Flashcards: Deconstructing the Detective Genre — 16 cards

Deconstruction of detective genre

Subverts genre, emphasizes ambiguity and futility.

False leads — role?

Misleading clues that prevent final revelation.

Narrative causality — dissolution?

Breakdown of logical cause-and-effect in detective stories.

Absence of resolution

No conclusive ending or restored order.

Subversion of detective tropes

Undermines detective roles, truth, and resolution.

Identity as narrative

Self is a fluid, constructed story, not fixed.

Identity fragmentation

Self divided into unstable, disjointed parts.

Role fluidity

Personal and social roles are performative and changeable.

Subject erasure

Disappearance of the individual subject.

Language failure — concept?

Inability of language to connect or reveal truth.

Language as violence

Language used to control, fragment, and harm.

New York as labyrinth

City as a confusing, endless maze.

Urban labyrinth — effect?

Creates disorientation, loss of control.

Radical solitude — theme?

Profound loneliness and social disconnection.

Failure of reason — critique?

Limits of rational interpretation and understanding.

Meta-narrative — function?

Undermines authority, highlights fictionality.