Комментированное чтение. Mystery Greats (original mystery and crime stories)

Министерство образования и науки Российской Федерации

НОВОСИБИРСКИЙ ГОСУДАРСТВЕННЫЙ ТЕХНИЧЕСКИЙ УНИВЕРСИТЕТ

С.А. КУЧИНА

MYSTERY GREATS

(Original mystery and crime stories)

Утверждено редакционно-издательским советом университета

в качестве учебного пособия

НОВОСИБИРСК

2010

ББК 81.432.1-923

К 959

Рецензенты:

М.В. Влавацкая, канд. филол. наук, доцент НГТУ;

Н.В. Носенко, канд. филол. наук, доцент НГПУ

Кучина С.А.

К 959
Mystery Greats (original mystery and crime stories) : учеб. пособие / 

С.А. Кучина. – Новосибирск : Изд-во НГТУ, 2010. – 150 с.

ISBN 978-5-7782-1307-4

Настоящее пособие представляет собой учебный комплекс по комментиро
ванному чтению обучающего и контрольно-тренировочного характера. Пособие содержит три раздела, включающие оригинальные тексты на английском 
языке и учебные задания к ним, направленные на формирование и тренировку 
лексических, грамматических и синтаксических навыков. Текстовый материал 
и формы работы с ним ориентированы на специфику гуманитарных дисциплин.

Предназначено для преподавателей английского языка, студентов языко
вых специальностей вузов (уровни Intermediate, Upper- Intermediate), а также 
для всех, кто интересуется английской литературой.

Автор выражает благодарность старшему преподавателю ИЯ ГФ Швецо
вой Н.А. за помощь в подготовке издания к публикации.

Работа издается в авторской редакции

ББК 81.432.1-923

ISBN 978-5-7782-1307-4
© Кучина С.А., 2010
© Новосибирский государственный 

технический университет, 2010 

СОДЕРЖАНИЕ

Introduction................................................................................................................4
Abbreviations.............................................................................................................5
History of the Mystery...............................................................................................6
Edgar Allan Poe 1809–1849....................................................................................11
THE BLACK CAT. Part I .........................................................................................14
Vocabulary.................................................................................................................18
Exercises....................................................................................................................24
THE BLACK CAT. Part II........................................................................................31
Vocabulary.................................................................................................................35
Exercises....................................................................................................................40
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle 1859–1930.......................................................................50
Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson .............................................................................51
THE ADVENTURE OF THE YELLOW FACE. Part I ...........................................52
Vocabulary.................................................................................................................59
Exercises....................................................................................................................62
THE ADVENTURE OF THE YELLOW FACE. Part II..........................................70
Vocabulary.................................................................................................................77
Exercises....................................................................................................................82
Dame Agatha Christie 1890–1976..........................................................................93
THE ADVENTURE OF THE “WESTERN STAR”. Part I......................................95
Vocabulary...............................................................................................................104
Exercises..................................................................................................................107
THE ADVENTURE OF THE “WESTERN STAR”. Part II ..................................115
Vocabulary...............................................................................................................122
Exercises..................................................................................................................126
APPENDICIES ......................................................................................................136
KEYS TO THE EXERCISES...............................................................................142
BIBLIOGRAPHY..................................................................................................148

Introduction

Course book «Mystery Greats» (original mystery and crime stories) contains 

English classical detective and mystery shot stories. 

The course book consists of three chapters. There you can find shot stories writ
ten by mystery and detective greats – Edgar Allan Poe, Arthur Conan Doyle and 
Agatha Christie – and the authors‟ biographies. Each chapter contains vocabulary. 
There you can find new words and their definitions, phrasal verbs, collocations, 
idioms and word combinations.

Each chapter is provided with the original authoring set of exercises.  There you 

can find the following types of them:

1. Gap filling;
2. Matching;
3. Multiple-choice;
4. Quiz;
5. Crossword.
These exercises are aimed at getting skills in reading and comprehension.  Exer
cises at the end of each chapter are aimed at getting speaking skills and practicing in 
translation. 

Course book «Mystery Greats» (original mystery and crime stories) is for 

students and English teachers who study and work with Intermediate and UpperIntermediate courses. 

