Marlowe Exposed In Raymond Chandler's The Big Sleep

Raymond Chandler’s well known detective, Philip Marlowe, is classically synonymous with the subgenre of hard-boiled fiction. Marlowe is an independent private investigator hired to “snoop” for wealthy clients such as the Sternwood family in The Big Sleep. Chandler explores more of the psychological side of mystery, often leaving the active details out, to let the reader in as Marlowe walks through a case he is presented. In The Big Sleep, General Sternwood hires Marlowe to settle gambling debts accrued by his daughter, Carmen, but the General’s older daughter, Vivian, suspects her father truly hired Marlowe to find Sean “Rusty” Reagan, an ex-bootlegger the General took under his wing, after he mysteriously disappeared a month before the novel

The Big Sleep captures the elaborate essence of hard-boiled fiction, featuring graphic violence, “slangy dialogue”, and intimate references throughout the book. These intimate references are quite prevalent from the start of the novel, including Sternwood’s daughter Vivian’s first encounter with Mr. Marlowe. “She was stretched out on a modernistic chaise-lounge with her slippers off, so I stared at her legs in the sheerest silk stockings. They seemed to be arranged to stare at” (Chandler ch. 3). Although Marlowe goes into detail about how Mrs. Reagan seems to present herself, he maintains his cold presence in his responses to her approaches. Marlowe continues to present himself as a hard-boiled detective by simply answering any questions she has about his being there. His clever avoidance reveals one of his inspirations to solve these outlandish crimes. Throughout the novel, Marlowe successfully looks at the Sternwood case from multiple angles and perspectives, while being approached by multiple women, including both Sternwood

Marlowe is a memorable character, and he is often paired with a drink that can be seen as his “crutch”, just as James Bond is known for his high-tech gadgets. “I was wearing my powder-blue suit, with dark blue shirt, tie and display handkerchief, black brogues, black wool socks with dark blue clocks on them. I was neat, clean, shaved and sober, and I didn’t care who knew it. I was everything the well-dressed private detective ought to be” (Chandler ch. 1). Chandler opens the novel with Marlowe confidently describing his appearance, and this begins the adventure in the reader’s mind with a confident, slightly arrogant private detective beginning a new case. Marlowe continues to describe himself throughout the novel, never letting the reader forget his dominating presence. As Marlowe works through the case, he is presented with multiple mysteries intertwined, with multiple characters making their presence known. As stated before, the novel ends with the discovery of Carmen Sternwood murdering her sister’s husband, Rusty. Carmen successfully embodies an outstanding opponent because as she ingratiates herself in his case, she veers the attention away from her crime. Her clever tactic was not enough to stump Marlowe for good, but it was enough to lead him away on multiple occasions throughout the story. Although the