Harrison Pauer

Professor Linda Haas

Writing 39B
26 April 2014
What makes the Detective Genre Unique?
What element has made the Detective Genre one of the most successful genres for
over a century and half? Is it the action, adventure, comedy, and mystery of the detective
genre? These elements are essential<essentialor often included? for a detective genre,
but these elements are not unique to the mystery genre. Readers can find these elements
in any genre. If a reader were to pick up a book that followed the action genre, the reader
would find action, adventure, mystery, and the occasional humor. The action genre may
not enforce some of these elements as much as the detective genre, but the action genre
will still have these elements as part of its story. These elements are just associated with
good fiction. What is really unique to the detective genre is the effect the detective genre
has on the reader. The detective genre is fundamentally different from every other genre
in its ability to connect and affect the reader.<Consider introducing Dove earlier and
make it clear that you are doing a lit reviewwhat has made the genre so popular for so
long? Many scholars have attempted to answer this questionbut Doves answer is the
one you seem to be focusing on (how the genre interacts with the reader makes it
different)
In the book An Introduction to the Detective Story in the chapter Doyle,
Panek<first introduction use his full name and a short summary of the book (in this case,
his books title pretty much sums it up, but you can say a bit moreits a book that
attempts to give a historical and contextual explanation for the success of Doyles stories
during the late Vic era suggests that the world in the detective genre follows a simpler set
of laws than the world the reader leaves in. In the world of the detective genre,<eliminate
world of the detective genre from one of these sentences so its not so repetitive events
can be calculated using facts, rationalism, and the scientific method of the detection.
According to the Panek, Doyle . . .[Doyle] glued a scientific veneer to his detective and
clamped a thin layer of reason to his sensational plots. (Panek 92). <<you dont need to
use [ ] if its at the very beginningjust make that part of your words, and then start the
quote after In the book An Introduction to the Detective Story ,once you intro the book
and give the title once, then you dont have to repeat the title in the Chapter
Beginnings, Panek elaborates the scientific method of detection that has been necessary
since the beginning of the detective genre. The scientific method of solving crime allows
the detective to solve any problem, and the first step of this method is observation. Using
observation, the detective can gather all of the clues that will help the detective solve the
class. In the short story, The Man With the Twisted Lip, commas always go inside
quotation marks Conan Doyle writes about Sherlock Holmes using his detective tools to
find where blackmail against the King of Bohemia is located. <I think you have your
stories mixed up According to Conan Doyle, . . . [Sherlock hopes] to find a clue in the
incoherent ramblings of these sots, as I have before now. (Doyle) The next part of the
scientific method is the tool of deduction. The detective uses deduction to compile the
clues that he or she has gathered into a reenactment of how the crime occurred and who
did it. According to Doyle, I see it, I deduce it (Doyle) The third step for this scientific
method of solving crime is the conclusion. In the conclusion the detective gives the
reader all of his clues and deductions, and then the detective thoroughly explains how
each deduction was made and how it was used to solve the case. The conclusion is the
most crucial step for the reader for a few reasons. <Im not sure what the main point of
this paragraph is--- is it that the scientific method of deduction is one of the conventions
of the genre that makes it popular with its readers? You dont have two scholars in
conversation in this paragraph, just Panek---so remember, for each point, your purpose is
not to make an argument about what is important or what something means---your
purpose is to review what the scholars say about that point and then synthesize that info
to make a conclusion about what they say. The quote from Panek is interestinghe says
that CD glued a veneer of science to his sensational plots. What is veneer? So
what is Panek saying about how deep the science goes in the stories? (hint: not very
deep). This is pretty much the opposite of what Konnikova gets out of the deductive
process in the stories--- put these two into conversation.
Every reader likes a good ending; an ending where the protagonist wins and the
antagonist is defeated. However, in every other genre, the reader becomes emotionally
attached to protagonist. The reader feels every injury, both emotional and physical, and
every feat that protagonist accomplishes. These emotions are not the readings own
feelings. These emotions are thrown upon the reader; whereas, the detective genre is not
as complex. In other genres the reader lives the life of the protagonist; the reader
believes that every move the protagonist makes is a move that reader has done as well.
However, in the detective genre you are put into the eyes of a creature thats only job is
pure observation. This allows the reader to make he or shes own opinions and ideas on
how to solve the problem presented in each story. Then at the end of the novel, the
detective gives the reader the long-awaited solution. The solution gives the reader the
closure that every reader seeks in the detective genre. <this is too much of your own ideas
and/or summary without getting to what the scholars say---- cut down own your own
interpretations and get straight to your purpose---name the point of the paragraph and
then get to what the scholars say about it According to Konnikova, At long last the
awaited solution, when it all made sense and Id shake my head, Of course; its all so
simple now that he says it. (Konnikova 1) This conclusion is always put in simple
terms for the reader, so the reader will feel that if he or she just made one more deduction
he or she would have been able to solve the crime. After the detective gives the reader
the solution of the crime, the detective then continues life as if there was not a crime in
the first place. According to Conan Doyle, I think, Watson, that if we drive to Baker
Street we shall just be in time for breakfast. This is the last line in the novel The Man
With the Twisted Lip, and this is also how most Sherlock Holmes stories end. These
endings allow the reader continue his or her day with the satisfaction of solving a
complicated puzzle.<It seems Doves point about endings could enter the conversation
here---about how if you missed the ending of Bridges of Madison County it wouldnt be
a great loss---but if you miss the ending of a detective story, its a big deal
In the chapter The Different Story, one of Doves<the first time you intro the
source, give full name and do more intro of rhetorical situation, summary and credentials
underlining themes is that the detective genre is a puzzle that challenges. People often
seek different forms of recreation some may choose to read a book or maybe do
crossword puzzle. . According to Dove, . . . <only use ellipses (. . . ) when you take
something out of the middle of a quote, not beginning or end both the crossword
puzzle and the detective novel are free of stress, each offers the reader a task or set of
related tasks, both are shaped by convention, and neither has any goal beyond itself.
