This very interesting discussion brought to mind an apparent
fissure in Parker's hardboiled armor: in _The Score_, why
does he do nothing to stop Grofield from picking up the
telephone operator and taking her with him? Letting a
stranger, and a witness at that, come with the crew is very
unlike Parker. The circumstances were the worst possible, as
those who have read the book will know.
Could it be that Parker feared a confrontation with
Grofield?
Or that self-preservation and carrying off the job was more
important to him than arguing the point?
The point is, I think, that no character can be totally
hardboiled all the time. A point that has already been made
by other posters but which, in the case or Parker (an
acknowledged ultrahardboiled icon), seems particularly
apposite.
Now the quiz: Can anybody think of a good action, or at least
an out of character action, by Dudley Smith? I know that he's
more in the psychopath category, but the question is still
relevant.
Best,
MrT
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