Modern Classics: The Rise of Detective Fiction

Crime fiction, and in particular Detective Fiction, is one of the most popular genres in modern literature. People are drawn to the clues, the methodical, logical steps taken by detectives and enjoy pitting their wits against the protagonist to guess "who dunnit" first. Even if people aren't fans of reading this popular and diverse genre, most will have heard of the most famous detectives: Sherlock Holmes, created by Arthur Conan Doyle, and Hercule Poirot (the little man with the funny moustaches) and Miss Marple, both created by Agatha Christie. These three detectives are amongst the most famous, most adapted and most parodied characters in all literature. Yet how did two English writers create such famous characters, when 'detectives' as a form of police investigator weren't even introduced into the English consciousness until 1842? Read on for a little history lesson on the rise of detective fiction. 

In his book, "Murder in Print: A Guide to Two Centuries of Crime Fiction" Melvyn Barnes says that the American writer, Edgar Allen Poe is "accepted as the father of the detective story," with the creation of his Paris Sûreté detective, Auguste Dupin in The Murders in the Rue Morgue in 1841.  Detective Dupin and his investigation process was "a foundation stone of the genre, the first piece of fiction in which the reader is presented with a detective and a mystery which is not only integral to the work, but the reason for which the work was written at all." And yet, Poe, an American, did not necessarily inspire a new generation of American crime writers at this stage. It was the French and British, with the establishment of the New Scotland Yard in 1842 and the Paris Sûreté that inspired writers to create fiction that imitated life. They needed this firm established to get them writing, as Barnes points out in his book:

       ...there was still in the early nineteenth century no force of professional detectives in Britain or in the USA. This has been advanced by some authorities as the reason why detective stories as such could not be written at the time, the argument being that it is not possible to write about things before they exist.

Yet it was Poe's detective, Auguste Dupin, that solved the first murder case in print - without leaving his room. From thus was born the idea of an "armchair detective." Poe was also the first to incorporate the idea of a faithful, yet dim sidekick who tells that story of the the more intelligent detective. Dupin's stories are told in this manner, though his sidekick is unnamed. I'm sure we are all familiar with Dr Watson and Captain Hastings, who also fit this bill. At this point, British writers now had a real life detective agency in which to emulate, the methodical steps of detective work, a genius detective to solve the clues and capture the villain, and a dim-witted yet necessary sidekick to tell the story. The perfect formula for many Detective writers to employ.

'Inspector Bucket  of the Detective' was the first professional detective in an English  novel and he appeared in Charles Dickens' Bleak House in 1853. Although Bleak House does not neatly fit into the category of Crime Fiction per se, the detective work of Inspector Bucket to find the murderer of lawyer Tulkinghorn introduces to the reader the idea of British detectives being thorough, kindly and of unusually keen vision. Bucket also exposed the murderer to an assembled group of suspects - a technique that many fans of Poirot and Holmes would be familiar with. 

French writer Emile Gaboriau is famous for creating the amateur detectives, Lecoq and his 'mentor' Tabaret, who 'runs rings round the celebrated Gévrol of the Sûreté', paving the way for amateur detectives such as Sherlock Holmes. These types of characters bring their own style and unique personalities to the role of detective as they are free to work from without the confines of legal police work. The New Scotland Yard in London was faced with their own blunders and corruption which led to a lack of public trust towards the newly-established detective units. The creation of characters that mocked or undermined these detectives was very much to the public's enjoyment.

The Industrial Revolution in Britain brought thousands of people from towns and countries into the cities to find work. This led to an increase in crime and severe poverty. This is important because industrialisation, crime and the rise in Detective Fiction all go hand in hand. This sort of social mixture is the perfect melting pot for the creation of those detectives we know and love. In London in the late 1800s there was a string of murders that roused the public's attention and led the police on well-publicised hunts. The Brighton Railway Murder of summer 1881 was one such event. The public followed along with the police as they tracked down Percy Lefroy Mapleton the murderer of wealthy businessman Mr Fred Gold. Detective Donald Swanson made the arrest.

Detective Swanson was also part of another famous, highly-publicised string of murders: The White Chapel Murders allegedly committed by one who called himself, "Jack the Ripper." As these two cases became embroiled in the public consciousness, so too does the rise of the "Detective" in British crime fiction. Sherlock Holmes was created in 1887, after the Brighton Railway Murder and just before the White Chapel murders. In his memoir Memories and Adventures Conan Doyle acknowledges the inspiration he took from both Gaboriau and Poe's detectives. I think, however, it is the very unique character of Sherlock Holmes, his amazing mental abilities and his outsider personality that made him such an enduring character. 

The late 1880s and early 1900s saw many crime writers pick up the pen to create their own detectives, including G.K. Chesterton's Father Brown and Ernest Bramah's Max Carrados. Both of these character have a twist to the original detective character: Father Brown is (as his name suggests) a Catholic priest and Max Carrados is blind. These 'gimmicks' give the stories a unique appeal and the characters their own distinctive methods of solving cases.  

There are many wonderful female authors who have created engaging detectives, such as Dortothy L. Sayers, Mary Allingham and Mary Roberts Rinehart, but due to space (and my own enjoyment) it is Agatha Christie we will look at next. Christie's popularity lies in her ability to trick the reader, to use a range of techniques and red herrings to lead the reader astray in their quest to solve the mystery. Yet if you read closely, the clues are there. There is a wonderful podcast called All About Agatha which can go into the plots, character development, interpretations and influence of Christie far better than I can - check it out if you're all about Agatha. 

Whether you're a Poirot or a Marple fan, most people would agree that Christie's novels are wonderful, tricky things which keep the reader guessing often right up to the last page. 

This post was only covering the rise of Detective fiction, so I'll leave it there for now, but we all know that the genre has not died down but only grown and diversified in the last seventy years. Fans will have their favourites amongst the modern crime novelists - for me, it is Andrea Camilleri and his creation Inspector Salvo Montalbano, and Louise Penny's Inspector Armand Gamache of the Quebec Sûreté. But those are for another post, another day.

Who is your favourite amongst the early detectives of crime fiction? Is it someone that I have mentioned here or someone else? This is one of my favourite genres (though I am not a fan of the more gruesome crime novels) and would love to get new ideas for reading in 2021.