Explore the significance of places in relation to
crime in two texts you have studied.
Explore the significance of places in relation to crime in two texts you have studied. Remember
to include in your answer relevant detailed exploration of authorial methods. [25 marks]
Murder of Roger Ackroyd and Atonement
Kingʼs Abbot Society.
The Tallis family mansion – upper class privileged lifestyle also being what leads to Robbie
being condemned.
The Greek Temple in Atonement representing how easy it is to remove a crime.
In crime fiction, places act significantly through their role as being the setting of the crime. They
act as backdrops allowing either a commentary on society or a juxtaposing contrast to the
heinous crimes committed. In Atonement and The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, similar settings are
presented at the beginning of the novels through the upper-class societies depicted. It is
however as the novels progress which causes the places significance to change in relation to
the crimes committed. In this essay I will therefore discuss the significance of places in both
crime texts.
As we begin ‘The Murder of Roger Ackroydʼ the ‘placeʼ is immediately introduced in Chapter 2
titled ‘Whoʼs Who in Kingʼs Abbotʼ. Dr Sheppard uses his description of the locale where Mrs
Ferrars death occurred, and the looming crime which will be committed, to draw attention away
from himself and reflect it onto the surrounding ‘dramatis personaeʼ. The characters are
immediately placed into their usually Christie stereotypes and personality traits such as Mr
Ackroyd who is described as being “more impossibly like a country squire than any country
squire could be”, so that the reader has a predictable list of suspects to work through as the
narrative progresses. Furthermore, place is significant at the beginning of the novel as it reveals
an integral part of Kingʼs Abbot society which is the focus on gossip and rumours, something
which Poirot later incorporates into his detective method to solve the crime due to those who
gossip having little incentive to lie so information may be more accurate. Dr Sheppard reveals
this as he states that “we have discussed Ackroyd and his affairs from every standpoint”
introducing the eponymous crime victim of the novel whose death occurs chapters later. Dr
Sheppardʼs role as the novels information relater also causes the reader to subconsciously trust
him resulting in Poirotʼs ‘denouementʼ by the end of the novel being more shocking due to the
readers connection to Dr Sheppard from the very first pages of the novel.
However, the place of Kingʼs Abbot society is not merely important due to it acting as a red
herring for Dr Sheppardʼs duplicity. It is also what the village represents. Golden Age Crime was
often set in the high upper-class societies of England making the crimes more gruesome and
shocking because they were committed by members of the public who already had everything.
crime in two texts you have studied.
Explore the significance of places in relation to crime in two texts you have studied. Remember
to include in your answer relevant detailed exploration of authorial methods. [25 marks]
Murder of Roger Ackroyd and Atonement
Kingʼs Abbot Society.
The Tallis family mansion – upper class privileged lifestyle also being what leads to Robbie
being condemned.
The Greek Temple in Atonement representing how easy it is to remove a crime.
In crime fiction, places act significantly through their role as being the setting of the crime. They
act as backdrops allowing either a commentary on society or a juxtaposing contrast to the
heinous crimes committed. In Atonement and The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, similar settings are
presented at the beginning of the novels through the upper-class societies depicted. It is
however as the novels progress which causes the places significance to change in relation to
the crimes committed. In this essay I will therefore discuss the significance of places in both
crime texts.
As we begin ‘The Murder of Roger Ackroydʼ the ‘placeʼ is immediately introduced in Chapter 2
titled ‘Whoʼs Who in Kingʼs Abbotʼ. Dr Sheppard uses his description of the locale where Mrs
Ferrars death occurred, and the looming crime which will be committed, to draw attention away
from himself and reflect it onto the surrounding ‘dramatis personaeʼ. The characters are
immediately placed into their usually Christie stereotypes and personality traits such as Mr
Ackroyd who is described as being “more impossibly like a country squire than any country
squire could be”, so that the reader has a predictable list of suspects to work through as the
narrative progresses. Furthermore, place is significant at the beginning of the novel as it reveals
an integral part of Kingʼs Abbot society which is the focus on gossip and rumours, something
which Poirot later incorporates into his detective method to solve the crime due to those who
gossip having little incentive to lie so information may be more accurate. Dr Sheppard reveals
this as he states that “we have discussed Ackroyd and his affairs from every standpoint”
introducing the eponymous crime victim of the novel whose death occurs chapters later. Dr
Sheppardʼs role as the novels information relater also causes the reader to subconsciously trust
him resulting in Poirotʼs ‘denouementʼ by the end of the novel being more shocking due to the
readers connection to Dr Sheppard from the very first pages of the novel.
However, the place of Kingʼs Abbot society is not merely important due to it acting as a red
herring for Dr Sheppardʼs duplicity. It is also what the village represents. Golden Age Crime was
often set in the high upper-class societies of England making the crimes more gruesome and
shocking because they were committed by members of the public who already had everything.
