الفهرس 
Cops and Thieves: The Early DetectivesOnly 14 pages are availabe for public view
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Abstract
There are two types of novels contammg detectives, suspects, crime, and punishment. One of them
is the traditional detective novel, and the other is the crime novel. The traditional detective
novel is distinguished by the fact that its events are related to the upper classes, where the
action takes place in grand mansions and country houses, and the suspects are polite and affluent.
The events of the crime novel happen usually among lower classes and gangsters, and to be able to
fmd the criminal, the detective associates with low-life criminals and sordid individuals and
gangs.
Agatha christie did not write any crime novels. She excelled in writing the traditional detective
novel. characters are usually affluent people and their servants, and they are gathered in a
closed setting characterized by a degree of affluence. Even in her novels in transit or in foreign
countries, characters of the novels are grouped in places made for the residence of Europeans, away
from Arabs and natives.
Agatha christie is one of the most popular writers of all times. She achieved this popularity
partly by banishing the sordid side of life. In her novels, characters live in a dream world of
riches, leisure and a happy environment.
Yet, portraying a dream world by itself does not make a novel attractive. Agatha christie’s
technique is superb. Her novel presents a number of suspects cooped up in a closed space, and
although all action happens, sometimes, in that
narrow space, the reader never feels bored. christie is an expert in providing diversions and
diversity. characters are portrayed in different modes, attitudes and types. They sometimes act
very strangely for unknown reasons. Surprises happen, and second and third corpses pop up
unexpectedly, adding more interest and suspense to the action. Impostors are unmasked, motives
are revealed, and the action and attraction go on. The evil side of every character is brought to
the open, and by the end of the novel, a very different situation is created.
The most sordid characters are usually the victims, when such victims are introduced to the reader
before the action begins. They are, sometimes, the main source of evil, and by getting rid of them,
sources of boredom are removed from the novel. christie usually starts with the most likely
suspect, and then the net gets wider and wider till all characters fall within the realm of
suspicion. No one is excluded. Then, Agatha christie starts sifting the hay, and we discover why
each of the suspects has acted strangely, arousing suspicion. At the end of the novel, the wizard
shows his mettle by gathering all the characters and revealing the identity of the sly killer, thus
removing the last source of evil from the novel. After such expurgation of evil, life is expected
to come back to what it once was: a series of happy times. The wicked are punished, the good are
rewarded, and all is well that ends well.
like Poirot, who has a mania for symmetry and
order, and has very funny mannerisms. Poirot likes to show off, acts theatrically, and brags all
the time that he never makes mistakes. Yet, despite his funny boastfulness, Poirot is vouched for
by the best of police detectives. Having started by doubting his abilities, the police officers
are converted to trust him because ofthe spectacular success they have seen him achieve. Poirot is
equipped with helpers who are the opposite of everything he is. He is shrewd and practical, and
they are romantic and imaginary. He professes to live a sedentary life, and they want to be up and
about whenever they meet a problem. He is methodical and small in size, and one of his helpers,
Miss Oliver, is very disorganized and huge in size. All this creates an atmosphere of fun and is a
source of great enjoyment for the reader.
The other sleuth tackled in this dissertation is Miss Jane Marple, an old spinster who starts her
career at the age of almost 65. She is shrewd and very snoopy, and although Miss Marple is a normal
character, and is not given the funny appearance or mannerisms ofPoirot, she is a very attractive
character. Part of her attraction comes from her association with attractive and young characters
like Vicar Clement and his family in The Murder at the Vicarage, Jerry Burton, his sister and Megan
Hunter in The Moving Finger, and Gwendolyn Giles in Sleeping Murder. Miss Marple looks very frail
and always complains of her arthritis, dwindling eye sight, and loss of hearing, but all that is
only a cover up for her cleverness, just as Poirot’ s funny mannerisms and
theatric tricks cover his. christie’s detectives are very efficient, and they never fail to catch
the criminal they are tracking.
In every good play or film, the action is not quite right unless all the secondary, and even
marginal characters are given enough shape and presence. Even servants are convmcmg as characters.
Characters in christie’s novels are not round, yet they are not types. They are given their roles
and their lines. Agatha christie had a very good ear for dialogue, which is one of the strongholds
of her novels. Dialogue is always kept lively and true to every day life, especially in those
novels where the action happens in country houses and involves normal, everyday life scenes and
problems.
Agatha christie presents us also with attractive sleuths. She gives us a funny
character