The Big Sleep (Cyclopedia of Literary Places)
At a glance:
- Author: Raymond Chandler
- First Published: 1939
- Type of Work: Novel
- Type of Plot: Detective and mystery
- Time of Work: 1930’s
- Genres: Long fiction, Mystery and detective literature
- Subjects: North America or North Americans, United States or Americans, Sex or sexuality, Murder or homicide, 1930’s, California, Los Angeles, West, U.S., Blackmail, Detectives, Corruption, Private investigators, Pornography
- Locales: Los Angeles, CA
Places Discussed
Sternwood Mansion. Los Angeles home of General Sternwood, which Chandler uses to represent money—the motivating factor in all the skullduggery that follows. General Sternwood is being blackmailed because he is known to be a multimillionaire. His two daughters are being exploited for the same reason. Private investigator Philip Marlowe becomes involved in the family’s troubles because the general needs to protect his money and his daughters. Chandler dramatizes the presence of enormous wealth by describing the size and luxury of the estate, the number of...
[The entire page is 896 words long]
Join eNotes
Over 3,500 study guides, question and answer forums, literature criticism, reference content, and much more!
Navigate
See Also
