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After I read this thread I was thinking of smoking in books I've read lately. Smoking has become perhaps the leading method of indicating that the character has no respect for intrusive rules and petty authority. "He was well aware smoking on the beach was illegal but he didn't even try to hide as he lit his cigarette." "He had already been arrested twice for smoking in his apartment but that didn't stop him from lighting up." "Lt. Weenie had six signs in his office say, "No Smoking" and Detective Manly smiled as he lit his cigarette." "Sidney was arrested for domestic violence when his wife reported that he smoked in their home."
It won't stop there. "The twelve cans of paint to be used to paint his home one of the three approved colors stood by the garage. Karl used a small flashlight to remove the lid of each can and pour in a tablespoon of yellow paint so his house would be a slightly different, and therefore unapproved, color." That daring son of a gun. "But, his neighbor saw him and reached for the phone." Oh, the drama.
What about looking at attractive women? Will we continue to accept this degrading practice in literature?
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