far as
stereotypical notions of femaleness (such as those found in
Freud and to a lesser degree Jung) go, many of those elements
are present in Paretsky, Grafton, and Muller (and to a lesser
degree in Maxine O'Callaghan). You get these very relational
novels, with a lot of concern about family and friends, and a
lot more background about the main characters themselves,
than you do in the
"traditional" PI novel. (If you take the time to read what
Grafton and Paretsky have written about their own work, in
fact, you'll see that they started out as a very deliberate
subversion of many of the conventions of the "traditional"
work.) I'm not saying that this makes them hardboiled per se,
but I think calling them "men with dresses" is, um,
wrong.
Okay, Bill, I'm through with this. Honest. Vicky
Victoria Esposito-Shea, J.D. Legal Research and Writing
New and improved site at http://www.esposito-shea.com
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