Section B03. The Mystery of Mysteries
An exploration of the mystery as popular formula, narrative structure and ingenious plots, beginning with Edgar Allan Poe and Henry James and continuing into contemporary times with such writers as Tony Hillerman, Walter Mosley, James Lee Burke, Joan Didion, Thomas Pynchon, Paul Auster, Martha Grimes and others. We will examine authors' different visions and styles, different approaches, and the clash between such things as Navajo culture, the African-American experience and the mystery formula that depends upon certain essential ingredients. Why is the mystery such a popular American genre? What must it exclude in order to succeed? How is it affected by our "western way" of looking at the world? How does it work? Students will lead class discussions and write 3-4 papers during the
semester as we tackle a mystery a week.