Witchcraft and paganism exert an insistent pressure from the margins of midcentury British detective fiction. This Element investigates the appearance of witchcraft and paganism in the novels of four of the most popular female detective authors of the era: Agatha Christie, Margery Allingham, Ngaio Marsh and Gladys Mitchell.
Shakespeare, the Bible and Dorothy L. Sayers
Allusion plays a pivotal role in classic British detective fiction, particularly in the works of Agatha Christie and Dorothy L. Sayers. The study examines how these authors navigated the cultural significance of Shakespeare and the Bible during the genre's Golden Age, analyzing the meanings derived from their allusions. It also tracks the evolution of Sayers' novels into a canon that influenced subsequent writers, highlighting how allusive practices persisted through the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, shaping the identity of the detective novel.
A superbly rich and engrossing exploration of C.S. Lewis' The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Paths in the Snow traces the literary allusions and echoes to be found in this beloved novel, drawing the reader deeper into the magic and meaning of Narnia.