ENGLISH YEARLY EXAM: CRIME FICTION

CONVENTIONS

A morally upright, intelligent and isolated protagonist who often has a personal interest in the case.
A crime (usually a murder with other crimes being committed either as a result of or as the cause of the
murder).
A villain, often physically as well as metaphorically ugly and/or deformed.
Clues and red herrings or false clues that lead to the solving of the crime. These clues are often so difficult to
see that only the incredible intellect of the sleuth can see them, though from the point they are revealed,
seem obvious.
Danger and or conflict that must be faced by the hero.
A satisfactory resolution, where right is restored to the world and justice has been dealt out by the
protagonist.
Ethical decisions and a moral message.

VOCABULARY
"Fair play" rule the writer must provide sufficient clues to allow the reader to solve the mystery himself/herself
"Howcatchem" This type of mystery reveals the commission of the crime early in the story and usually identifies
the criminal to the reader but not the detective. The story then develops around the detective's attempt to solve
the crime. There may also be additional puzzles, such as the motive for the crime, that are cleared up along the
way.
(Detective) Spoofs and Parodies This kind of detective story mocks or pokes fun at the detective story genre by
means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation.
Amateur detective a person keenly interested in crime-solving but with no professional credentials
Caper Story This type of mystery involves one or more crimes (especially thefts, swindles, or occasionally
kidnappings) perpetrated by the main characters in full view of the reader. This type of crime story differs from
the usual crime story by elements of humor, adventure, or unusual cleverness or boldness.
Clue a piece of evidence that leads the detective to the solution of a problem or a crime
Country House Mystery This type of mystery most often occurs at a remote location during a weekend party
(what better way to involve multiple suspects?) and with either a professional or amateur detective in
attendance....Quite often, the detective returns to unmask the criminal in front of a pre-assembled audience.
Cozy Detective Mystery This type of mystery features an amateur detective and no explicit violence, although a
murder is usually the featured crime.The amateur detective is usually someone keenly interested in crime but
with no professional link to crime-solving, such as Agatha Christie's Miss.
Criminal perpetrator
Detective an investigator of crimes, either professional or amateur
Edgar Allen Poe Considered the first American writer to develop the detective genre in fiction
The Edgar Award a small bust of a famous American detective writer, presented to outstanding detective writers
every year by the Mystery Writers of America
FBI agent (or profiler) federal authorities charged with solving crimes
Film noir detective movies featuring cynical and evil characters in a sleazy setting with a dark and ominous
atmosphere that is conveyed by shadowy photography and foreboding background music, as in John Houston's
The Maltese Falcon (1941)
Forensic pathologist or specialist an investigator who usually studies the evidence and draws conclusions that
often lead to the identification of the criminal.
Forensics the study of physical evidence

Golden Age of Detective Fiction stories written between the World Wars One and Two, when Agatha Christie, the
mystery novel's "Queen of Crime," wrote many of her popular mysteries.
Historical Whodunit The central plot of this type of mystery involves a crime (almost always a murder) and the
setting (time and place) have some true historical significance. The detective (usually an amateur) may be a
real-life historical figure or a fictitious character.
Legal Thriller This type of mystery involves crusading lawyers who become involved in proving the innocence of
their clients and along the way, actually solve the crime and identify the guilty perpetrators.
Locked room mystery usually involves a murder committed under apparently impossible circumstances (such as
Edgar Allen Poe's "The Murders in the Rue Morgue")
Modus operandi The method of the crime; refers to the choice of victim, weapon, location, and other crime
characteristics that afford the detective a way of identifying the criminal's unique style of committing his/her
crime.
Pinkertons the first detective agency in the United States, started in the mid-19th century
Police detective local or state authorities charged with solving crimes
Police Procedural Story indicates a mystery story written from the point of view of the police investigating the
crime.
Popular synonyms for detectives bloodhound, dick, flatfoot, gumshoe, hawkshaw, narc, P.I., private eye, private
investigator, shamus, and sleuth
Private investigator a detective employed (paid) by the victim to solve the crime.
Psychological Thriller The criminal act is often a manifestation of a mental disturbance on the part of the
perpetrator, who is difficult to catch because he/ she is also highly intelligent and knowledgeable of police
procedures.
Psychopathology the science or study of mental disorders or the conditions and processes of a mental disorder
Pulp fiction Detective stories printed in cheap magazines and published mostly in American in the 1930s and
1940s.
Ratiocination the process of exact thinking; reasoning (a term coined by Edgar Allen Poe)
Red herring a misleading clue, intended to divert the audience from the truth or an item of significance. For
example, in mystery fiction, an innocent party may be purposefully cast as suspect; as a result, attention is
drawn away from the true guilty party.
Scotland Yard the police headquarters in London.
Serial criminal usually a murderer who repeats the modus operandi of his/her crime multiple times.
Sherlock Holmes famous fictional British detective
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle author of the Sherlock Holmes detective novels
Suspect a known person under suspicion of a crime
Unsub the unknown subject in a crime investigation
Watson a nickname for a detective's sidekick; refers back to the loyal companion to Sherlock Holmes
Whodunit a mystery or detective story in which both the reader and the detective are gradually provided with
clues to the identity of the perpetrator of the crime. Often the criminal is revealed only moments before the full
solution is revealed in the final pages of the book.