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EXTENSION 1 ENGLISH
Conventions of Crime Fiction
1. A sleuth-hero. The detective - professional or amateur.2. A detailed, plausible setting:
a. A closed settingb. A hostile settingc. A mundane setting
3. A crime to be solved. Investigation.4. Dangerous situations. Suspense.5. A denouement - the climax and resolution
Set Text - Rear Window - Hitchcock (1954)
Conventional Subversive
Detective Sleuth - amateur Not looking for crime,comes to himNot in the habit of solvingcrimes - a one off
Setting Closed/mundaneRealistic and detailedHeavy rain in some partsas nod to classic murdermystery
The window + bambooshades framind device -stage ---> reflects voyerismExtreme heat --->claustrophobia
Crime Murder The story is not awhodunnit so much as awas it doneNot trying to solve crimebut prove its exsistenceBackwards
Investigation Piece together clues tomake deductions, eg: Jeffsees a change in height offlowers, observes dogsdeath ---> deduces there issomething thereFailure of police toimmediately solve the case
Audience is given moreinfo than characters (eg:see Thorwald leave with awoman) and evidence tosay Mrs Thorwald is alive---> we do not immediatelybelieve Jeff, have a differentdeductive processLisas feminine intuition vs.imperical evidence (eg: awoman wouldnt leavehome without her handbag)Intuition --> evidence
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Conventional Subversive
Danger Slueth(s) put themselvesindangerElement of danger isimportant for suspense (eg:
dark lighting as Jeff tries tohide himself from Thorwaldacross the road)
Not Jeff but femalecharacters that putthemselves in most danger,eg: Lisa caught in
Thorwalds apartment asJeff can only watch throughhis camera
Denouement Thorwald entering apt,subsequent policeexplanation ---> Thorwaldsaction confirms guiltShown by very darklighting, no music ordiagetic sound that has
underscored the rest,indicates to audience thatthis is it
Fluid - not one momentwhere Thorwald isconfirmed murderer but aslow build of events
Other Foreshadowing - Stella inopening scene
Diagetic sounds - littlenondiagetic music/soundtrack underscores action(eg: Miss Lonelyheartsalmost suicidechereographed tomusicians playing)The (lack of) crime issolved by Doyle mid waythrough ---> dog murderreignites suspicion
Social/Political/CulturalConcerns
The OtherPost - WW2/ColdWar ContextLars Thorwald -eastern European -represents theOther/evils ofCommunist regime
Roles of womenLisa as dominantpartner (magazineend thing) yetattempted to besubjugated by JeffLisa + Stella doingdangerous/hard work
Marriage/LoveNeighbours allrepresent differentstages of love +relationshipsJeff remains cynicalThorwald representswhat Jeff fears he
will become
Set Text - The Real Inspector Hound - Stoppard (1968)
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Satire of CF
Pastiche + ParodyRadio, Mrs Drudge revealing details in a timely and formulaic manner
Drudge: The drawing room of Lady Muldoons manner one early spring
morning...this is all very mysterious and Im sure its leading up to something.Threats - Ill kill you for this Simon Gascoyne! by multiple charactersRed herringsSecret identities
Magnus: Ive been leading a double life - at least!Magnus is long lost Lord Muldoon, Puckeridge and one of the InspectorHounds - the real one in fact?
Multiple victims/suspects/criminals/stories
Satire of Bourgeios Society
Over the top, melodramatic language from both Moon and Birdboot and the playcharacters ---> satire of CF and of middle class
Cynthia:Youre a cad, Simon! You will use me and cast me aside as you have castaside so many othersSimon: No, Cynthia!- you can make me a better person!Cynthia: Youre ruthless- so strong, so cruel -
Pretentiousness of the middle classMoon: Faced as we are with such ubiquitous obliquity I must invoke the names ofKakfa, Satre, Shakespeare...Dorothy L. Sayers!
Here, Sayers is a joke/further satire of traditional CFTheatre as an elitist/classist enitity, should reflect social concerns yet dwells on thesuperficial, unaccessible
Birdboot and MoonPettiness of Birdboot and Moon reflects shallow consumerism/capitalist middle classlifestyle
Appearance and Reality
Mirror - the audience is forced to confront their own reality, serves to frame the theme ofappearance and realityBirdboot - appearance as an astute critic and convential husband ---> ladies man and
easily swayed by female affectionHypereality of the play within the playNo one is as they appear, secret agendas and identitiesThe fluidity of reality - constant change means whatever is in the present moment must beaccepted as reality (absurdism)
Absurdist Theatre
Lack of meaning/nihilistic view of life presented through ridiculous/nonsensical theatreHere done in a lighthearted manner to satirize CF and the bourgeoisie
Multiple identities/crossover from audience to participantPlay within a playHighly stylised languageRepetition
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Metafictive references/allusionsIntertextuality
Quotes
The card game, each line has a double meaning: Felicity: Ive had my turn, havent I,
Simon?- now, it seems, its Cynthias turn
Additional Text - The Big Sleep - Chandler (1939)
Conventional Subversive
Detective Phillip Marlowe. Hardboiled - sardonic andstreetwise (eg: Tall, arentyou? she said. I didntmean to be....Handsometoo. I grunted.At once a working classeveryman and intelligentdeductive detective
Marlowe integrity in alawless world. Eg: doesnttake advantage of unstableCarmens many attempts atseductionKnight complex, mirroredby stained glass of knightand damsel at beginning -If I lived here, Id have toget up there and help himeventually.
