Mystery.2009

The Mystery behind Mysteries… : 

The Mystery behind Mysteries… Unraveling a Crime in the Pages of Books… “Detection is, or ought to be, an exact science and should be treated in the same cold and unemotional manner.” ~Sherlock Holmes

Elements of a Mystery… : 

Elements of a Mystery… Characters: Suspects are characters who may have caused the problem the mystery is trying to solve. Detectives or investigators try to solve the mystery. Gwen is 17, a senior, a violinist and a promising candidate for Julliard. But then Grandpa vanishes, his body is found, and her great-uncle and a sinister, invisible companion appear to pursue an opportunity for significant profit. Gwen's immersed in a mystery that will keep readers in suspense until the very last page. http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/video.jsp?pID=1640149541&bcpid=1640149541&bclid=1557820329&bctid=1688353717

Setting of a Mystery... : 

Setting of a Mystery... Setting: The location where the mystery takes place. The beautiful, mysterious women of Japan are being killed one by one. The famous samurai Judge Ooka knows he will need help to solve the crimes, so he turns to his newly adopted son, fourteen-year-old Seikei. Determined to prove his worth as a samurai, Seikei goes undercover as a teahouse attendant in the exotic "floating city" of Yoshiwara, where demons lurk among the pleasure seekers and no one is safe -- not even a samurai.

Plot of a Mystery... : 

Plot of a Mystery... Plot: The plot is the story of the mystery. Usually there is: A problem or puzzle to solve; Something that is missing; A secret; An event that is not explained; Most mystery plots use suspense. This means that the reader does not know the solution while he or she is reading the mystery. James Bond is thirteen and just about to start at Eton having been educated at home by his Aunt Charmain since the death of his parents. The first adventure takes James to a remote Scottish castle where a wealthy American has been conducting some very disturbing experiments... http://www.youngbond.com/

The Importance of Clues... : 

The Importance of Clues... Clues: Clues are hints that help the detectives and reader solve the mystery. They can be things people say or do or objects that are found. Anthony Horowitz’s “Stormbreaker” http://www.alexrider.com/missions/stormbreaker

Beware of Red Herrings... : 

Beware of Red Herrings... Distractions: [Red Herrings] Distractions are things that lead an investigator off the path, including clues that do not add up to a solution but make the search longer. G.P. Taylor’s Doppleganger http://www.dopplegangerchronicles.com/

Basic Structure of Mysteries... : 

Basic Structure of Mysteries... Structure: Structure refers to the way the story is set up. Most mysteries have a structure like this: Introduction: learn about the problem, meet characters; Body of story: someone is working to solve the mystery; Conclusion: mystery is solved Cadfael is the lead character in a series of books by Ellis Peters. He is a Welshman, now in his 60s, and a Brother in the monastery of Saints Peter and Paul, in Shrewsbury, England. The time is the 1100s, while Stephen and Maud are contending for the throne of England. Cadfael is now a brother, but he has been in the world- he spent 15 (or so) years in the Mideast, first as a Crusader, then as captain of a fishing boat. While there, he began to learn about gardening and herbs, he loved several women and even fathered a son, although he did not know it at the time. Finally, the quiet, the peace of the monastery called to him, and he came home to England and took vows. When the series begins, he has been a brother for about 15 years. His adventures are all centered in life in the Monastery, which is the center of his life, but they also show that he has not turned away completely from the world. There are now 20 novels and a book of short stories written about Cadfael.

Meet Edgar Allan Poe... : 

Meet Edgar Allan Poe... Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849), one the greatest and unhappiest of American poets, a master of the horror tale, and the father of the detective story, was born in Boston on January 19, 1809. Published in April 1841, Poe featured Auguste C. Dupin, the first-ever fictional detective. Poe's "tale of rationation," as he termed it, "inaugurated one of the most popular and entertaining forms of fiction ever conceived."

Poe’s Death...a Mystery : 

Poe’s Death...a Mystery In the early morning hours of October 7, 1849, Poe calmly breathed a simple prayer, "Lord, help my poor soul," and died. His cause of death was ascribed to "congestion of the brain." No autopsy was performed, and the author was buried two days later. In dying under such mysterious circumstances, the father of the detective story has left us with a real-life mystery which Poe scholars, medical professionals, and others have been trying to solve for over 150 years. Since the 100th anniversary of Poe's death in 1949, a mysterious person delivers a bottle of cognac and three red roses to his grave each year.

Crime Mysteries... : 

Crime Mysteries... Mysteries or stories of crime and detection, are popular in print, movies, and on television Stories of crime and detection contain obvious formulaic elements: the crime (and weapon/means/ motives), criminal (insider-outsider), victim, milieu (culture), detective (he/she/agency uncovering the crime), methods of solution (clues, witnesses, interrogation), logic or some "means of reliable knowledge, and false clues and accusations or “red herrings” Through these formulaic elements, stories also reveal more abstract concepts of social norm, law, punishment, and justice. Detective Sherlock Holmes (Downey Jr.) and his stalwart partner Watson (Law) engage in a battle of wits and brawn with a nemesis whose plot is a threat to all of England. Due to be released November 2009.

