The Fatal Equilibrium
Encyclopedia
The Fatal Equilibrium is a crime novel
written by the pseudonym
ous author Marshall Jevons
. The hero, Professor Henry Spearman, applies economic theory to determine who committed a murder. Spearman uses economic theory as a lens to scrutinize all human behaviour, and his character is based on Milton Friedman
, who won a Nobel Prize in economics.
The Fatal Equilibrium is a "British traditional" within the mystery
genre. It has no explicit sex or violence. British traditionals are written as cerebral works of the mind, rather than adrenaline (e.g., Emma Lathen
, Ellery Queen
, Dorothy Sayers, G. K. Chesterton
, Agatha Christie
).
Dennis somehow shows up at the door of Henry Spearman, who is not home, and let in by Henry’s wife, Pidge. Because Dennis appears so distraught, Pidge calls her husband and tells him to come home early, which he does. However, Spearman refuses to discuss anything with Dennis on the basis that he is not allowed to converse with tenure candidates.
P and T Committee meetings proceed to take place, and Dennis Gossen is turned down for tenure with a 3-3 vote. Oliver Wu, Sophia Ustinov and Calvin Weber all vote in favor of promotion, while Valerie Danzig, Morrison Bell and Foster Barrett all vote that Dennis Gossen is not cut out for Harvard. Dean Clegg is naturally placed in the role of tie breaker, and votes against advancement, as is his policy with ties.
Because of his failure, Dennis Gossen seemingly commits suicide. Within the next week, Morrison Bell and Foster Barrett, two of the people who voted against Gossen’s promotion were murdered, and Dennis’s fiancé, Melissa Shannon, is arrested for the crime. The prosecution charged that she murdered them because she felt that they were responsible for her fiancé’s suicide, and the Melissa’s defence argued that the evidence was merely circumstantial; Shannon is eventually convicted by the jury and sentenced to a life in prison.
Economist Henry Spearman is skeptical, however. Applying economic analysis, he could not fathom how the benefits of suicide could have outweighed the emotional cost that Gossen—a very rational person—was paying for his failure. He also did not think it rational that Melissa Shannon was so upset that she would kill two Harvard professors.
With Melissa Shannon in jail, the Harvard Alumni are all aboard a cruise to Europe. This is where Spearman finally uses economic reasoning to deduce who really murdered Dennis, Morrison, and Foster: Dean Clegg. His theory is proven when Clegg, knowing that Spearman is on to him, leaves behind a note explaining everything; Clegg coveted academic distinction, and went to an island to write a book he hoped would be revolutionary in his field of anthropology. However, he had been absent from his field as Dean for a couple of years and was having trouble. That was when he conceived the idea to forge data for his book. It turned out that Dennis Gossen read his book and found economic inconsistencies in the data Clegg had made up and realized that Clegg was a fraud. Gossen blackmailed Clegg to vote in favour of his promotion, which Clegg happily agreed to. However, Clegg wanted to secure his secret, and so he killed Gossen and made it look like suicide. He then killed two of his colleagues who he thought might find out his dirty secret and framed Melissa Shannon.
Crime fiction
Crime fiction is the literary genre that fictionalizes crimes, their detection, criminals and their motives. It is usually distinguished from mainstream fiction and other genres such as science fiction or historical fiction, but boundaries can be, and indeed are, blurred...
written by the pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
ous author Marshall Jevons
Marshall Jevons
Marshall Jevons is a fictitious crime writer invented and used by William L. Breit and Kenneth G. Elzinga, professors of economics at Trinity University, San Antonio and the University of Virginia, respectively....
. The hero, Professor Henry Spearman, applies economic theory to determine who committed a murder. Spearman uses economic theory as a lens to scrutinize all human behaviour, and his character is based on Milton Friedman
Milton Friedman
Milton Friedman was an American economist, statistician, academic, and author who taught at the University of Chicago for more than three decades...
, who won a Nobel Prize in economics.
The Fatal Equilibrium is a "British traditional" within the mystery
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...
genre. It has no explicit sex or violence. British traditionals are written as cerebral works of the mind, rather than adrenaline (e.g., Emma Lathen
Emma Lathen
Emma Lathen is the pen name of two American businesswomen: an economist Mary Jane Latsis and an economic analyst Martha Henissart ,who received her B.A. in physics from Mount Holyoke College in 1950....
, 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...
, Dorothy Sayers, 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....
, 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...
).
Plot summary
The narrative focuses on the stories of several Harvard Professors as they deliberate whether tenure should be imparted on assistant professor Dennis Gossen. Gossen is an up-and-coming economics figure, who is hopeful that the Promotion and Tenure Committee will find him of adequate qualification to receiver tenure at Harvard University—a very prestigious accomplishment. The P and T Committee is headed by celebrated anthropologist and Harvard Dean Denton Clegg and consists of distinguished sociologist Oliver Wu, chemist Sophia Ustinov, English professor Calvin Weber, psychology professor Valerie Danzig, mathematics professor Morrison Bell, Classicist Foster Barrett and dominant economics professor Henry Spearman.Dennis somehow shows up at the door of Henry Spearman, who is not home, and let in by Henry’s wife, Pidge. Because Dennis appears so distraught, Pidge calls her husband and tells him to come home early, which he does. However, Spearman refuses to discuss anything with Dennis on the basis that he is not allowed to converse with tenure candidates.
P and T Committee meetings proceed to take place, and Dennis Gossen is turned down for tenure with a 3-3 vote. Oliver Wu, Sophia Ustinov and Calvin Weber all vote in favor of promotion, while Valerie Danzig, Morrison Bell and Foster Barrett all vote that Dennis Gossen is not cut out for Harvard. Dean Clegg is naturally placed in the role of tie breaker, and votes against advancement, as is his policy with ties.
Because of his failure, Dennis Gossen seemingly commits suicide. Within the next week, Morrison Bell and Foster Barrett, two of the people who voted against Gossen’s promotion were murdered, and Dennis’s fiancé, Melissa Shannon, is arrested for the crime. The prosecution charged that she murdered them because she felt that they were responsible for her fiancé’s suicide, and the Melissa’s defence argued that the evidence was merely circumstantial; Shannon is eventually convicted by the jury and sentenced to a life in prison.
Economist Henry Spearman is skeptical, however. Applying economic analysis, he could not fathom how the benefits of suicide could have outweighed the emotional cost that Gossen—a very rational person—was paying for his failure. He also did not think it rational that Melissa Shannon was so upset that she would kill two Harvard professors.
With Melissa Shannon in jail, the Harvard Alumni are all aboard a cruise to Europe. This is where Spearman finally uses economic reasoning to deduce who really murdered Dennis, Morrison, and Foster: Dean Clegg. His theory is proven when Clegg, knowing that Spearman is on to him, leaves behind a note explaining everything; Clegg coveted academic distinction, and went to an island to write a book he hoped would be revolutionary in his field of anthropology. However, he had been absent from his field as Dean for a couple of years and was having trouble. That was when he conceived the idea to forge data for his book. It turned out that Dennis Gossen read his book and found economic inconsistencies in the data Clegg had made up and realized that Clegg was a fraud. Gossen blackmailed Clegg to vote in favour of his promotion, which Clegg happily agreed to. However, Clegg wanted to secure his secret, and so he killed Gossen and made it look like suicide. He then killed two of his colleagues who he thought might find out his dirty secret and framed Melissa Shannon.