Customer Reviews

Art of Darkness: Ingenious Performances by Undercover Operators, Con Men, and Others

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Sara K Schneider has produced a fascinating, keenly intelligent, and thoroughly engaging book about 'street acting by undercover operators, con men and others'. Aptly titled ART OF DARKNESS, Schneider's book explores the gamut of identity alteration, whether that alteration is for the support of the law by undercover investigators or by con artists, and in doing so she encourages the reader to become aware of identity theft and crime recognition as well as writing what must be the best documented resource for actors, for students of character behavior, for those who are seeking the secrets of the con games, and for law enforcement officers on the shelves today.

"The real identity game is neither about the individual body nor the solo self. Rather, it is socially constructed, embedded in the interplay between my perceptions and yours of what I 'might' be, between the shape of the nest you make for my identity project and the one I make for yours. Identity play, this book argues, takes place not in the 'self', but in the 'scene." And with this introductory statement, Schneider takes us through countless interviews and quotations by those in the game of cover. She explores the techniques required to become an undercover person - how to talk the talk, and respond to the intricacies of the milieu into which the undercover person wishes to 'disappear', intricacies that of course include dress, stance, manner of walking and movement, etc that match the new environment the undercover person seeks to absorb. She then moves us into the realm of undercover work within the law enforcement arena, explaining how the possibility of a good cop becoming a bad cop is a natural risk.

The other aspects of ART OF DARKNESS that will apply to all readers include the fake IDs and forged birth certificates, only two examples of how our identities can be stolen or new identities can be manufactured with relative ease. She spends pages explaining both the simple fast con games that clutter the streets and the more subtle con games to which we all may fall victim. And as a summing up of this book she becomes more philosophical about the entire process of identity alteration and the terminal side effects it can produce.

Dr. Schneider writes and teaches about body-based learning and bodily expressions of culture and directs the Center for Body Lore and Learning in Chicago, Illinois. She is a very bright woman who obviously understands human behavior as well as anyone. If there is a flaw with this book it is the placement of the writing on the pages: too much eye space is taken with indented and extended quotations that disrupt the reader's focus on the flow of the narrative. Granted, this makes for a superb textbook resource book style, but ART OF DARKNESS is so much more than that. This is a book the average reader will find intoxicating in its information and in the succinct manner in which Sara K. Schneider writes. Grady Harp, May 08

Surprisingly, I enjoyed this book. I'm not a fan of non-fiction--actually, I kind of avoid it at all costs, unless it's a book about writing--but I liked this book. Schneider gives a detailed portrayal about what life is like in the world of undercover cops and con men. Granted, this isn't a book you can just sit down and read. There's a lot of information, and I found myself having to take breaks in order to process what I read.

Going back to my earlier comment about liking books about writing, I think that's part of the reason I liked this book so much. I could see how useful this information would be if I were to write a crime/detective/mystery novel. And, with the amount of Jason Bourne-like stories being published, the information presented would help give my writing a unique twist and authenticity. Also, there's a great chapter (3) that is simply useful in characterization techniques.

I was a little disappointed, because in the beginning Schneider made it seem as if she would go through each chapter and show how undercover work and conning relates to what we do in everyday life. She does touch on it, but the connection isn't made as much as I would have liked it to be. Regardless, I enjoyed this book and would recommend it to those interested in real-life undercover stories, as well as writers interested in the crime/detective/mystery genre.

At first glance, the title ART OF DARKNESS is enigmatic. Is this about the dark side of sorcery's magic? Or perhaps an examination of a new school of painting? Or a coffee table book featuring the imagery of nighttime shadows? No to all, but rather it's a learned treatise by Sara Schneider on the creation and exercise of false identities by con men and undercover cops.

I perceived at least five principal subtopics to the overall theme: the personality type that lends itself to the assumption of a false identity, the props, e.g. documents and disguises, that support such, the mechanics of the con-mark interaction, circumstances which cause an undercover cop to go "bad" or a criminal to go "good", i.e. become an informant, and the means by which a false identity can be salvaged if its breakdown appears imminent.

In the perfect reading experience, I'm both diverted and educated. Both elements may otherwise be present or not. An example of a book that's entertaining but not instructive would be, say, any one of the Jack Reacher thrillers by Lee Child, e.g. the excellent Bad Luck and Trouble (Jack Reacher). Three books that pleased immensely on both levels were A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson, Roving Mars by Steve Squyres, and Death by Black Hole: And Other Cosmic Quandaries by Neil deGrasse Tyson. Alternatively, I found Schneider's esoteric ART OF DARKNESS to be commendably learned, but not consistently regaling. While certainly not impenetrable to the literate, the text requires the reader's close attention. An example of the narrative's more or less general tone follows:

"Every seamless roleplay, whatever its combination of simulation and dissimulation techniques, takes as its model the practices of passing, wherein member of one group (usually of low status) attempt to be known and accepted in practice as members of a higher-level status group. Goffman identified a 'cycle of passing', in which the passer moves first toward expanding consciousness of his act, then toward increasing planfulness, and finally toward total pervasiveness of his passing identity in his life. This journey describes the parallel motion of the passer's subjective sense of him or herself within a new social role and the achieved level of external success demonstrated by passing within that role ..."

