-----Original Message-----
>From: JIM DOHERTY <
jimdohertyjr@yahoo.com>
>Sent: Apr 3, 2007 10:55 AM
>To:
rara-avis-l@yahoogroups.com
>Subject: RARA-AVIS: Re: The Talented Mr.
Ripley
>
>Patrick,
>
>Re your comment below:
>
>"Ripley may be a genius, but he is absolutely
insane."
>
>Insanity is a legal, not a medical, concept. And
by
>any legal yardstick, Ripley's not insane in the
least.
>
>You may call him "sociopathic" or "psychopathic,"
but
>neither of these terms are synonyms for
"insane."
>
>He knows exactly what he's doing, and he's
perfectly
>capable of controlling his actions. He's evil,
not
>mentally ill.
>
>JIM DOHERTY
>
>
Jim,
I agree with you. (Do I hear trumpets blaring in the
distance? Is this the end of times?)
But I'm not even sure Ripley is evil. He does "evil" things,
but as the series progresses it seems that many of these acts
are out of mere self-preservation or the need to protect his
business partners and/or loved ones from people even worse
than himself. The four books that follow THE TALENTED MR.
RIPLEY get more and more sympathetic to Ripley's cause. If
you were to read the last book by itself, having never read
any of the others, you might draw the conclusion that Ripley
was the "good guy" and that his snooping neighbor was the
villian of the piece. You may decide that is the case even if
you have read the previous four books.
Highsmith loved messing with her audience. I think one of the
brilliant things about these books is that she makes part of
us, as readers, want to see Ripley succeed.
Terrill
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : 03 Apr 2007 EDT