Szabo Nandor Ferencz Partium Christian Univeristy English tongue & literature 2nd year American literature 20th

January 2012

Poe, the Godfather of Detective fiction

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Edgar Allan Poe is considered by most to be the Godfather of detective fiction, in spite of the fact that there were writers before and after him that wrote detective stories. So what made Poes detective story to be the milestone in detective fiction? In my essay I will do my best in answering this question. People started to take interest in crime stories in the early 1800, caused by their fascination and fear of crime. It was the town folks that started to romanticize criminals, s as well those who stud up against them: The first writing on urban crime pretended to be documentary, but it was filled with archetypes and plots from preceding fiction, particularly the gothic novel (Marling 2). The detective as a figure first saw light in the early nineteenth century. Eugne Franois Vidocq who is considered to be the father of modern criminology and the first private detective wrote Memoirs of Vidocq which inspired writers like Viktor Hugos Les Misrables and Honor de Balzacs Le Pere Goriot in creating first of many detective figures based on Vidocq. Of course there were other writers, not just crime stories but novels as well, to whom Vidocq served as an aspiration. A good example to this is Charles Dickens novel Great Expectations. The main and most important difference between the earlier mentioned crime stories and Poes Murders in the Rue Morgue is that they didnt construct their story/case around the detectives: Before Poe, the early crime stories did not revolve around the individual detective (freewebs editor 3). Crime Fiction is essentially about the solving of a crime, usually a mystery of murder. Crime Fiction texts question what it is to be human and raise questions about identity. (freewebs editor 1)

When Poe created Dupin, most of his very own traits were given to the character. Since Poe himself didnt believe in the supernatural neither did Dupin, giving him a far more realistic view of things, which I believe essentially gave the detective a big step ahead of others when solving a case. In The Murders in the Rue Morgue Poe introduces three of the base motifs of detective fiction. First is the wrongly suspected man, secondly the crime in the closed room and finally solution by unexpected means. It is also important to note the Dupin outsmart the police by solving the case, which is an element that if not all but certainly most detective storys adopted. In The Purloined Letter the reader gets to know another favored element of the detective fiction. Recovery and safe keeping of the document(s) needed to ensure the safety of one or more important individuals. In order to make sure Dupin succeeds in this task, Poe introduces yet again important motifs known to the detective fiction: the outsmarting\deceiving of other genius minds, the finding of the evidence in the most obvious place and the use of disguise. Although the element of disguise might not seem so evident at firs reading, I am most certain that the use of the green spectacles in order to deceive Dserves as an early version of using clothing or other accessories in order to misguide another character. In the third story of Dupin, The Mystery of Marie Rogt, Poe introduces the method of recreating a crime by recollecting and putting together newspaper reports of the same case. While Poes greatest detective fiction will be the ones presenting Dupin, we must take a step in taking in to notice Poes other two works Thou Art the Man and The Gold Bug readers are familiarized with new motifs from the repertory of detective fiction: the criminals spirit breaks and confesses when he is faced with the enormity of his crime, misguidance by following the wrong clues and the climaxing moment when that the criminal is the least likely suspected

person. And of course all five stories have the common unexpected ending which was common to gothic novels in Poes time. We must not forget however that there were a few other detective stories in which Dupin makes his appearance even thou they werent written by Poe. Such stories are like: The Vanished Treasure and The Fires in the Rue St. Honor which appeared in a collection of seven short stories by the publisher Mycroft & Moran, The Murder of Edgar Allen Poe by George Egon Hatvary, etc. The interesting fact about most of these stories in which Dupin makes an appearance is that he either meets or gets regarded as being Poe himself Just as Vidocq in his own time, Poes writings served as role model for the new detective fiction, but unlike Poe who introduced the reader to a new type, a reformed detective story, the new generation of writers kept and used the new motifs and elements which Poe created. None other could serve as a better example for this than the most widely known detective in world, namely Sir Arthur Conan Doyles Sherlock Holmes. In my personal opinion Holmes serves as the best comparison to Dupin. They represent the perfect rivals in what Id like to call whos the better detective. In order to make my point in why Dupin is the superior Ill point out a few of their similarities. First and most likely observed by all readers that both detectives are presented by a narrator who just happens to be their best friend. Like Dupin, Holmes uses cold logic in the solving of the cases. While todays detectives seem to be more calm and appear to have part in way more action, Dupin and Holmes isolate themselves, they are eccentric, somewhat egoistic and they both enjoy smoking the pipe. But most importantly in their stories the focus is on the case and the solving of the puzzle rather than putting the main protagonists in the middle of the action. While few say that Holmes is a copy of Dupin, most would consider Holmes to be the perfected version of his superior. In A Study in Scarlett Holmes sidekick Dr. Watson makes a comparison between the two detectives: Now, in my opinion, Dupin was a very inferior fellow

