Red Herring or Key Clue? Differences between British (Gaudy Night) and American (The Maltese Falcon) Mystery Novels Anonymous College

British and American literature both have distinguishing features; even though the same language is used, albeit with some difference, each national literature is distinguished. The genre of the mystery novel in particular is one in which there are subtle, but remarkable, national differences. In Dorothy Sayers’ 1935 novel Gaudy Night and in Dashiell Hammett’s The Maltese Falcon, a comparison reveals the subtle ways in which the British and American mindsets differ. The specific mysteries and crimes depicted in each novel are unique in the sense that they depict concerns and crimes that reflect national values. For example, the British novel focuses on intrigue within the academic system as a very transgressive thing that disrupts society while the American novel focuses on the ways in which symbols of value can be threatening or deceptive. Ultimately, the ways in which both books focalize information shows their values and identities as British and American novels, respectively.

Contrasting the opening scenes of both novels and how they subtly focalize specific aspects and concerns helps to set the stage for analyzing the works. Focalization, as a term from literary theory, is about a concept that goes beyond simple point of...