Detective Crime or MysterySetting VictimClues SuspectSolution

Elements of a Mystery

Myste

ry

Genr

e

Hard BoiledAlso known as private-eye fiction or Black Mask, hard-boiled fiction is the United States foremost contribution to the mystery genre, and it was a dramatic change from anything that has been seen before. Born in the 1920’s with the rise of pulp magazines, these stories captured the reality of life in America at this time in history. Most stories featured

a tough main character, an “isolated protagonist who managed to obey his own code of ethics and achieve a limited and local justice in a less than perfect world.” (Crime Classics) The most famous of these pulps, Black Mask, introduced such private eyes as Dashiell Hammett’s Sam Spade and Raymond Chandler’s Philip Marlowe. The magazine

became “the major proving site for hard-boiled detective fiction,” (Crime Classics)

Types of MysteriesHard Boiled 1Elements 1Police Procedurals 2 Cozy 2Locked Room or Puzzle 2

Cozy Also know as the English

country house or manor house mystery, this genre is generally

acknowledged as the

classic style of mystery writing. Prominent in the 1920’2 and 30’s, this style focused on

“members of a closed group, often in a country house or village, who became suspects in a generally bloodless and neat murder solved by a great-

detective kind of investigator.” (Crime Classics) The stories almost always involved some form of puzzle, and invariable, observation, a keen understanding

of human nature, and a heavy reliance on gossip were indespensable tools used in solving the crime. This style of writing proved to be so popular that The

Detection Club was founded in 1928 to outline the Rules of Fair Play, which members needed to follow in order to create proper mystery stories.

A few examples are:“Murder at the Village” by

Agatha Christie“The Queen’s Square” by

Dorothy L. Sayers

Locked Room or Puzzle

A murder victim is discovered in a room or enclosure with no apparent exit, leaving the detective to ascertain (to find out definitely) the killer’s means of escape. First introduced in Edgar Allan Poe’s 1841 story, “The Murders in the Rue Morgue,” the locked-room format uses such devices as misdirections (red herrings) and the illusion to deceive the reader into thinking that escape from the sealed room is an actual impossibility. In reality, a very simple solution has been available to the reader from the beginning. A few examples:“The Big Bow Mystery” by Israel Zanfwill

“The Problem of Cell 13”

Police

ProceduralsThe main characteristic of these types of stories are their realistic

portrayal of police methods in the solving of crime. Police novels, or procedurals, usually center on a single police

force or precinct, with each individual within

becoming a part of the story. Often showcasing several cases at the same time, procedurals

concentrate on “the detailed investigation of a crime from the point of view of the police, and in the best examples

of the kind does so with considerable realism.” (Bloody Murder)

The procedural format is perfectly suited to television as well, as evidenced by the

popularity of shows as “Dragnet” and “Hill Street Blues.”A few examples:“Sadie When She Died”

by Ed McBain“The New Centeurions” by Joseph Wambaugh

Academic Vocabulary

alibi-an excuse that an accused person uses to show that he/she was somewhere else than at the scene of the crime

breakthrough- an advance or discovery that helps solve a crime

clue-a fact or object that helps solve mysteries

crime-an act committed in violation of the law

deduce-to infer by logical reasoning

detective-a person who investigates crimes and gathers information

evidence-something, such as a witness statement or object that is used as proof in a crime

hunch-a guess or feeling not based on known facts

motive-an inner drive that causes a person to do something or act in a certain way

mystery-something that is secret and unknown

plot-the arrangements of incidents in a story

purloin-to steal or filchred herring-something that

is used to divert attention from the basic issue

setting-the time, place, environment and surrounding circumstances of a story

sleuth-another name for a detective

suspect-a person who is suspected of a crime