AtD (37) pp.1040 ff. Thoughts on Lew Basnight, detective.

[Henry]

I don't see Lew as a seeker or even a fixer.  Detectives are NOT seekers.
The "merely" detect, discover things that have been purposely hidden by
others.

But, in true film noir tradition, Lew is sweethearts with broken-hearts
(Bogey, anyone?); a very good guy who moves through, rather than moving the
plot, all the while detecting, like a sensitive flame, what is already
there.

Henry Mu 
Information, Media, and Technology Consultant

http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/blog/henrymu