Sherlock Holmes... : 

Sherlock Holmes... Sherlock Holmes was introduced in A Study in Scarlet (1887), followed by A Sign of Four in 1890, but didn't really take hold of the public's imagination until Strand magazine, newly founded in 1890, published a series of short stories called "The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes." From that point on the public couldn't get enough of Holmes and his always reliable confidant, John H. Watson, a retired military doctor. http://www.sherlock-holmes.co.uk/home.htm http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/mystery/detectives/holmes.html

Meet Arthur Conan Doyle... : 

Meet Arthur Conan Doyle... Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle (May 22, 1859 – July 7, 1930) was a Scottish author of Irish descent most famously known for his stories about the detective Sherlock Holmes, which are generally considered a major innovation in the field of crime fiction. Conan Doyle's father was an alcoholic and was sent to an asylum, where he remained until his death in 1893. A bright child who wrote his first novel at the age of 6... told stories to his schoolmates which later became Sherlock and his arch-enemy Moriarty.

Types of Mysteries: The“Cozy” : 

Types of Mysteries: The“Cozy” Cozy mysteries take place in self-contained environments such as villages, castles, and universities. They focus on the mystery and avoid violence. They usually involve amateur sleuths who use observation and intellect - rather than brute strength - to solve crimes. Often, this kind of mystery story is also enlivened by humor.

Meet Agatha Christie... : 

Meet Agatha Christie... Agatha Christie (1890-1976) was born Agatha May Clarissa Miller in Devon, England in 1890, the youngest of three children in a conservative, well-to-do family. Taught at home by a governess and tutors, as a child Agatha Christie never attended school. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/christie/prichard.html

Her Famous Detectives... : 

Her Famous Detectives... Agatha Christie is best known for creating two particularly famous detectives: Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/poirot/series9.html

Miss Marple... : 

Miss Marple... Miss Marple, the spinster detective who is one of the most famous characters created by English crime writer Agatha Christie, is portrayed by Joan Hickson who starred in a dozen television mysteries about Miss Marple over the course of a decade. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/marple/series4.html

Whodunnit... : 

'Whodunnit' is short for 'who done it', which is slang for 'who did it'. It is the question that is usually on everyone's lips throughout the story. The game with the reader in this story is that the reader is teased into trying to guess whodunnit. In a good story, the reader gets close but does not guess in time, yet when the criminal is revealed, the reader thinks 'of course!'. Nick Simple's life is anything but simple. His parents have moved to Australia, leaving him in the care of his incompetent older brother who is trying to make a living as a private detective and changes the family name. They are visited by a dwarf who leaves a package with them for safekeeping and later turns up dead. Set in England and filled with a variety of colorful characters, the plot reads like a 1940s P.I. movie. Whodunnit...

Suspenseful Mysteries...Alfred Hitchcock... : 

Suspenseful Mysteries...Alfred Hitchcock... Alfred Hitchcock was once stopped at the French border by a suspicious customs official. Eyeing the space where Hitchcock listed his profession as "producer," the official demanded, "And what do you produce?" "Gooseflesh," Hitchcock coolly replied.

Hard-Boiled Detectives... : 

Hard-Boiled Detectives... A new kind of detective novel developed in the 1930’s. Called “hard-boiled” fiction, these novels featured private detectives who moved through a cross-section of society, finding corruption everywhere. The detective is usually a loner, with no apparent family, few if any friends, and no stable romantic attachments. The novels are set in alienated, urban settings. The novels often suggest a pervading sense of corruption throughout society, so much so that the work of the detective in pursuit of justice often seems futile.

Slide 20: 

The detectives often seem as much victims of circumstances themselves as master sleuths solving crimes and restoring order. The novels are interested in psychology, often pathological psychology, thus reflecting the influence of psychoanalysis. The language is marked by wise-cracks and the use of contemporary slang. Characters often talk around a point while the real subject of the conversation remains unsaid. http://www.eoincolfer.com/books/halfmooninvestigations.html

Sam Spade... : 

Sam Spade... http://www.imdb.com/video/screenplay/vi1811284249/ Sam Spade-the wry, witty anti-hero who drinks his whiskey “neat”-is based upon Dashiell Hammett himself, who for many years was employed as a private detective for the Pinkerton Detective Agency in San Francisco.

Charlie Chan... : 

Charlie Chan... Charlie Chan, created by mystery author Earl Derr Biggers, was featured in almost 50 films. Did you know... Charlie Chan’s author Earl Derr Biggers, fashioned Charlie after a real-life detective in Honolulu named Chang Apana? Movie Poster, 1936

Psych...Mystery Comedy : 

Psych...Mystery Comedy PSYCH is a quick-witted comedy/mystery starring James Roday as young police consultant Shawn Spencer who solves crimes with powers of observation so acute that Santa Barbara PD detectives think he’s psychic. Psych also stars Dulé Hill as Shawn's best friend and reluctant sidekick, Gus, and Corbin Bernsen as his disapproving father, Henry, who ironically was the one who honed his son's "observation" skills as a child.

C.S.I....Forensic Science... : 

C.S.I....Forensic Science... CSI is an innovative, new type of crime drama because the characters use cutting-edge forensic tools to examine the evidence to solve the case. Rather than a ‘whodunnit’ cop show (investigating witnesses/suspects), CSI explores the ‘howdunnit’.

Monk...Eccentric Detective : 

Monk...Eccentric Detective Follow detective Adrian Monk on his adventures solving cases on the Monk TV series. Tony Shalub plays Detective Adrian Monk who believes in such things as hand sanitizer, disinfectant spray and color-coordinated jelly beans.

Beware...Mysteries are Addictive! : 

Beware...Mysteries are Addictive! Unraveling a Crime in the Pages of Books…