A guest post by Justin Murphy
Why do mysteries and crime fiction have a lasting impact?
This can mean different things to different people. Such a story may be
one thing from a reader's viewpoint and a whole separate matter from
that of writer. This article aims to cover some shred of both.
Outside of Romance, any genre tied to mystery, crime, or detective
fiction have enjoyed the most enduring appeal with the widest audience.
The most obvious answer is the fact everyone loves a puzzle. Going back
to such investigators as Sherlock Holmes, Miss Marple, and Hercule
Poirot. Some enthusiasts love to figure out who committed the crime
either alongside the detective or feel they can beat the sleuth and
solve it beforehand. Sure enough, it may be fun for writers to plot
these out. Even in visual media with such characters as Jessica Fletcher
going through the motions on an episode of Murder, She Wrote. Whether
it be from the viewpoint of the scribe who hammered out the story, or
the viewer watching it.
Such things happen in everyday life,
while perhaps not in our own, they do exist in someone’s. Such as how real-life detectives or cops investigate a case with criminals and
victims involved. Much like true crime, its fictional counterparts still
have people reading novels and short stories, watching weekly series made
for TV Movies, and listening to podcasts. All because either there is
something for the audience to relate to, or characters they identify
with.
As mentioned above, the three main points of the genre’s
triangle are criminals, investigators, and victims. The average reader
knows the former always does harm (or something illegal) to the latter
with the middle figure probing into it. Of course, there have been many
variations where the detective doesn’t have a clue to the very end. Or
may figure things out from the beginning with the audience following the
chase until the perp is caught. Such as in one of the many TV Movies
featuring Lieutenant Columbo. Others may involve the victim turning out
to the criminal, or the police officer being the one who did it all
along.
Of course, there are also such stories as heist capers or
prison breaks, offering a more sympathetic view of the criminal’s
exploits. Whether this subgenre is accurate is subject to debate, even
though most find these entertaining and have brought in an audience.
Such films as The Sting, The Ocean’s Eleven franchise, and Escape From
Alcatraz have also proven this to be correct. In addition, there are
mystery and detective tales veering into suspense thrillers. Possibly
the most notable example is the Hannibal Lecter franchise with such entries
as Red Dragon and The Silence of The Lambs. Showing the viewpoints of
protagonists Will Graham and Clarice Starling. As well as those of
Francis Dolarhyde, Buffalo Bill, and of course, The Cannibal himself.
The motive with this latter story approach involves showcasing the
viewpoints of both heroes and villains, if not more characters beyond
this.
Though one can also differentiate between suspense and
thriller as well. The goal for a suspense story is revealed above with
the Hannibal Lecter series example. Yet they are also good
demonstrations of thrillers, which is more exemplified with a story’s
pacing. A pulse pounding story moving very fast, keeping audiences on
the edge of their seats. But again, everything comes back to the
triangle of the criminal, detective, and victim. Possibly the true
bedrock of any crime or mystery tale.
Of course, there can be
even deeper connections between these three archetypes. Two or more of
them can be related. Such as how an investigator harkens back to a
childhood where one parent harms or kills the other and it impacts their
lives and the future path they take. Of course, there have also been
stories where family members are on opposite sides of the law. Such as
one member being a cop and forced to confront or turn in someone
connected to their Mafia related brethren. These are only the tip of
iceberg, but showcase how far inward crime, mystery, and detective
stories may go. TV Series of this genre were always labeled, ’’case of
the week’’, but such relationships beneath these tried and true dynamics
show there can be a lot more than surface level pap.
Even
further, is first person or third person the preferred viewpoint in a
crime, mystery, or detective tale? Some readers and writers alike love
the intimacy of how or why these characters are motivated, a short story
or novel length confession allowing readers into their head, if not
their heart and soul. The first-person approach is explored deeply in
the works of Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler. The former
fictionalized his ordeals as a Pinkerton Detective and gave enthusiasts
his worldview through creations such as The Continental Op and Sam
Spade, some felt he brought a certain darkness to the murder cases he
penned. Restoring it to the back alleys and showing them for the cynical
and violent acts they were.
Raymond Chandler did this, but his
background lined up more with poetry and newspaper reporting. He didn’t
have Hammett’s background as an actual detective, but more than made up
for it in the skills of writing and language. Some consider his command
of such to be superior to the former, culminating in the novels he
wrote depicting the character Phillip Marlowe. Despite being a
tad derivative and never being an actual investigator himself, his
reputation somewhat now stands above that of Dashiell Hammett, both of
their works were adapted for film, television, and radio. The biggest
exception to this is the latter’s final published novel, Playback. One
still not adapted to any visual medium, despite originally written for
Universal Pictures in 1949 as a screenplay.
