Interesting non? I have largely stopped posting in my LJ, instead, to post here. I guess it's all about who I'm trying to communicate with.
In any event: I'm currently reading Sin City - That Yellow Bastard. Christ, I love Frank Miller, have I said that yet? All of the art is amazing, I knew a guy once who told me that how Frank Miller went about creating that art would disappoint me - I told him not to tell me. My favorite book of his has to be Family Values, but That Yellow Bastard isn't far behind. I think that every guy I know can on some level relate to the character of Hartigan. Unfalteringly noble, strong, stubborn, the thought had crossed my mind that he's too strong, that his strength makes him one dimensional. Then it hit me, the guy is a myth, the entire story is just like a modern greek myth. I don't beleve Hartigan has an anologue in greek mythology, American values and ideals being what they are, but the ideal remains.
He's got just enough depth to be enticing, he's out-dated enough to pass off a lot of the little things, and he's completely one dimensional. By one dimensional I mean he has no real depth as a character, we don't find out that Hartigan really likes fishing because he and his Dad yadda yadda. All he is, is his strugle, his suffering, and his will. And that is his depth, that's what defines him.
I guess that's why so many guys I know can relate to him, hell even me. When you meet a person, it's sometimes hard to relate to them after you get to know them. Empathy comes in after a while, sometimes sooner than later depending on who you are. When someone is an ideal, it's easy to pick out traits that you can relate to because our perception of them is only made up of peices. When someone is fractured like that, it's easy to pick a peice of them and say "hot damn, I relate to him protecting that little girl, I'd do the same thing in his position", if we were to learn of his motivations specifically it would rob us of our imaginings of what they are, and rob us of our ideal hero.
Did I say I like Frank Miller? Because I do.
In any event: I'm currently reading Sin City - That Yellow Bastard. Christ, I love Frank Miller, have I said that yet? All of the art is amazing, I knew a guy once who told me that how Frank Miller went about creating that art would disappoint me - I told him not to tell me. My favorite book of his has to be Family Values, but That Yellow Bastard isn't far behind. I think that every guy I know can on some level relate to the character of Hartigan. Unfalteringly noble, strong, stubborn, the thought had crossed my mind that he's too strong, that his strength makes him one dimensional. Then it hit me, the guy is a myth, the entire story is just like a modern greek myth. I don't beleve Hartigan has an anologue in greek mythology, American values and ideals being what they are, but the ideal remains.
He's got just enough depth to be enticing, he's out-dated enough to pass off a lot of the little things, and he's completely one dimensional. By one dimensional I mean he has no real depth as a character, we don't find out that Hartigan really likes fishing because he and his Dad yadda yadda. All he is, is his strugle, his suffering, and his will. And that is his depth, that's what defines him.
I guess that's why so many guys I know can relate to him, hell even me. When you meet a person, it's sometimes hard to relate to them after you get to know them. Empathy comes in after a while, sometimes sooner than later depending on who you are. When someone is an ideal, it's easy to pick out traits that you can relate to because our perception of them is only made up of peices. When someone is fractured like that, it's easy to pick a peice of them and say "hot damn, I relate to him protecting that little girl, I'd do the same thing in his position", if we were to learn of his motivations specifically it would rob us of our imaginings of what they are, and rob us of our ideal hero.
Did I say I like Frank Miller? Because I do.