Setting A hostile setting, a world ofcrime
Crime Detective solicited by rich
Sternwood to investigatespecific crime (blackmail)
Leads to a number of other
crimes (2 murders,blackmail) that are solved inquick successionThe real crime - Regansmurder - is not evendiscovered to have beencommitted until near end ofnovel. It is almostbackwards.
Investigation Component of logicaldeduction and investigationby Marlowe (eg: deducingthat Mars is blackmailingVivian after the stagedwinning of money andmugging)
Marlowe often in rightplace right time - he reactsto events rather thanobserving clues (eg:present at the murder ofJoe Brody --> killerconfesses relationship withGeiger)Marlowe uses bribes orcoercion to get info (eg:paying Agnes $200 to tell
him where Mona Mars is)
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Conventional Subversive
Danger Marlowe continuouslyfaces guns, is threatenedby numerous partiesthrough the course of the
investigationTowards end is tied up andalmost killed beforeescaping
Marlowe faces danger withtrademark sarcastic witKills a hitman in the courseof escaping - while Canino
is a very bad criminal, thisdamages Marlowes moralcredibility
Denouement The killer (Carmen) isrevealed in a dramaticfashion (she lures Marloweinto a secluded location andtries to shoot him)Marlowe explains the case
and ties up loose ends
Marlowe does not exactlywork out who the killer is,but has the answer thrustupon himNo justice is served - truthnot reported to police.
Vivian agrees to hospitalizeCarmen, Vivian receives noretribution and Eddie Mars(who has essentially causedall the events of the novel)is left totally untouched
Other The femme fatale - all thewomen are beautiful andsexual (eg: She [Carmen]
was small butdurable...eyes were slategrey...sharp predatory teethshiny as porcelain)Mona as the main object oflust/affection
Social/Political CulturalConcerns
Depression/war timedisillusionment
Sardonic, worldweary hero
Very little distinctionbetween good andbad
Distinction between richand poor/class divides
Rich yetirresponsible/immoral Sternwoods vs.poor yet uprightMarloweMarlowe always
makes a point of hiswage ($25/day +expenses)
Negative view ofsex/sexual desire
Sex is cause ofmost
crimes/problemsMarlowe routinelyrejects sexualadvances on moralgrounds (eg: nakedCarmen in bed,rejected on
Does crime pay?
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Additional Text - The Lady Vanishes - Hitchcock (1938)
Conventional Subversive
Detective Amateur sleuths Young, female protagonistLater joined by maleNeither are trained/lookingfor mystery - forced to solvethrough circumstance
Setting Closed setting, a train Eastern European country,becomes significant to plot
Crime The disappearance of awoman from a train
Not where is she but didshe exist in beginningSolving of crime still leads
many questionsunansweredSmall crime has biggerimplications
Investigation Clues ---> deductivereasoning ---> solving of thecrimeAudience sees events thatlater become clues -->shown in an obvious
manner --> encouragesaudience deductionRed herrings - themagicans equipment, thenew Miss Froy
Iris constantly facesdisbelief/oppositionMisleading clues (eg:everyone denies seeingMiss Froy despite herexsistence) ---> false
conclusionsAudience knows more thancharacters (eg: FROY onthe window after Iris isconvinced she does notexist)Intuition (Iris) vs. deduction(Gilbert) (eg A nun wouldnot wear high heels.,Gilberts disbelief until hesees tea packet)
Danger Protagonists placed insignificant danger
Fight with magicianPoisonGilbert climbingoutside the carriageShoot out
Danger to non relatedparties, shoot out
Scream-like train whistlesignifies dangerDanger used as a symbolof the greater theme (shootout --> British imperialism)
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Conventional Subversive
Denouement Dangerous shoot out +defeat is key moment ofclimax
Fluid - not one moment ofdenoument
Finding of FroyVilliains explanationShoot outRestoration ofjustice as Froy isfound safe
More questions raised witheach realisation
Other Strangling of musician inopening sets scene forsuspense/danger/crimeFailure of authority to
resolve
We know what happenedlong before we know whyRomantic subplotIris/Gilbert develops as the
plot doesMagicians illusionsymbolizes the theme ofvanishing
Social/Politcal/CulturalConcerns
British imperialismNon-British ethniccaricaturesVillains are foreignNun decides tochange sides afterdiscovering victim isBritishShoot outexemplifies this
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