In his brilliant essay “The Simple Art of Murder” Raymond
Chandler, the great 1930s detective novelist, recounted his early days when
writing stories for periodicals under considerable stress because of deadlines.
Obviously, when thinking up plot developments, you would get stuck from time to
time. But, he said, he and other hacks worked out a solution for this: “When
in doubt have a man come through a door with a gun in his hand.”
I was thinking of
this the other day as I was meditating after my morning prayers, and something
occurred to me. When you are contemplating a human situation, whether private
or public, whether social or political, try mentally adding the line “And then
Christ walked in.” The result is quite fascinating. It is, of course, related
to the old “WWJD” (What Would Jesus Do?) that some people tattoo on their
fingers; but it has the merit of looking at a scene as a scene, i.e.
dramatically, like a story or a play or film, and drawing you into the role of
a screenwriter challenged to continue the plot from this new happening.
Example 1: “The
Senate confirmation hearing for the putative new Attorney General was
proceeding on the whole peacefully, though not without a few difficult moments.
And then Christ walked in. . . . . .
. . . . . .”
Example 2: “We were
being extremely tactful in our conversation at Thanksgiving dinner, until Uncle
Gavin started bringing up politics. ‘No, please, Gavin,’ Jane pleaded, ‘not
this year!’ And then Christ walked in. . . . . . . . .
. . “
Example 3: “In a
French bistro frequented by North African construction workers, a couple of
cheerfully-dressed women came and sat down. Some unfortunate remarks were made.
And then Christ walked in. . . . . .
. . . . . .”
Example 4: “ My
friend Jill was teaching a sophomore class on Shakespeare, and a discussion
developed on the question whether a queer production of Hamlet would be
accurate, provocative or both. And then Christ walked in. . . . . . . . .
. .”
Example 5: “Pope
Francis was with his advisory group of cardinals, pondering what if anything to
do about the Middle East. And then
Christ walked in. . . . . . . . . . . “
I’m sure you can
think of more interesting situations, whether applied to yourself or involving
parts of the world you’re interested in. You could even make it a (serious)
game with a few friends . . . . . . . . .
