Closed circle of suspects
Encyclopedia
The closed circle of suspects is a common element of detective fiction
, and the subgenre that employs it can be referred to as the closed circle mystery. Less precisely, this subgenre - works with the closed circle literary device - is simply known as the "classic", "traditional" or "cozy" detective fiction.
It refers to a situation in which for a given crime
(usually a murder
), there is a quickly established, limited number of suspect
s, each with credible means, motive, and opportunity
. In other words, it is known that the criminal (murderer) is one of the people present at or nearby the scene, and the crime could not have been committed by some outsider. The detective has to solve the crime, figuring out the criminal from this pool (circle) of suspects, rather than searching for a totally unknown perpetrator.
This type of narrative originated with the British detective fiction. Agatha Christie
's The Mysterious Affair at Styles
(1920) has been credited as a work that started this trend. Other writers of that period, dating to the first half of the 20th century, a time known as the Golden Age of Detective Fiction
(or more general, mystery fiction
), reliant on the closed circle and related literary devices include Dorothy L. Sayers
, G. K. Chesterton
, Margery Allingham
, Ngaio Marsh
and Americans S. S. Van Dine
and Ellery Queen
.
Those early closed circle mysteries preferred a common setting: a British country house. The country house was such a common element that it gave another name to what is essentially the same genre and the literary device, the "country house mystery". The persons involved were also commonly part of the upper class
. Other settings than the country house are also possible, and many have been used in the closed circle mysteries even by Christie herself: a ship, a train, an island, and so on. Nonetheless, the requirements for this mystery enforce certain limitations on this genre, and make certain settings, particularly those that explain limited access outsiders would have, and characters with certain backgrounds (upper class) - much more common than the others. The numbers of suspects vary, from a group as small as four or five, to all the passengers of a coach or a wagon.
After Second World War the closed circle mystery became less common, as other types of crime novels rose to prominence. Nonetheless other writers have continued to use this device till modern days, for example Rex Stout
, Lucille Kallen, Jonathan Gash, Simon Brett
.
While the closed circle is a common device in literary fiction, it is a much less common occurrence in real world investigations.
Detective fiction
Detective fiction is a sub-genre of crime fiction and mystery fiction in which an investigator , either professional or amateur, investigates a crime, often murder.-In ancient literature:...
, and the subgenre that employs it can be referred to as the closed circle mystery. Less precisely, this subgenre - works with the closed circle literary device - is simply known as the "classic", "traditional" or "cozy" detective fiction.
It refers to a situation in which for a given crime
Crime
Crime is the breach of rules or laws for which some governing authority can ultimately prescribe a conviction...
(usually a murder
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
), there is a quickly established, limited number of suspect
Suspect
In the parlance of criminal justice, a suspect is a known person suspected of committing a crime.Police and reporters often incorrectly use the word suspect when referring to the...
s, each with credible means, motive, and opportunity
Means, motive, and opportunity
In US Criminal law, means, motive, and opportunity is a popular cultural summation of the three aspects of a crime needed to convince a jury of guilt in a criminal proceeding...
. In other words, it is known that the criminal (murderer) is one of the people present at or nearby the scene, and the crime could not have been committed by some outsider. The detective has to solve the crime, figuring out the criminal from this pool (circle) of suspects, rather than searching for a totally unknown perpetrator.
This type of narrative originated with the British detective fiction. Agatha Christie
Agatha Christie
Dame Agatha Christie DBE was a British crime writer of novels, short stories, and plays. She also wrote romances under the name Mary Westmacott, but she is best remembered for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections , and her successful West End plays.According to...
's The Mysterious Affair at Styles
The Mysterious Affair at Styles
The Mysterious Affair at Styles is a detective novel by Agatha Christie. It was written in 1916 and was first published by John Lane in the United States in October 1920 and in the United Kingdom by The Bodley Head on January 21, 1921. The U.S...
(1920) has been credited as a work that started this trend. Other writers of that period, dating to the first half of the 20th century, a time known as the Golden Age of Detective Fiction
Golden Age of Detective Fiction
The Golden Age of Detective Fiction was an era of classic murder mystery novels produced by various authors, all following similar patterns and style.-Origins:Mademoiselle de Scudéri, by E.T.A...
