The Long Goodbye

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The Long Goodbye: Characteristics of Hardboiled Detective Fiction
Dante lists nine characteristics of true crime noir fiction. A majority if not all of these features are present in the 1953 novel by Raymond Chandler. The first one is “social realism (Dante 24) rooted in the 1950s, post Second World War setting of the novel. Chandler describes with great detail the suburbs, the clubs, and streets of Vegas and Hollywood. “And the Rolls ticked down the entrance driveway onto Sunset Boulevard” (Chandler n.p.). Most of the characters live in affluent neighborhoods. The suburbia and most of the locations such as Victor’s are tailored for the rich. We can identify the social realism by the houses and places the people frequent it. The reader learns that most of the characters are affluent or in one way or another attached to the upper class. The upper-class members of the society are portrayed as individuals who use crude ways to maintain their standards.
Secondly, there is the collapse of moral and ideological values (Dante 24); in the novel, money is regarded very highly. Values such as honor and honesty are dead. Dr. Vet-ringer smiled quietly. “You think you will stop payment, Mr. Wade. But you won’t. I assure you that you won’t. “You fat crook!” Wade yelled at him.” The quoted text, a conversation between Dr. Vetringer and Wade shows the former forcing payment on Wade without caring for how Wade will procure the money. Money,…