 He had some analytical genius, no doubt; but he was by no means such a phenomenon as Poe appeared to imagine.(Doyle 24). I believe that most important trait of Dupin than separates him from the other detectives is that he wasnt exactly a role model for the mentally stable. This of course is the effect of the loss of his inheritance. While Holmes himself wasnt the charming kind of fellow one might choose as friend(he was addicted to cocaine, stayed up for hours walking around or playing on his violin, making smelly chemical experiments and he even fired off his gone sometimes), his bad habits were of his choosing and making so it wasnt nearly as bad as Dupins case. Of course Holmes isnt the only one to be created in Dupins image. Hercule Poirot created by Agatha Christie in one of the characters on which Dupin had a huge impact. In the 20th century the detective fictions have considerably changed in the way they are seen. This of course is due to the new generation. Most of the younger generation lacks the imagination to fully understand and enjoy such works as The Murders In The Rue Morgue or Sherlock Holmes due to the fact that they lack action. Todays generation is used to all the constant action and violence thanks to TV and PC games. So as these factors changed society entertainment industries took on new elements. Since recent years havent produced any film adaptations about Dupin, Ill have to stick with Sherlock Holmes. The new movie, while still being a detective story, can be easily put in the genre of action. Consider the movie to be most enjoyable despite the fact that it completely lost the books magic. With all its stunning visuals and extreme action scenes it is hard for me to find it anything nearly as the book. I believe that the only thing which is kept in it is Holmes himself. Holmes remained the same seemingly mad but genius and efficient detective I got to like from the book while Watson became a 19th century action hero. One must know the detective fiction motifs in order to identify them in the movie, but I assure that they are present.

In conclusion, my statement of Poe being the Godfather of detective fiction remains sustained, since all the element and comparisons I mentioned in my essay can be and are connected to Poes creation of Dupin. The writers that published before Poe did write about crime and investigation, but those were more like attempts on create detective fiction, since Poe is the one who pointed out the most basic motifs of detective fiction and the detectives personality. What Sir Arthur Conan Doyle did was to perfect the character of the detective and not creating new motifs for detective fiction. So regardless of what most might think, I believe that Edgar Allan Poe is and will always be the creator of modern detective fiction.

Works Cited:

Marling, William. Detective Novels: An overview. Detnovel. Web. 20 Jan.2012. Freewebs Editor. An Overview of Crime Fiction. Freewebs, Web. 20 Jan.2012. Sir Doyle, Arthur Conan. Sherlock Holmes The Complete Stories. Wordsworth Edition.

Works Consulted: Poe, Edgar Allan. The Murders in the Rue Morgue Poe, Edgar Allan. The Purloined Letter Poe, Edgar Allan. "The Mystery of Marie Rogt" Sir Doyle, Arthur Conan. Sherlock Holmes The Complete Stories Wikipedia contributors. "Detective fiction." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 19 Jan. 2012. Web. 20 Jan. 2012. Wikipedia contributors. "C. Auguste Dupin." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 8 Jan. 2012. Web. 20 Jan. 2012. Wikipedia contributors. "Sherlock Holmes." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 15 Jan. 2012. Web. 20 Jan. 2012. Freewebs contributors. An Overview of Crime Fiction. Freewebs. Web. 20 Jan.2012. Miller, Ron. Detectives You Wouldn't Want for Roommates. Pbs.org. Web. 20 Jan.2012 Marling, William. Detective Novels: An overview. Detnovel. Web. 20 Jan.2012.