At 07:07 PM 4/23/2002 -0400, Kerry wrote:
>I'm going to climb halfway out on Jim's limb here (
keeping an eye on his
>saw hand) and agree there are significant working
class atmopherics to
>hardboil. Class can be fluid and speech patterns are
characteristic, but
>not defining. That colloquialism branch is getting
shakier with each
>defense. I think that hardboil implies a workmanlike
approach to life, as
>if it's a tough job, but somebody has to get on with
it. The genre is an
>exploration of what this means as much as a
definition of it. Surely a
>good, hardboiled story can be made about an
unexpected character rising to
>the gritty occasion.
Perhaps rather than colloquialism as a defining
characteristic, it's just that every so often you have to be
a smartass. Maybe it's the sarcastic, cutting response to
threats, violence, etc., that is the defining verbal
characteristic of hard-boiled.
Add in some street-wise toughness, and, voila,
hard-boiled :-).
>I believe what defines this "workmanlike" approach is
the attitude toward
>death. Hardboil or noir recognizes the inevitability
of death, and
>entertains the possibility that this may be a good
thing. Cosies are
>fantasies that make light of death to reassure
readers.
I think cozies are more designed to be humorous. If you read
some of Charlotte Macleod's early books, the killer usually
turns out to be some respectible character who has a
long-history of murder, fraud, and mayhem in their past. This
is not reassuring.
Ray
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