(or more general, mystery fiction
Mystery fiction
Mystery fiction is a loosely-defined term.1.It is often used as a synonym for detective fiction or crime fiction— in other words a novel or short story in which a detective investigates and solves a crime mystery. Sometimes mystery books are nonfiction...
), reliant on the closed circle and related literary devices include Dorothy L. Sayers
Dorothy L. Sayers
Dorothy Leigh Sayers was a renowned English crime writer, poet, playwright, essayist, translator and Christian humanist. She was also a student of classical and modern languages...
, G. K. Chesterton
G. K. Chesterton
Gilbert Keith Chesterton, KC*SG was an English writer. His prolific and diverse output included philosophy, ontology, poetry, plays, journalism, public lectures and debates, literary and art criticism, biography, Christian apologetics, and fiction, including fantasy and detective fiction....
, Margery Allingham
Margery Allingham
Margery Louise Allingham was an English crime writer, best remembered for her detective stories featuring gentleman sleuth Albert Campion.- Childhood and schooling :...
, Ngaio Marsh
Ngaio Marsh
Dame Ngaio Marsh DBE , born Edith Ngaio Marsh, was a New Zealand crime writer and theatre director. There is some uncertainty over her birth date as her father neglected to register her birth until 1900...
and Americans S. S. Van Dine
S. S. Van Dine
S. S. Van Dine was the pseudonym of Willard Huntington Wright , a U.S art critic and author. He created the once immensely popular fictional detective Philo Vance, who first appeared in books in the 1920s, then in movies and on the radio.-Early life and career:Willard Huntington Wright was born...
and Ellery Queen
Ellery Queen
Ellery Queen is both a fictional character and a pseudonym used by two American cousins from Brooklyn, New York: Daniel Nathan, alias Frederic Dannay and Manford Lepofsky, alias Manfred Bennington Lee , to write, edit, and anthologize detective fiction.The fictional Ellery Queen created by...
.
Those early closed circle mysteries preferred a common setting: a British country house. The country house was such a common element that it gave another name to what is essentially the same genre and the literary device, the "country house mystery". The persons involved were also commonly part of the upper class
Upper class
In social science, the "upper class" is the group of people at the top of a social hierarchy. Members of an upper class may have great power over the allocation of resources and governmental policy in their area.- Historical meaning :...
. Other settings than the country house are also possible, and many have been used in the closed circle mysteries even by Christie herself: a ship, a train, an island, and so on. Nonetheless, the requirements for this mystery enforce certain limitations on this genre, and make certain settings, particularly those that explain limited access outsiders would have, and characters with certain backgrounds (upper class) - much more common than the others. The numbers of suspects vary, from a group as small as four or five, to all the passengers of a coach or a wagon.
After Second World War the closed circle mystery became less common, as other types of crime novels rose to prominence. Nonetheless other writers have continued to use this device till modern days, for example Rex Stout
Rex Stout
Rex Todhunter Stout was an American writer noted for his detective fiction. Stout is best known as the creator of the larger-than-life fictional detective Nero Wolfe, described by reviewer Will Cuppy as "that Falstaff of detectives." Wolfe's assistant Archie Goodwin recorded the cases of the...
, Lucille Kallen, Jonathan Gash, Simon Brett
Simon Brett
Simon Brett is a prolific writer of whodunnits. The son of a chartered surveyor, he was educated at Dulwich College and Wadham College, Oxford, where he got a first-class honours degree in English...
.
While the closed circle is a common device in literary fiction, it is a much less common occurrence in real world investigations.
See also
- Locked room mysteryLocked room mysteryThe locked room mystery is a sub-genre of detective fiction in which a crime—almost always murder—is committed under apparently impossible circumstances. The crime in question typically involves a crime scene that no intruder could have entered or left, e.g., a locked room...
- CluedoCluedoCluedo is a popular murder/mystery-themed deduction board game originally published by Waddingtons in Leeds, England in 1949. It was devised by Anthony E. Pratt, a solicitor's clerk from Birmingham, England. It is now published by the United States game and toy company Hasbro, which acquired its U.S...
, a board game with a closed circle of suspects as its premise