They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? by Horace McCoy has been reissued by Serpent’s Tail as part of their new classics range featuring authors such as James M. Cain and Jim Thompson. Although less well known They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? places McCoy amongst American authors such as Fitzgerald, Steinbeck and Chandler and at the forefront of a stream of writers commenting on the American Dream and the economic depression of the 1930′s.

The novel opens with the main protaganist’s reflections on the murder of his marathon dance partner Gloria, ‘It was the first time I had ever saw her smile.’ He states. From the beginning of the novel, we have the killer, we have the motive- that she asked him to do it, however McCoy maintains a level of suspense through out the novel, why does Gloria wish to die?  Why does Robert agree to kill her? The judge’s statement, broken down through the chapters propels us through the novel, to the frightening conclusion, that their is no point.

The action of the novel takes place in the absurd, Beckettian setting of the Marathon Dance. The novel’s protagonist  is a young male character aching to get into the movie business who finds himself in Hollywood looking to make it, with out much chance of succeeding. Here he meets a young would be actress Gloria, who persuades him to enter the marathon dance with her. This search for fame and fortune, and Hollywood obsession typifies the American Dream and the idea that all can succeed in the land of independence. However most would be disillusioned by this after the depression of the 1930′s and the widespread poverty of the period.

The marathon dance, a pointless exercise where couples must dance for as many days as possible- echoes the eating contests, reality tv and other spectacles of the modern age. The winner of the competition would be the last couple left standing. More importantly the competition gave the penniless young people food and a place to stay for the duration of their time in the event. An event which for Gloria echoes the existential crisis of the modern condition, the pointlessness of life.

Gloria is a Chandleresque tortured heroine. She is mysterious, we never find out much about her background, she is a fatalist, and as a member of the ‘weaker sex’ she can see through the veneer of society into the shallow waters beneath. For Gloria striving for success is futile. As the marathon dance descends into a chaos of arguments, shootings and protest, the reality beneath the pretence of glamour slowly obliterates Robert’s own optimism for a life in Hollywood, and by killing Gloria he destroys the very person who has obilierated his own excitement at the future ahead of him.

By the end of the novel, the judge has decided his verdict, and McCoy offers no resolution to the fate of his characters, but leaves us with an uneasy and unsettling ending, from which the reader can take no comfort.

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