The Mystery to a Solution (Magill’s Literary Annual 1991-2005)
At a glance:
- Author: John T. Irwin
- First Published: 1994
- Type of Work: Literary criticism
- Genres: Criticism, Nonfiction
- Subjects: Crime or criminals, Nineteenth century, Literature, Guilt, Detectives, Criticism, Horror
By the middle of the twentieth century, the canonization of Edgar Allan Poe had been accomplished, and the stories he devoted to the exploits of C. Auguste Dupin—“The Murders in the Rue Morgue” (1841), “The Mystery of Marie Rogêt” (1842), and “The Purloined Letter” (1845)—were assigned an honored place in his oeuvre, both for their intrinsic interest and for their significance in originating a major popular genre, the detective story. Ironically, the position of the genre itself has been more dubious. Generalizations about detective fiction have sometimes verged on...
[The entire page is 2147 words long]
Join eNotes
Over 3,500 study guides, question and answer forums, literature criticism, reference content, and much more!
