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Agatha Christie- Anarchist
ITV is screening a new set of Miss Marple dramatizations, starring Geraldine McEwan.
We've seen a couple now. I always found Christie a dull read, but she works fabulously on the small screen.
Murder At The Vicarage spent a leisurely three quarters of an hour establishing the 1950s rural idyll that is St Mary Mead and then tore it to
shreds as it was revealed that all these prosperous, respectable middle-Englander stereotypes are in fact murderers, adulterers, thieves, embezelers and traitors.
In her own way Christie is as subversive as Bunuel. Something like Murder At The Vicarage is really just The Discreet Charm Of The Bourgeoisie by other means.
We've seen a couple now. I always found Christie a dull read, but she works fabulously on the small screen.
Murder At The Vicarage spent a leisurely three quarters of an hour establishing the 1950s rural idyll that is St Mary Mead and then tore it to
shreds as it was revealed that all these prosperous, respectable middle-Englander stereotypes are in fact murderers, adulterers, thieves, embezelers and traitors.
In her own way Christie is as subversive as Bunuel. Something like Murder At The Vicarage is really just The Discreet Charm Of The Bourgeoisie by other means.
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But I've always wondered why the police wouldn't begin to suspect Miss Marple, who seems to always be around when a murder takes place.
We have an old copy of Murder for Christmas, most un-saccharine holiday reading!
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For one thing it gives her- gasp- "a past"; she was in love with a married man who died in the First World War. That is why she is so understanding of all the adulterous couples and raffish artists who pass beneath her twinkling gaze.
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I'm glad to hear it. Poor old thing--spending her life watching everyone else's dramas! At least she had this one moment.
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The first dramatization offended purists by turning the murderers into a lesbian couple. My view is that these aren't sacred texts and tweaking them a bit is a way of keeping them alive.
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Golly, no--I just wish everyone could fall in love once, that's all.
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Don't you think everyone has?
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I think I don't believe IN it. Because that's SO non-human.
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I hope she will be someday.
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You don't think she's in love with her students?
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Yes, she is in love with many things. And she is talking about adopting a Chinese child or a foster child, because she loves children.
She is happy, and in some ways--as you say--she is in love.
But without the angst. Maybe she's lucky.
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I know--I've had crushes since I was eight. It's awfully fun.
Right now I am in love with Viggo of Lord of the Rings.
Sigh.
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There was a girl in primary school. I'd have been about four. I didn't know what to make of my feelings so I told her I was going to eat her.
I'm almost certain her name was Carol.
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A tender first attempt at romance...I wonder if Carol was alarmed!
I remember my first crush at six: a seven year old boy next door pretended he was Superman and carried me around the yard, saving me.
I think he had a towel cape. Most impressive.
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It was a very short-lived romance.
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Just before the class Christmas party, he begged and pleaded and I took him to a shop and helped him select a pretty gold bracelet for $5, and they giftwrapped it. He was so thrilled.
He carried it in his backpack the next day, and I couldn't wait to find out how the gift-giving went.
He got home and was very happy. I asked, "Well? Did she like it?"
"She sure did! Boy!"
"Well, what did she say to you?"
"Mom! I didn't want her to know it was from me! I just put it in her desk.
"Boy, did she love it!"
I suppose he had the right idea, actually. That was true love.
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To take pleasure in someone else's pleasure, expecting nothing in return. I guess that's what they mean by the innocence of childhood.
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It's often part of the separation process.
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The moment you feel angst, you've left the in-love part and are moving into the wretched I-don't-want-to-lose-you hopeless part.
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I happen to like Agatha Christie. When I lived in Japan, the only English books I could find were Penguins--American books were too expensive. So I read every Agatha Christie book in print at the time. And all of Somerset Maugham. I can't reread either of those any more; I think I OD'd.
In any case, I do like your view of her, and I think that's very much how she was, desirous of oh-so-subtly stirring up trouble...
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Actually, my VERY favorite book of hers is Murder On The Orient Express translated into Japanese. The indications of who is speaking are all done through subtle language cues. (Male speech, female speech, various levels of politeness and obsequy.)
On the different subject of detective novels in general, when I was in grad school at Yale, I was in Hog Heaven--one of the tenured history professors (Robin Wink) writes about mysteries, and he ordered all the new books. And, being the second lgst library in the US, they had all the old ones. One guy died and left all of his books to the library--I read my way through most of that collection. His relatives gave him books for every occasion. So I've pretty much read all of Allingham and Carr, both of whom are also quite interesting people.
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I like locked room mysteries. Hence my taste for Carr. The best of his stories are deliciously weird.
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And I don't know why Christie has survived. Maybe because she had a good publicist.:) I agree with you about literary merit.