The Preface.

Victorian literature The most important thing to know about the Moonstone is that it is considered to be the first English detective novel. It was published in 1868 and created different determinant rules for the modern detective fiction genre. In Collins' own preface of the Moonstone, he describes the feeling of the novel, how he built it and why he built it that way. First of all, according to him the plot had to focus on the influence of characters on circumstances. That is to say the circumstances are changing and evolving in the story according to the character's behaviours. Collins insist on the causality of characters, on how their choices, opinions and reactions can modify the heart of the story. We can explain his theory with the subjective and objective dichotomy present in the novel. Let me explain : the subjectivity is represented by the characters who are all reacting according to their own personality. On the other part, the objectivity is represented by the circumstances, which are a sort of fatality, something nobody can control. As the connection between characters and circumstances is ambiguous, the one between subjectivity and objectivity is as well. In the second paragraph of the extract of the preface, Collins explains that we shouldn't perceive the dichotomy as a contradiction. We should focus on what are the effects subjectivity and objectivity have on one another. For instance he explains talking about the characters Right or wrong, their conduct, in either event equally directs the course of those portions of the story in which they are concerned. In the 7th chapter, we can see this duality taking place. Franklin has a precise vision of the event or the accident (the diamond being stolen). At the exact moment when Rachel confesses her big secret, everything Franklin worked for, the clues he looked for have a total different meaning. And the more they are deeply going into the details of Rachel's view, the more his vision on the theft evolves and is modified. This situation takes place every time the narrative changes. Every time a character tells it's story, it's own personal view on the event, the circumstances change. = Aristotle Poetics / Ethics plot characters right/wrong Another important point to discuss in this preface is Collins including a realistic dimension to it's writing. When he says Having first ascertained, not only from books, but from living authorities as well, what the result of that experiment would really have been.. he clearly declares that thanks to his own experience, he is able to speak about the physiological experiment as it is in real life. It seems really important for Collins to make this point clear. Some researchers even claimed that some biographical elements are present in the text. As an example we can talk about the Opium, which was taken at the time as a medicine used to relieve rheumatic pains. In his life, Collins became really addicted to this drug and talks about it in the novel. In a certain way, Collins frees Franklin from suspicion because he personally knew the effects of such a product. This connection with reality is an important fact. = verisimilitude Finally, we can also found this notion of reality in the last paragraph of the preface when Collins gives the references that influenced him in his work. We can notice that the references he utters are both linked with an Indian background like in the novel. I think we can make the connection with the fact that India was a British colony for more than 4 centuries and was known as the jewel of the British crown. The impact of India must have been important for English writers, representing a place of

mystery and treasures. =colonialism. Representation of imperial Britain. Real events (wars). Object = the diamond. Important symbolic. The disappearance brings disorder in social life. Narrative and political implications. The Maltese Falcon

Chapter VII While reading the text, the first thing that stroke me was the structure of the chapter composed of a number of parts rather long or short and each of them reflecting different feelings and situations. The most obvious contrast is the one in Rachel's behaviour. Her mood changes about 7 times in this chapter. She goes from a weak and powerless little girl to a furious and aggressive beast. For instance at the beg of the chapter she seems nearly dead The sound of my voice brought the life back to her limbs, and the colour to her face and suddenly a few lines later she says You coward.You mean, miserable, heartless coward! This shift occurs again a few times through the chapter. I think this change of mood and behaviour is due to the heavy secret she was carrying. It is also the first time she meets Franklin after the night she saw him take the diamond, and it looks like a real shock to her. She doesn't really know how to react between her ever-lasting love for Franklin and the resentment she has been carrying inside her. This duality is meant to bring confusion in the mind of the reader. Thomas Brown : modern psychology. Lectures on the Philosophy of the mind As readers we might also realize the importance of the visual and auditive scenes. In this chapter, the scenes are mainly auditive rather than visual. For example, we have a large lexical field on the communicative theme. By this I mean a lot of words like voice, low tone, a cry of horror, listen, silence, speak the truth, say something, the answer almost unmanned me, ask, a long dialogue, etc... This type of description of the scene emphasizes the contrast in Rachels behaviour between life and death. We can tell that when she's weak silence reigns and when she shows her temper, dialogue relives. This chapter is all about communication. The last point I would like to talk about is the investigation side of the story in this chapter. Before the revelation, Franklin is still looking for clues, looking for some answers, he talks about testing Mr. Buff's theory, etc...He acts perfectly like a detective but what he doesn't expect is to be considered himself as the culprit. He has these little monologue where he speaks to himself which are quite representative of a detective questionning himself on the situation, like if he's trying to depict the news evidence he just discovered. Finally, we can discuss the long dialogue between Rachel and Franklin, ressembling a lot like a interrogation. We are used to hear Where were you last friday night? but in the text it is with what happened after we had wished each other good night. Did you go to bed?. It sounds like a cop trying to get any sort of evidence from the mouth of a criminal. These similarities with the investigation world depicted in this novel will soon become a literary genre which was going to found fame a few decades later.

Find the threads between the prefaces : -plot/characters (walter scott) -literary representations of scientific breakthroughs (= avances, dcouvertes) (Frankestein) (dr.jekil and Mr Hide) -detective novel (edgar poe) -imperial colonialism (dracula) -multiple narrators (dracula)