(Dove 3) Dove explains that the detective genre can not only provide the recreational
activity of reading, but it can also provide the reader a chance to solve a puzzle while he
or she reads. Konnikova also agrees with Dove that the detective genre is designed to act
as a puzzle for the reader, but Konnikova says the effects reading a novel from the
detective genre has a much more profound effect on the reader. <quote or paraphrase here
here and you should also have page number citations each time you provide an idea that
comes from her or Dove Konnikova believes that if readers follow the same scientific
method used by the protagonist, such as Sherlock Holmes, the reader will gain a few
advantages. The first advantage is that we will regain or improve our ability to critically
think. Konnikova suggests that people get stuck in daily routines and no longer reflect on
actions they make. People get caught in an escapable cycle, where it is almost impossible
to deviate from. According to Konnikova, All too often, when it comes to our minds,
we are surprisingly mindless. We sail on, blithely unaware of how much we are missing,
of how little we grasp of our own thought processand how much better we could be if
only wed taken the time to understand and reflect. (Konnikova 4) <you can make this
even clearer--- Dove argues that what makes SH stories appealing is they are playstress
free, a gamenot meant to teach us anything; Konnikova argues the opposite---the SH
stories give us a formula for how we can become better thinkersthey do teach us
something He compares the reader to Watson, and how Watson blindly follows Sherlock
making the same observations. However, Watson does not take the time to stop and
reflect upon his observations. The second advantage that Konnikova suggested is that the
scientific method of detection could improve the physical health of the reader.
According to Konnikova, . . . and could even improve vital signs, such as blood
pressure, and their cognitive function. (Konnikova 3). Both scholars agree that the
detective genre is a puzzle for the readers to enjoy, but their opinions about the effects
that detective genre has on the readers is different. Konninkovas opinions were more
focused on how the reader was affected physiologically from the detective genre.<The
ideas in this paragraph are clear and the conversation between Dove/Konnikova is
clearperhaps this point should be moved up to be first?
Konnikova believes that as people get older they get stuck in daily routines and
subconsciously get glued into these patterns of repetitions. According to Konnikova,
You get so set in a specific pattern that you go through entire chunks of your day in a
mindless daze. . . (Konnikova 6) Konnikova talks about how sometimes the reader
needs to get an errand done after work or some other repeated activity. Konnikova says
that no matter how many times you need to remind yourself throughout the day; the
person will still wont be able to accomplish this errand, because it is not part of his or
her daily routine. Konnikova believes that the main detective, such as Sherlock Holmes,
can help a reader escape the monotony of a daily routine by simply following copying
what Sherlock Holmes does on a daily basis. <<notice how all of the sentences in this
paragraph start---all Subject-verb--- do some sentence combining and create more
sentence variety here Dove agrees with Konnikova in the sense that detective genre helps
gives the reader the change to break out of the cycle of repetition in a readers daily life.
According to Dove, It may be, however, that our catch-players decide to inject some
purpose into their activity in order to break the monotony, and they start keeping score.
(Dove 18) However, Dove believes that reader makes a game out of the detective genre,
where the reader tries to solve the case before the infamous detective can.<The point of
this paragraph isnt so clear--- what is the sub-point under your umbrella controlling idea
for this paragraph?
This need to beat the protagonist is a unique feeling that can only be induced by
reading a book that follows the detective genre format. The detective genre is the only
fiction genre that follows pure science; the detective genre only uses facts and deductions
to move the story forward towards the end. The detective genre is also the only genre
where readers need to see the end of the story. The detective genre is the only fiction
genre that can give an ending that will not only satisfy the reader, but it will also let the
reader leave without imposing any moral lesson upon the reader. The detective genre is
also the only genre that offers a friendly puzzle to reader without adding any additional
stress to the reader. The detective genre also provides the reader the opportunity to
escape the monotonous cycle of life. As long as science exists, the detective genre will
thrive.
Good start, Harrison! I think you just need to keep going on the path youre one---one of
your priorities should be to tighten up the structure and make each main point more clear
at the beginning of the paragraph. Do you use 5 sources? I dont think so yet----
remember that you can focus on 2 (seems like Dove/Konnikova are the main ones) and
then let the others provide details along the way.