Mind you, the book sometimes inspires an enthusiastic "Cool!":

"The term 'mark'- as it refers to the victim of a confidence scheme - derives from the circus con practice of literally marking those who had either already been taken or demonstrated the signs that they could be. On adults deemed ripe for carnival swindles, the placement of the chalk mark indicated where its bearer carried his money."

I suggest that ART OF DARKNESS be required reading for a behavioral psychology class, or for law enforcement officers considering training and assignment as undercover operatives, or perhaps even for those enrolled in a school of acting. These audiences might very well award five stars. However, as a volume for the casual reader to pull off the shelf, I give it four stars, and then only if one is drawn to the fictional or non-fictional careers of scam artists, undercover cops, or behind-the-lines spies.

Finally, ART OF DARKNESS should serve as a reminder that we all play different roles in our daily lives. Imagine projecting the same persona on a job interview, first date, or in front of the traffic court judge that you'd exhibit with your beer drinking buds at a Super Bowl party, i.e. boorish, or over the breakfast table with your spouse of twenty years, i.e. boring. As Sara writes:

"The real identity game is neither about the individual body nor the solo self. Rather, it is socially constructed, embedded in the interplay between my perceptions and yours of what I might be, between the shape of the nest you make for my identity project and the one I make for yours. Identity play, this book argues, takes place not in the self, but in the scene."

(A Word to the Wise: This review was of a pre-publication version. The final draft, I understand from the author, is a bit more approachable for the casual reader.)

Very interesting. This is the type of book that would interest any law enforcement professional or lawyer. But I liked it because it was chock full of anecdotes, from people on both sides of the law, (like Frank Abagnale Jr. of Catch Me If You Can fame) and even observations of movies like The Sting. Not a book you can read in one night, but very readable. (9 Sep 2008)

Addendum: After watching the movie American Gangster, I was even more grateful I read this book, as it provided much insight into the workings of how undercover cops work. (5 Dec 2008)

Undercover cops, the men and women who troll crimes underbelly to get the bad guys. How much do you know on how they do it? How do they go about creating an identity to fool the criminals?
In "Art of Darkness" it takes the reader step by step in to the creation of a fake identity. Even though cops are careful sometimes the identity falls apart and this is addressed also.
The book can be a bit dry at times but it provides fascinating information. If you one of those who watch those kinds of shows on TV and have always wondered just how they do it, wonder no more.

I was lucky enough to receive this book as an early reviewer, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It is dramatically entertaining, but also raises questions about the nature of identity-can it really be separate from what we say and do? It also has whetted my appetite for biography, particularly of the master con artists and undercover workers Schneider quotes throughout the book.

Art of Darkness is an outstanding book on the subject of assuming a fake identity whether it is for good (under cover agents) or evil (criminals). Sara Schneider has thoroughly researched this subject as is evident from the Chapter Notes and the Bibliography, but most evident in the text itself. Schneider truly demonstrates what she calls the virtuosic performance of those assuming a fake identity: blending truth with fiction artfully, submersing into and emerging from two different worlds physically, culturally, emotionally. I walked away from this book wondering if the price was too high to pay for a law enforcement individual to go undercover for any length of time. I was also left wondering if I could ever tell if someone was faking an identity after Schneider so carefully demonstrates this absolute virtuosic performance.

the only thing lacking in this book was a case study of some of the most famous identities Schneider refers to throughout the book. In the appendix she does give an example using the prangsters of a tv show, but I would have rather had the case story of one of the famous criminal con artists or famous undercover agents.

This would be a fascinating read to any one interested in law enforcement and could definetly supplement a college course on the subject. Even if you are not in law enforcement, this book is a fascinating read; I had trouble putting the book down as I was mezmerized by the intricacies one must perform to carry out a fake identity.

Art of Darkness is a very interesting book on a topic that isn't often addressed -- The art and science of operating under false identities. It is clearly written and understandable, even from the point of view of someone who's never had anything to do with police work or crime and only knows about undercover work from movies, and the 17 pages' worth of sources listed in the back provide plenty of different viewpoints and firsthand information. It is impressively thorough, and amazed me with all the things that have to be considered for any false identity to hold up. The history of identity theft, cons, etc. is presented intermixed with descriptions and discussion, so no one section gets bogged down by anything. I would list it as a good book for anyone interested in crime solving or anyone who wants to find something new in the "How To Solve Crimes" genre, and as a good resource for any crime writers.

Sara K. Schneider's book Art of Darkness captures the the essence of a number of undercover operators that I have had the pleasure of knowing on a social basis over the years. They are the kind of people you would want in your foxhole when a situation is in extremis. It is as if Sara was able to look into their soul and figure out what drives them to do this very dangerous work--and most times without any recognition for what they had accomplished.

Deception is not strictly the avenue of the criminal. "Art of Darkness: Ingenious Performances by Undercover Operators, Con Men, and Others" is a look at the many uses of deception and how it has been applied on any and all sides of the law. Gathering complex tales of how these disguises have been used to track down con men and how con men have swindled thousands of dollars and made their form of crime something to be viewed as an art form, "Art of Darkness" is an intriguing piece of nonfiction all the way through. "Art of Darkness: Ingenious Performances by Undercover Operators, Con Men, and Others" is highly recommended for community library true crime collections.