Word: valor
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 1970-1979
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...STRANGE little book, greatly flawed but tantalizingly good-groups of brilliant paragraphs sandwiched around prose that runs annoyingly flat. Tom McGuane jumped the stakes on himself; the epigram that begins the book is "The best epitaph a man can gain is to have accomplished daring deeds of valor against the enmity of fiends during his lifetime." Worthy sentiments, but that hardly makes the comic Nylon Pindar a fiend. More a shitsucker, in Chet's phrase, more Runyonesque. The Caribbean syndicalist novel is not an art form of the future; after all, Hero's engine never really ran anything; it just...
Wouk is still at his best when his feet are firmly astride a swaying deck: the battles at sea provide the novel's swiftest and most knowing passages. Yet for all the exhilaration his warriors display in combat, Wouk knows the bitter price of valor. Here and there he lectures too self-consciously. But even as a preacher the author can be effective. Through the voice of Pug, Wouk writes that the world's destiny rests on a pathetically simple hope: "Most people, even the most fanatical and boneheaded Marxists, even the craziest nationalists and revolution aries, love...
...loses control here. He works so hard at being winsome that he inadvertently parodies Richard Dreyfuss's performance in The Goodbye Girl. Maybe Bridges is overacting to compensate for his co-star's nonacting, but, in this case, discretion clearly would have been the better part of valor...
...also exhilarated by the drama of the situation: the no-good revolutionary dregs of society against the epitome of authority and respect for the existing order. Just like the old days. Here was a chance for them to show off their neat equipment, their military precision, and even their valor. It would be fun, no one would be seriously hurt, and the police would win with ease, reminding everyone who is boss in town...
Choosing discretion over valor, Farber and his paper finally decided to hand over the manuscript to Judge William Arnold, who is trying the Jascalevich case. Arnold accepted the book, commenting that it might make "interesting reading." Surprisingly, Jascalevich's attorney, Raymond Brown, initially objected to Farber's offer, saying that he is after the notes, not the book. But some wonder about his motives as well. It has been suggested that Brown does not really want to see Farber's notes, knowing that they are actually useless to his case. He just wants Farber to refuse...