«Mystery Greats» (original mystery and crime stories) is not a highly tailored 

training course so whether you are  student or teacher you may use it as a main 
course or a part of some special courses or for your own individual studying needs. 

The course book gives you a great opportunity of mixing the text exercises, mak
ing different tests, and providing individual work and self-control tasks, because all 
the chapters contain key sections at the end of the book that enables students to selfcontrol.

Author believes that the course book «Mystery Greats» (original mystery and 

crime stories) will be helpful for students in their English studying and self-guided 
work.

Abbreviations

1. Cam – Cambridge international dictionary of English; 
2. Mac – Macmillan English dictionary for advanced learners.

History of the Mystery

ystery and crime stories as we know them today did not emerge until the 
mid-nineteenth century when Edgar Allan Poe introduced mystery fiction's 

first fictional detective, Auguste C. Dupin, in his 1841 story, "The Murders in the 
Rue Morgue." The acknowledged father of the mystery story, Poe continued Dupin's 
exploits in novels such as "The Mystery of Marie Roget" (1842) and "The Purloined 
Letter" (1845).

"The Murders in the Rue Morgue" is the most famous example of a mystery style 

known as the locked room, in which "a murder victim is found inside an apparently 
sealed enclosure and the detective's challenge is to discover the murderer's modus 
operandi." 

Poe was one of the first to shift the focus of mystery stories from the aesthetics 

of the situation to a more intellectual reality, moving the story from "a focus on the 
superficial trappings of eerie setting and shocking event to a study of the criminal's 
mind." 

As important as his contributions were to the genre, Poe was influenced greatly 

by the early work of Charles Dickens who, with his contemporary, Wilkie Collins, 
made major contributions to the genre as well. Dickens wrote many stories that contained elements of mystery and suspense, including "Bleak House" (1853). "The 
Mystery of Edwin Drood" (1870), an unfinished masterpiece, is the perfect murder 
mystery because Dickens death left it forever unsolved.

A prolific writer, Collins wrote numerous essays and short stories as well as 

crime novels, including "The Woman in White" (1860). "The Moonstone" (1868) is 
considered by some to be the first true English detective novel. His 1858 essay, "The 
Unknown Public" suggested that a new generation of readers wanted to read books 
that reflected their changing place in society. The rising literacy rates combined with 
more leisure time contributed greatly to the popularity of novels in general and mysteries in particular. Throughout most of history, books had been a luxury available 
primarily to the upper classes, and were read for the sake of education rather than 
entertainment.

In 1878, with the publication of "The Leavenworth Case," Anna Katherine Green 

became the first woman to write a detective novel. This novel introduced elements 

M

of detection later used to great effect by writers of the English country house murder 
school during the 1920s.

Sherlock Holmes, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's brilliant detective, arrived on the 

mystery scene in the late nineteenth century in "A Study in Scarlet" (1887). Holmes 
possessed a singular style unlike any detective seen before. With his distinctive style 
and his flair for deducing clues, Holmes, with his ever-reliable sidekick, Dr. Watson, 
quickly became indispensable to mystery readers everywhere.

The genius of Conan Doyle was reflected in his creation of a character whose in
telligence was formidable, turning the solving of crimes into a science. Readers may 
have found his deductive powers too intimidating were it not for the presence of Dr. 
Watson, always nearby to bring Holmes back down to earth with the soothing voice 
of reason.

By the 1920s British mysteries had become extremely popular, particularly the 

cozy, a style of mystery usually featuring "a small village setting, a hero with faintly 
aristocratic family connections, a plethora of red herrings and a tendency to commit 
homicide with sterling silver letter openers and poisons imported from Paraguay." 
(Murder Ink)

The 1920s ushered in the Golden Age of mystery fiction. A time of growing 

prosperity in both England and America, the popularity of mystery fiction was at an 
all-time high. No longer used only to describe the period in history, Golden Age refers as well to the style of writing itself. Crime in these stories strictly adhere to a 
prescribed format with little or no variation.

A writer emerged during this time whose name became synonymous with Gol
den Age fiction.

