Dick wrote:
"We know what hardboiled is: it's the kind of stuff we
like."
Ah, the Potter Stewart [obscenity] test, "I know it when I
see it."
Actually, I have to agree with this. As I read and write more
criticism, I become more and more convinced it is largely
based on an attempt to rationalize gut responses (while
recognizing my gut's taste can evolve). Of course, that
doesn't stop me from continuing to try to define things,
including hardboiled and noir.
And I think Doug B put his finger on the other appeal of
classification, finding new authors I might like as much as
the ones I currently know. I recently got a Rough Guide (why
don't they publish any on books?) to a type of music with
which I am trying to better familiarize myself. Well, I knew
the names I knew, but couldn't figure out how to move on from
them. I was thinking how much it would have helped if they
had included a line like, "If you like this, you should try
this . . ." And that's what I get from the debates over
classification, the examples and groupings of authors, so I
can say, Hey, I like these three, but who's
[blank]? I'll have to try reading [blank].
Mark
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