Raymond Chandler's Philip Marlowe: The Hard-Boiled Detective Transformed

by John Paul Athanasourelis

Overview

Since their inception, detective novels have been a wildly successful genre of American fiction, featuring a uniquely American belief in rugged individualism. This book focuses on Raymond Chandler's creation of Philip Marlowe, a detective whose feeling for community and willingness to compromise radically changed the genre's vigilantism and violence. It compares Chandler's work to early and mid-20th century American detective novels, particularly those by John Carroll Daly, Mickey Spillane, Dashiell Hammett and Ross Macdonald, as well as contemporary British detective fiction, highlighting Chandler's contribution to the American genre.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780786442157
Publisher:	McFarland & Company, Incorporated Publishers
Publication date:	10/24/2011
Pages:	208
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.70(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

John Paul Athanasourelis is an associate professor of English at Bronx Community College/CUNY and received his Ph.D. in American Literature from Purdue University. He is presently writing a detective novel.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments vii

Preface 1

Introduction 3

1 Rugged Individualism in Carroll John Daly and Mickey Spillane 25

2 Dashiell Hammett: Individualism in Transition 54

3 Marlowe as Negotiator 70

4 Marlowe and the Police 86

5 Marlowe and the Criminals 114

6 Ross Macdonald 138

7 Cinematic Considerations 161

Conclusion 178

Chapter Notes 193

Works Cited 195

Index 199

Editorial Reviews

The author argues persuasively that Marlowe, far from being a standard super-confident loner private eye, is connected to a larger society and is given to introspection and self-doubt in contrast to the rugged individualist vigilantes of Daly, Hammett and Spillane”—Mystery Scene.

From the Publisher

The author argues persuasively that Marlowe, far from being a standard super-confident loner private eye, is connected to a larger society and is given to introspection and self-doubt in contrast to the rugged individualist vigilantes of Daly, Hammett and Spillane

Mystery Scene