Genre
Novel
Setting and Context
The book was written between 1949 and 1950.
Narrator and Point of View
Third-person narrative
Tone and Mood
The tone is gloomy and the mood is moving
Protagonist and Antagonist
Philip Marlowe is the main protagonist of the story.
Major Conflict
The conflict is that Lennox is wrongly accused of murdering his wife.
Climax
The climax comes when Mrs. Wade confesses that she killed Lennox’s wife and her husband, Wade. She later committed suicide.
Foreshadowing
Mrs. Wade’s desire to seduce Marlowe foreshadowed her confession regarding the murders she had committed.
Understatement
The accusation that Lennox killed his wife is understated. Lennox is wrongly accused.
Allusions
The story alludes to secretive crimes committed by people who cannot be suspected of wrongdoing.
Imagery
The imagery of murder is present in the book to show the reader the mysteries of death. Lennox is accused of murdering his wife, but he has nothing to do with her death.
Paradox
The main paradox is that Mrs. Wade is behind the murders of her husband and Lennox’s wife, but no one could suspect her until she confessed.
Parallelism
The murder case against Lennox parallels Marlowe’s private investigation on the same issue.
Metonymy and Synecdoche
N/A
Personification
Plastic surgery is incarnated as having human abilities to alter the physical appearance of Lennox.