Agatha Christie wrote more than 80 novels, spanning a career of 50-plus years, 

and is today probably the best-known mystery writer in history. Christie has "entertained more people for more hours at a time than almost any other writer of her generation." (Great Detectives)

Christie's "The Mysterious Affair at Styles" (1920) introduced the Belgian sleuth 

Hercule Poirot, who along with Jane Marple, Christie's endearing mystery-solving 
spinster, remain two of mystery fiction's most popular characters. Christie perfected 
the cozy style over the next decade with titles like "The Murder at the Vicarage" and 
"The Murder of Roger Ackroyd," among many others.

While Christie may have been the most recognizable Golden Age author, another 

writer at the time was also helping to define the genre. Dorothy L. Sayers, whose 
first mystery was published in 1923, introduced Lord Peter Wimsey, a detective 
whose style and intelligence won over many readers and made Sayers one of the 
most popular authors of her time.

During the height of Golden Age fiction's popularity, London publisher Allen 

Lane came up with an idea that further helped to expand the availability of mysteries 

to the public. Along with his two brothers, he obtained limited rights to hardcover 
books written by Sayers and others. Their new paperback line was issued in 1935 
with only 10 titles and quickly expanded to 70 titles within a year. Penguins, as they 
were called, were easily accessible to the public due to their much lower cost and 
availability in department stores, where most of the public shopped at the time. 
These paperbacks helped to bring mysteries, along with other types of fiction as 
well, to the public.

American detective fiction reached its zenith in the 1930s and 40s with the im
mense popularity of Ellery Queen, a pseudonym used by two American cousins, 
Manfred B. Lee and Frederic Dannay. Their first collaboration, "The Roman Hat 
Mystery," published in 1929, featured an amateur detective named Ellery, who 
solved mysteries with his father, Richard Queen. Ellery Queen proved to be so popular that, in all, the two authors wrote 33 novels spanning over 40 years featuring the 
father and son team. They later created another popular character, Drury Lane, introduced in 1932.

With Ellery Queen, Lee and Dannay had "successfully adapted the Golden Age 

format to the American scene." (Crime Classics)

At the same time that Golden Age fiction was on the rise, another type of mys
tery was taking shape. Black Mask or hard-boiled fiction was born in the 1920s with 
the rise of popular magazines known as pulps. The most famous of these, Black 
Mask, originally published adventure stories of all kinds, but eventually devoted its 
pages to detective fiction exclusively. The magazine came to symbolize the hardboiled school of writing, with contributing writers like Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler. Under editor Joseph Thompson Shaw's direction, Black Mask "established a revolutionary direction for the detective story." (Crime Classics) Shaw 
was attempting to create a new kind of detective novel. He wanted the stories to reflect the reality of life in America at the time. Such characters as Dashiell Hammett's 
Sam Spade and Raymond Chandler's Philip Marlowe were hard-edged men, tough 
guys who lived by strict codes of honor. Sam Spade was later immortalized on the 
big screen in the 1941 film noir classic "The Maltese Falcon."

The '30's also gave birth to the "quirky" detective, sleuths of unusual or eccentric 

personalities. One of the most notable was Earl Derr Bigger's creation, Charlie 
Chan, who used the sage wisdom of the Orient to solve crimes all over the world; 
his popularity spawned a "Charlie Chan" industry in books, movies, radio, and television.

Another author who got his start writing for Black Mask was Erle Stanley Gard
ner, creator of the crime-solving attorney Perry Mason. First introduced in 1933 in 
"The Case of the Velvet Claws," Mason tackled cases with his friend, detective Paul 
Drake, and his long-time secretary Della Street. In case after case, Mason went 

head-to-head in court with District Attorney Hamilton Burger, usually forcing a confession from the unsuspecting guilty party during their testimony on the stand.

Perry Mason has been featured in countless novels and films over the years and 

was the subject of a long-running television series that began in 1957 and ran for 10 
seasons.

In 1947, a new writer, Mickey Spillane, emerged on the mystery scene. When his 

book, "I, The Jury" appeared, marking the first appearance of ultra-tough guy Mike 
Hammer, it created a sensation.

With his strong emphasis on sex and violence, Spillane appealed mostly to male 

readers, and "I, The Jury" became the best-selling mystery in history up until that 
time, selling over six million copies.

