Role of Women in Crime Fiction, Essay Example

The Role of Women in Murder She Wrote and The Speckled Band

In the medieval era, women’s role in society was greatly diminished. At the time, gendered roles were prevalent, where men and women were assigned different roles. While women were expected to be submissive, pious, and obedient and limited to housekeeping and nurturing children, men were assigned much better tasks by involving them in decision-making processes in society. Nowadays, the same still applies, although in different ways. While women may have made significant strides concerning equality, they are still sidelined in other aspects. The role of women in contemporary society has been depicted in crime fiction in the autobiographies Murder She Wrote and The Adventure of the Speckled Band. The former was authored by Peter Fischer and his cohort, who epitomized the significant role women play in society through the protagonist of the story, Jessica Fletcher, who fulfills the role of a detective (Maida 12). Separately, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in The Adventure of the Speckled Band and Peter Fischer in Murder She Wrote depict how gendered roles are embraced in crime fiction. While the plight of women today has changed significantly, gendered roles are still exacerbated in crime fiction – an aspect that has been addressed effectively in both texts.

Women are often deceived, manipulated, and even murdered through gendered roles. In his study, Doyle depicts how Hellen Stoner struggles to find justice for her sister, Julia (10). In the company of a famed private detective, Sherlock Holmes, Hellen embarks on a journey to find the perpetrators of Julia’s murder. Mr. Watson, stirred to action by the mystery of Julia’s death, accompanies them to provide the necessary investigative assistance to resolve the case. However, women are perceived as weak and less courageous to make bold decisions that would have a long-term impact on society. As a result, men had dominion over them, and in this story, Dr. Roylott was the first suspect because of his desire to deny Julia her inheritance. Since women were not allowed to own property then, men would do anything to snatch it from them, including killing them. On the other hand, in Murder She Wrote, Jessica Fletcher was portrayed as an embodiment of strength, courage, and authority, owing to her role as a detective in solving societal ills (Maida 15). Accordingly, Murder She Wrote women are considered old and unable to contribute significantly to society. Undeniably, the main protagonist is an older woman and is not young, white, and single – preferences that are dominant in contemporary society. Instead, Peter S. Fischer and his cohort contradict such notions by assigning the role to an older, bold, and courageous woman who effectively executes her role as a detective in the series.

Contemporary society has often been skeptical of women in decision-making, considering them as frail and only best in certain circumstances – staying at home and giving birth to children. However, this contradicts the depictions in Fischer’s Murder She Wrote. The protagonist in the story is depicted as a bold decision-maker with a perfect understanding of her job as a detective. While solving murders, she first conducts inquiries to establish cause using logic to conclude her cases and possibly secure a conviction. Further, Jessica is described by her counterparts as an individual who exhibits “leadership, authority, and courage” in her work (Maida 18). Comparatively, women are belittled in Doyle’s story, The Adventure of the Speckled Band, where the detective and his assistant are men. When Julia is murdered, Hellen approaches Mr. Holmes and Mr. Watson for assistance and only follows their instructions rather than participating in finding justice for her colleague. In addition, the author alludes to the notion that women should be married, considering they are helpless, frightened, and barely self-sufficient. Apart from that, Doyle is dismayed by the fact that many women remain unmarried, considering that society demands that they should bear children for their husbands and nurture them. (20). These comments depict the minimalistic views of the narrator about women: He diminishes them as sexual objects used by men for pleasure. Further, he urges them to get married and have children. This notion still finds its way into contemporary society, such that women are often viewed as second-class citizens. The same applies to their depiction in crime fiction.

Ultimately, women’s role in contemporary society remains convoluted among different factions. While some believe that women can contribute to the development of society, others are still adamant that they are limited in handling complex responsibilities, resolving crimes being one of them. Both texts provide contrary opinions on the significance of women in crime fiction and society overall. In Murder She Wrote, the author has an optimistic viewpoint about the role of women, assigning Jessica the role of a detective despite her advanced age. Contrastingly, Doyle perceives women negatively by assigning Hellen a diminished role of finding justice for her sister [Julia] and prominent roles assigned to Mr. Holmes as the detective and Mr. Watson as his assistant. Therefore, both texts depict the role crime fiction plays in dehumanizing or elevating women through the respective female characters.

Works Cited

Doyle, Arthur Conan. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. Wordsworth Editions, 1992.

Maida, Patricia D., and Nicholas B. Spornick. Murder She Wrote: A Study of Agatha Christie’s Detective Fiction. Popular Press, 1982.