Jim wrote:
"But he's resisting temptation, determined to follow his code
and do the right thing, whatever the emotional consequences.
That's not pragmatism; that's strong moral fiber."
You seem to equate following a code and doing the right
thing. While I'm not necessarily arguing with your
application of that to Sam Spade's choice (his remarks about
not believing his image does raise some doubt as to his level
of corruption), but those two are far from synonymous in
crime fiction. Parker, for instance, certainly has a code,
but he is hardly interested in doing the right thing for
anyone but himself. That may sometimes involve loyalty and
other seemingly positive traits, but even then it is
pragmatic -- you don't work if you are not a stand-up guy. It
is hardly due to "strong moral fiber." For instance, morality
is never even a factor the various times in the series when
he does the cost analysis of killing someone.
At least this applies to the original Parker series. Many of
the quibbles with the recent selections have revolved around
whether or not Parker is the still as cold a professional, or
whether various connections (and plot requirements) have led
him to be sloppier than he once was.
Speaking of Parker, anyone know if there is going to be
another in the series, or is he going to be left alone on
that hill with no way back to those connections, nothing to
do except wipe the slate clean and start over, or be
caught?
Mark
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