Agatha Christie: a look Into Criminal Procedure and Gender
Chapter 3: Miss Marple and Her Criminal Procedure
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| Chapter 3: Miss Marple and Her Criminal Procedure As Miss Marple is not a formally trained detective, her methods might not been classified as aligning traditional criminal procedure techniques. However, this more unassuming and laid back type of criminal procedure is probably intentional on Christie’s part. As the village busybody, most of her skills lie in her ability to observe the comings and goings of others and to gossip. It is because Marple is known for her keen observation and ability to gossip that cases fall into her lap. It is not even necessarily her love of crime that inspires Miss Marple becomes involved in cases, but instead her desire to restore her village community to its former, tranquil environment. One of the most substantial qualities that Miss Marple has that makes her such a great detective is her genuine distrust of almost everyone she meets. This may speak to her feminine intuition that leads her to follow her gut when it comes to people’s true intentions. She even admits when asked at the conclusion of The Body in the Library, “I’m afraid you’ll think my methods as Sir Henry calls them, are terribly amateurish. The truth is, you see, that most people – and I don’t exclude policemen – are far too trusting for this wicked world. They believe what is told them. I never do. I’m afraid I always like to prove a thing for myself (646). This is why Marple is always able to solve her cases. Even though she may only have her feminine intuition as evidence, she trusts herself because she knows she cannot trust anyone else, and trusting her gut is what leads her to validate her theories. In order to prove her feminine intuition is correct, she is prone to set a trap to catch the murderers, either in the act of committing another crime or divulging evidence that leads to their arrest. By the end of the novels, the culprit walks straight into the hands of Miss Marple. 40 While she may not solve crime in a conventional way, Miss Marple holds many attributes of areal detective. Even though she may not think she has a method behind her crime-solving techniques, she consistently uses the same set of tools to outwit criminals. Bargainnier gives Miss Marple the credit she deserves, as he attests To solve her cases, Miss Marple uses analogy, role-playing, careful observation, and, to use Poirot’s phrase, order and method. Combined with her basic distrust of other’s statements, her ability to see through those statements, and her ruthless determination to see justice prevail, these abilities are the essentials of her skill as a detective (74). It is through role-playing and gossip, her keen observation skills, distrust of people, and feminine intuition that Miss Marple is able to establish herself as much more than an amateur detective. Download 0.5 Mb. Share with your friends:
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