Kyle Sossamon at the LARB:
FATALISM OR FREEDOM? In the film noir classic Out of the Past (1947), Kathie Moffat (Jane Greer) sits at a roulette table in Mexico, on the run from her wealthy lover, with enough stolen cash to keep her playing there without inhibition. Tasked with apprehending Kathie, Jeff Bailey (Robert Mitchum) approaches her from behind, remarking, “That […] isn’t a way to win.” “Is there a way to win?” she retorts. Bailey’s answer summarizes the noir universe: “Well, there’s a way to lose more slowly.” The tragicomic dimension of the fatalistic film noir universe lies in how a character’s conscious intention to act in their self-interest (committing murder, carrying on an extramarital affair, stealing money) mingles with an unconscious desire for self-destruction. Unaware of why, noir characters make choices not despite but because of the all-but-certain likelihood of dire outcomes. In short, rational deliberation is never the real motive for action.
This tension between self-interest and self-destruction and the question of “losing more slowly” constitutes the ethical paradox at the heart of Todd McGowan’s new book Self-Sabotage: How We Try Not to Flourish.
more here.
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