>Marlowe is not alone in his racist speeches. An
elderly white woman has "a
>little colored boy that goes errands for
me
Long before Marlowe, the National Association for the
Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) seemed to have no
problem with the term "colored."
Yes, things have changed since those days. I think it's
unrealistic to expect Chandler's novels or his characters to
reflect the future, though.
Also, I hope you're not indicating that you missed Marlowe's
ironic sarcasm in remarks like "it was only a shine killing,
hardly a misdemeanor." I've read FML many times and never
felt that Marlowe was a racist, but rather that Chandler
surrounded Marlowe with racists in this story. That doesn't
mean Marlowe was free of the kinds of easy stereotyping that
we have today throttled and wrestled to the ground (so much
so that I, a Cherokee by substantial descent, am often called
on the carpet by whites for referring to myself as an
Indian!). But in view of his time, I think Marlowe is what
Chandler obviously intended him to be in this situation: the
most decent man in the joint.
Jim Beaver
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