In Conclusion

     By creating realism in detective fiction, authors have personified well-known cities that may even be our home. These cities not only become representational, but because of the characteristic given to them, the detective and justice are complicated as they relate and are affected by the city itself.

• San Francisco is a place of unnavigable deception.
• Los Angeles is a place of romantic thrill and daring.
• Harlem is a place of shadows and unnatural darkness.
• Manhattan is a place of trauma and tribulation.

     Having grown up in Los Angeles, I understand why it is depicted the way it is. It is interesting to note how a physical place can be molded by not only the aesthetics of the architecture, topography, and population, but by fiction, novels, and popular culture. If someone were to write a detective novel about Santa Barbara, what would they emphasize about this town? Would they, (like the detective television show “Psych”) emphasize the darkness underneath a shiny, sunny cover of beautiful weather and wealthy people? Or could Santa Barbara be assigned something deeper and more profound? How has crime and mystery fiction shaped your impression of the city you live in?