Narration in Detective Fiction
ENGLIT0625
Professor Rebecca Wiggington
Essay 1
2/12/14
Detective fiction is a genre of literature that relies on anxiety, intrigue, and mystery to captivate its audience. These elements of the genre are extremely sensitive to the means of narration because the way the reader is presented with the information directly influences the way in which he interprets the information. It is vital to the success of the genre to foster novel and innovative ways to deliver the story because the readers of detective fiction are always attempting to outsmart the novel and unearth its secrets. Therefore authors must be constantly striving to evolve the narration of the story and keep the element of surprise on the authors’ side.
The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins and Sherlock Holmes: The Adventure of the Speckled Band by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle present two disparate ways of narrating a detective fiction novel. Collins uses multiple first person sources in an attempt to put the reader in the detective’s shoes, while Doyle employs a single first person narrative that allows a limited view into the workings of the detection. These methods influence both the process of detection and the degree to which a reader can participate in the detection of the novel.
In Sherlock Holmes: The Adventure of the Speckled Band, the process of detection is hardly affected by the narration. Because the narrator, Dr. John Watson, is not a detective but rather a sidekick, he does not proffer much information pertaining to the detection of the mystery. Watson is merely a bystander who provides occasional aid to the eccentric Holmes. The process of detection is occurring nearly exclusively in the mind of Sherlock Holmes, which the reader is not granted access to. Therefore the only way the narrator influences the process of detection in Doyle’s story is when he converses with Holmes as to the mystery of the speckled band murder, and even then Holmes usually conceals his deductions from the
Professor Rebecca Wiggington
Essay 1
2/12/14
Detective fiction is a genre of literature that relies on anxiety, intrigue, and mystery to captivate its audience. These elements of the genre are extremely sensitive to the means of narration because the way the reader is presented with the information directly influences the way in which he interprets the information. It is vital to the success of the genre to foster novel and innovative ways to deliver the story because the readers of detective fiction are always attempting to outsmart the novel and unearth its secrets. Therefore authors must be constantly striving to evolve the narration of the story and keep the element of surprise on the authors’ side.
The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins and Sherlock Holmes: The Adventure of the Speckled Band by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle present two disparate ways of narrating a detective fiction novel. Collins uses multiple first person sources in an attempt to put the reader in the detective’s shoes, while Doyle employs a single first person narrative that allows a limited view into the workings of the detection. These methods influence both the process of detection and the degree to which a reader can participate in the detection of the novel.
In Sherlock Holmes: The Adventure of the Speckled Band, the process of detection is hardly affected by the narration. Because the narrator, Dr. John Watson, is not a detective but rather a sidekick, he does not proffer much information pertaining to the detection of the mystery. Watson is merely a bystander who provides occasional aid to the eccentric Holmes. The process of detection is occurring nearly exclusively in the mind of Sherlock Holmes, which the reader is not granted access to. Therefore the only way the narrator influences the process of detection in Doyle’s story is when he converses with Holmes as to the mystery of the speckled band murder, and even then Holmes usually conceals his deductions from the
Cited: Collins, Wilkie. The Moonstone. New York, New York: The Heritage Press, 1959. Print. Conan Doyle, Arthur. Sherlock Holmes: The Adventure of the Speckled Band. (1892): n. page. Web. 12 Feb. 2014. . James, P.D. "Talking About Detective Fiction." (2003): n. page. Web. 12 Feb. 2014. .