Critics hated Spillane's books and their heavy focus on blood and guts, but the 

public couldn't seem to get enough. Spillane only wrote five more Mike Hammer 
novels, and all were extremely successful.

The public's love of mysteries wasn't limited to the printed page. Not only were 

radio mysteries like "The Shadow" one of the most popular forms of entertainment 
in the 1940s, the arrival of television brought mystery in an entirely new direction.

Mystery on television has proved to be an endless source of diversion and delight 

for fans the world over. Since the birth of the medium, TV has provided mystery 
lovers with a seemingly endless stream of colorful characters over the years and into 
the present. Characters such as Perry Mason and Simon Templar ("The Saint") were 
extremely popular during the early years of TV, followed more recently by the likes 
of Lieutenant Columbo ("Columbo"), Jim Rockford ("The Rockford Files"), and 
Jessica Fletcher ("Murder, She Wrote"), among many others.

Another type of crime fiction, police procedural, surfaced in the 1940s, and its 

style coincided perfectly with the advent of television. As its name implies, it differed from other styles of crime writing because of its realistic portrayal of police 
methods. The stories were always presented from the point of view of the police, 
usually in a gritty, realistic style.

The most successful writer of this type of fiction was Ed McBain (1926- ), who 

set his stories in the fictional 87th precinct in a big-city police force. The popular TV 
series "Dragnet" followed this format perfectly, and was followed later by shows 
such as "Hawaii 5-O," "Kojak," and "Hill Street Blues," all of which developed loyal 
followings throughout their runs on the small screen.

Just as mystery throughout its history hasn't been limited to the page, it hasn't 

been limited to one audience. Some of the most popular mystery series have not 
been written for adults, but for children. The continued popularity of such series as 
Nancy Drew, The Hardy Boys, and Encyclopedia Brown, among others, attest to the 
fact that mystery remains a beloved pastime for readers of all ages. Current writers 
like Christopher Pike and R.L. Stine, creator of the wildly popular Goosebumps se

ries, sell in the millions as well. The popular Parker Brothers game, Clue, is another 
example of mystery's enormous appeal to children.

The popularity of mystery has a long and varied history and shows no sign of ab
ating. On the contrary, it remains as popular as ever and today's mystery writers are 
as diverse and wide-ranging as ever.

New arrivals on the mystery scene like Sue Grafton's Kinsey Millhone share 

space on the shelves with such characters as Spenser, Robert B. Parker's Bostonbased P.I., and Adam Dagliesh, P.D. James' popular British policeman, along with 
writers like Dick Francis, whose mysteries set against the world of horse racing continue to hit the bestseller lists year after year.

Mystery in all its forms will undoubtedly continue to capture the public's imagi
nation, regardless of the medium, well into the future. 

Edgar Allan Poe

1809–1849

The saddest and the strangest figure in American literary history is that of Edgar 

Allan Poe. Few writers have lived a life so full of struggle and disappointment, and 
none have lived and died more completely out of sympathy with their times. His life 
has been made the subject of minute and prolonged investigation, yet there are still 
periods in his history that have not been satisfactorily cleared up. And the widest 
differences of opinion have existed as to his place and his achievements. But there 
are few today who will not readily concede to him a place among the foremost writers of America, whether in prose or in verse, and there do not want those who account him one of the two or three writers of indisputable genius that America has 
produced.

Poe was born at Boston, 19 January, 1809, the son of actor parents of small 

means and of romantic proclivities. Before the end of his third year he was left an 
orphan, his mother dying in wretched poverty at Richmond, Virginia, 8 December, 
1811, and his father a few weeks later. He was promptly taken under the protection 
of a prosperous tobacco exporter of Richmond, John Allan, in whose family he 
lived. In the summer of 1815 he went with his foster-father to England, and for the 
next five year he lived in London, attending first a boarding school. On his return to 
Richmond in the summer of 1820, Poe entered an academy. 

The year 1826 Poe spent as a student at the University of Virginia. At the end of 

the year, however, because of his having accumulated gambling debts of some twenty-five hundred dollars, he was withdrawn from college; and with the beginning of 
the next year he was placed by his adoptive father in his counting-house in Richmond. But he had small leaning that way; besides, he had been disappointed in a