Gaudy Night (Masterplots II: Women’s Literature Series)
At a glance:
- Author: Dorothy L. Sayers
- First Published: 1935
- Type of Work: Novel
- Type of Plot: Mystery
- Time of Work: June, 1934, to June, 1935
- Setting: Shrewsbury College at the University of Oxford, England
- Principal Characters: Harriet D. Vane, Lord Peter Wimsey, Miss Lydgate, Miss DeVine, Miss Hillyard, Miss Martin
- Genres: Long fiction, Psychological fiction, Mystery and detective literature, Character study
- Subjects: Love or romance, Crime or criminals, Gender roles, Authors or writers, Education or educators, Marriage, 1930’s, Emotions, College life, Novelists, England or English people, Women’s issues, Letter writing, Detectives, Mysteries, Hate crimes, Colleges or universities, Women’s rights, Learning or scholarship
- Locales: London, England, Oxford, England
Form and Content
In Gaudy Night, Dorothy L. Sayers builds upon the basic structure of the mystery story to present a novel considering three separate but interwoven themes. At first glance, the mystery—ostensibly the reason for the novel’s existence—seems comparatively tame: Shrewsbury College is plagued by a malevolent writer of “poison pen” messages. The plot involves the struggle to unmask the Poison Pen. As the story unfolds, it becomes clear that Sayers has employed this petty but malicious brand of crime to examine two far more critical issues; namely,...
[The entire page is 2120 words long]
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