Crime Fiction Session Two: Graham Greene, Brighton Rock
Agenda Summary of Session One –Crime fiction –Modernism Graham Greene and Brighton Rock
Crime fiction as narrative paradigm The literature of detection is “paradigmatic of literary narrative itself” (Marcus 2003: 245), it forms “the narrative of naratives” (Brooks 1984: 25)
Crime fiction as narrative paradigm Crime fiction: Inquest: the present work of detection that we read about in order to learn about the past story of the Crime Narrative: Sjuzet, plot, discourse: the telling / reading Fabula, story: the told
Narrative Present Past Story Discourse
Peter Brooks, Reading for the Plot (1984) The anticipation of retrospection The desire to know: epistemophilia The desire for the end (of desire)
Objects of inquests and reading The cardboard box and ”The Cardboard Box” The Musgrave ritual and ”The Musgrave Ritual” The mark on the wall and ”The Mark on the Wall”
Virginia Woolf, ”The Mark on the Wall” Made by a Nail? Speculation, Association, Stream of consciousness A rose Leaf? Speculation, Association, Stream of consciousness A crack in The wood? Speculation, Association, Stream of consciousness The mark ??? a snail!
Graham Greene, Brighton Rock What strikes you as odd and distinctive about this novel? Characters? Plot? Point of view? Imagery? Setting?
Hale Kolley Kibber: Object of detection - subjectivity, freedom The Messenger Fred/ Charles: Object of detection / inquest - subjectivity, freedom / dead body The gang war / Ida Arnold
I1Hale 2 (20)The Boy 3 (28)Ida Arnold II1 (47)The Boy 2 (63)The Boy III1 (73)Ida Arnold 2 (86)Spicer 3 (91)The Boy 4 (103)The Boy IV1 (107)??? The Boy The Races 2 (129)Ida Arnold 3 (132)The BoySpicer dead
Graham Greene, Brighton Rock Criminals: The Boy, Spicer, Dallow, Hale, Colleoni, etc. Crime: Protection money, blackmail, murder (Hale, Spicer), gang war. Detective: Ida Arnold ”Crime” and ”criminals”? ”Detective”: the reader, the newspaper readers.