Learning from Literature: Interpretation and Analysis of Detective Fiction

There are many, many ways that we can increase our knowledge and our education. However, one of the most effective and most accessible ways to do so is to improve our literary ability. It has been said often, but the more we read, the more prepared and more intelligent we become. However, often times simply reading is not enough if we wish to increase our literary comprehension skills as a whole. In fact, sometimes it takes actual analysis and interpretation of the literature that we are reading if we wish to make noticeable improvements. For that reason, it can be incredibly helpful to write down and analyze key events of the novels and books that we read.

Of course, this may sound a bit strange at first, but it is a quick, effective and fairly easy way to make sure that we better understand what we read, and are better able to remember it later. Although this can be done with almost any genre, one very effective type of novel to begin analysis with is Detective Fiction. Sadly, detective fiction sometimes has a reputation for being hard or difficult to read and not offering many rewards to the reader. Of course, this is not the case, and mystery stories and detective fiction can provide great entertainment and still help with analysis.

To better understand how to do this, here is provided a sample of what should be done from the novel, Death of a Red Heroine, a compelling and award-winning mystery story. For this example, chapters 21 through 24 have been used:

Chapter 21

Chapter twenty one takes a break from discussing the murder of Guan and instead focuses a bit on Commander Zhang and his history with the party. The chapter details how life has changed for Zhao, and what his life is like today as compared to his life when he first began working for the police. We learn about the treatment that high officials in China get now, and we get to compare and contrast that to how they are treated today. Also examined is Zhang's personal life, and how he came to be where he is today. However, life may soon be changing a bit for Chen. We learn that Zhang thinks that one of Chen's poems may have expressed ideas that are negative to the government and to the party. However, Zhang believes that it would not be too horrible of circumstances, and that Chen would be able to deal with a little hardship. Only future chapters will be able to tell us what will become of Chen and if this decision by Zhang will have any impact on him in the future.

Chapter 22

Chapter twenty two details Chen's initial trip to Guangzhou, where he hopes to connect with a woman whom Guan had argued with during her vacation to the Yellow Mountains. However, soon after he arrives, he realizes that the hotels are very expensive and that the town is quickly becoming very large. After making a call to an old friend, and being invited to stay at the Writer's House, where the rates are much lower, Chen makes several interesting discoveries. He meets a man known as Ouyang, who is willing to help him in his investigation. He learns that Xie Rong was a "madam", and that she no longer lives in the town. However, Ouyang is willing to help him, and he puts off writing an official report home. More and more through Chen's actions, we can sense that he may be headed towards trouble, and that things might not work out the way he wants them too. One must also wonder why he has traveled so far to track down Xie Rong, and if there is any usuable information there, more than what he already knows about the case.

Chapter 23

In chapter twenty three, the story picks up with the story of Investigator Yu. Yu has gone to interview and investigate a woman known as Jiang Wehe, an artist who Wu had also taken pictures of. Even though their encounter is initially hostile, it quickly becomes apparent that Jiang is not an antagonistic person, and she attempts to help Yu in the best way possible. We learn, through her, about the actions of Wu. We learn that he was a playboy, constantly throwing parties at his house. And we learn that he has photographed every woman he has been with. We also learn about his cruel treatment of Jiang, and we wonder if there may be any connections between her story and the story of Guan, possibly even resulting in her death. Indeed, this story seems to get more and more Perhaps future chapters will answer this question.

Chapter 24

In chapter twenty four, Chen finally has his meeting with Xie. Although he has difficulty refusing her advances at first, and submits to a foot massage. They eventually go to a local restaurant and Xie reveals many details about what happened in the mountain and about her experience with Guan and Wu. We learn that he cheated on Wu and also managed to seduce Jiang.However, more than this we learn that Guan was cling and protective of Wu, and that this may have contributed to her death, although we are still unsure of the actual circumstances. Even though it may seem strange that Xie has revealed all this information, it really seems as though it has done little overall to aid Chen, and we must wonder why he went through such extraordinary effort to obtain the information. Perhaps this will be revealed in future chapters, and we can only wait to learn more about Chen and his past.

Thus, reading and understanding mystery novels does not have to be difficult, and we can do a lot to increase our literary interpretation skills at the same time. Good luck and happy reading!