Exploring Genre: Crime Fiction

Each title in this series of teacher resource books, intended for use with students in middle and senior secondary years, starts with a detailed definition of the genre, followed by an examination of a wide range of texts with:

• background information
• information about text and context
• ideas on genre conventions, representation of themes, characters, style
• suggestions and strategies for dealing with the texts
• a wide range of student activities to suit different year levels, with emphasis on what is being said and how it is being said, with questions
• response tasks

Exploring Genre: Crime Fiction is an invaluable resource with in depth analysis and student exercises to help students analyse, question, interpret and articulate their understanding of the text.

Contents

Genre

• Defining Crime Fiction
• Evolution of the Genre
• Detective Story fundamentals
• Typical Conventions and Motifs

19^th Century

• Edgar Allen Poe's Detective stories
• 'Sir Arthur Conan Doyle' - Sherlock Holmes
• 'The Hound of the Baskervilles' - Conan Doyle
• 'The Shropshire Lad' - Houseman

'Cosy Fiction'

• Defining 'Cosy' Fiction
• The Mousetrap' – Agatha Christie

Hard Boiled Crime Fiction/Film Noir

• Defining Hard-Boiled Crime Fiction
• 'The Big Sleep' - Raymond Chandler
• Film Noir Conventions
• Maltese Falcon – Radio Program
• Noir Website

Mystery / Thriller

• 'An Inspector Calls' - J.B. Priestley
• 'Dial M for Murder' - Hitchcock
• 'Chinatown' - R. Polanski

Contemporary Crime Fiction

• 'Skull Beneath the Skin' - P.D.James
• 'The Real Inspector Hound' - Tom Stoppard
• 'Lamb to the Slaughter' - Roald Dahl
• Feminist Crime Fiction
• Writing Crime Fiction
• Crime Fiction Online