No doubt readers
also felt the same way as these authors, who may have tapped into some
dark feelings their audience only knew on a subconscious level. Beneath
any exteriors of Middle America or a white picket fence, authors such as
Hammett and Chandler may have probed fears and anxieties these readers
didn’t know they had. When opening their pulp magazines and detective
novels, they couldn’t hide beneath a phony smile or the image of an
All-American family, instead realizing such prejudice and apprehensions
were real and others felt the same way. By turning each page, these
people were safe and took comfort in the fact the outside world proved a
dangerous place, if they weren’t in the middle of it. Maybe this is the
greatest therapy of all, the unspoken and personal confessions between
someone who writes a tale and one who reads it.
In contrast, stories in third person omniscient may be more of a social occurrence. Like the above example of suspense or thrillers
offering two or more viewpoints, especially those of hero and villain.
This gives the reader a much broader view of a story and invites the
world in the way a first-person story can’t. Often, the reader learns of
the crime before the detective does. So, the audience is getting a
ringside seat to the main event. Not an unspoken personal dialogue
between reader and author. Although more recent detective novels have
also taken this approach with one of the Rizzoli and Isles novels by
Tess Gerritsen, such as The Mephisto Club and The Glass Rainbow from the
pen of author James Lee Burke. The former explores the viewpoint of one
of the investigators and one belonging to a possible suspect, far away
in Rome connected to murders in the Northeastern United States. The
latter is seen through the eyes of Louisiana detective Dave Robicheaux
and his partner Clete Purcell with the catch his daughter is dating a
person of interest in the case while said partner is also thought to be
guilty, due to an earlier assault on one of the suspects. Despite not
having the more intimate nature of first person, readers may still have
dealt with someone far away from their current locale, or a father
reading who is reminded of someone his daughter dated and may not
approve of. This also applies to the authors writing these works, who
derive certain details from their lives. Such as how the author and
detective in the latter novel both share a daughter named Alafair.
Thomas Harris, who wrote the Hannibal Lecter novels, shares his
love of gourmet cuisine with the title character despite not being a
cannibal or a serial killer.
On this level, readers can relate
to the characters they read about. Most of us may never be engaged in
these activities directly, but we still identify with such people and
events. There are, no doubt, those of us who did something bad to
someone else, allowing ourselves to see things through the eyes of a
criminal. Of course, this can be true for people who’ve been on the
receiving end of such treatment, enabling them to sympathize with the
story’s victim. Indeed, someone always probes into said matters,
providing them with commonalities to feel on par with the investigator.
While many readers never end up in the same situations as these
characters, their own lives sometimes place them on similar wavelengths.
Again, it all comes down to the mystery, if not crime, genre’s general
triangle.
Even with the impact of visual media, one can’t deny
similar identification with characters. Going even deeper into film noir
with Phillip Marlowe entering and facing a dark situation in The
Maltese Falcon. The same with 1970’s era counterpart, Jake Gittes in the
film Chinatown not only facing a reality like that but also watching
the girl’s murder in the end. A reversal of the genre’s typical trope of
the detective always ending up with the love interest by the
time the credits roll. Like readers, moviegoers relate to these on some
level. People who step into a situation they would prefer not to be in.
There are also those who may have lost someone they love in the most
tragic way and couldn’t do anything to prevent it. Whether it be the
person causing the ordeal, one investigating or witnessing such, and the
individual who fell victim to this. The murder or crime draws them in,
but it’s not necessarily what one relates to. It’s the personal
connection. Gittes observing the shooting of Evelyn Mulwray can remind
them of a romantic breakup, if not the fear of losing a lover, spouse,
or even a child.
This is the key ingredient to the success of
these stories. Regardless of whether the tale is a simple puzzle the
reader yearns to solve before reaching the end. Or a more complex affair
with fictional people one can relate to. There proves to be no way
around it, authors and their readers come back to it every single time
no matter what the variation is. Such has been the case ever since the
earliest mysteries or detective yarns told in One Thousand and One
Nights, alongside those parallel and contrasting cultures during ancient
or medieval eras. These dynamics were, no doubt, also present when
Edgar Allan Poe devised the modern detective story. Whether it be a
lighthearted cozy or some dark trip into the world of noir embodied by
the investigation of a hardboiled detective, these above themes resonate
and are eternal. While Joseph Campbell’s Monomyth is more linked to
works of science fiction and fantasy with the dynamics of crime,
mystery, and detective fiction being triangular, their concepts are
circular. Those who write and read all these stories always return, if
the fictional accounts are well told. Authors and their audiences are
born into this world and, sooner or later, pass away. Repeating the same
cycle of the works they either create or enjoy, leaving the legacies
and examples for other generations to do the same. No matter what form
it takes, maybe this is what makes life and storytelling so beautiful.
After all, both share a beginning, middle, and end.
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