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The beginning
In the 17th and 18th centuries we find several stories dealing with crime. -
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The Early
Very brutal, bloody and descriptive period. -
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Edgar Allan Poe
Crime fiction as we know it appears for the first time in the works of Edgar Allan Poe. -
The start of police forces
In 1829, the beginning of today's police forces were formed. -
Charles Dickens (1812-70)
He wrote articles about their work and created one of the first officiel fictional detectives, Inspector Bucket in Bleak House -
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Sherlock Holmes
He always wrote about Doyle (his character), became extremely popular because it was always Doyle and not some new person in his stories. The stories always started in Baker Street, therefor always the same place. -
Wilkie Collins (1824-89)
He also favoured the official police force and in one of the very first crime novels, "The Moonstone" one of the main caracters is Sergeant Cuff, a skillful police detective. -
Golden Age - women crime writers
Agatha Christie (1890-1976) and Dorothy L. Sayers (1893-1982) -
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The Golden Age
The author is supposed to present the relevant clues in the text, so that the reader has a chance to solve the mystery. -
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The Hard-Boiled Crime Story
A new beginning and more technology came into it, it became more movies than books. The detectives are now loners, who drinks whiskey and smokes. -
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The Moderen Crime Story
After the second World War, the picture of the crime stories gets more blurred, it is no longer possible to put the crime stories of a particular period under one label. But, there are certain trends that have characterized the post-war period. -
Why do we read crime stories?
It is a pleasurable experience that is removed from our own life. To make time pass by.