"One Hour", by Dashiell Hammet, Reflection Summary
“One Hour”, By Dashiell Hammett, is a short story about the relationship between police corruption and white-collar crime, set in a gritty, almost modern western tale. At the surface, the story gives the impression to be about a detective who is running around and trying to figure out who committed vehicular manslaughter and grand theft auto, but in actuality the narrative is about the conspiracy to produce counterfeit money by a bunch of weird and seedy people who are all interlinked in some capacity. It all starts out by introducing The Detective, the protagonist and a person who is trying to see who ran over John Newhouse with the car of Mr. Chrostwaite, a drunk who could care less about the situation. Like all good police noir stories though, there is a person in the background, calling the shots and creating a web of lies; and when someone uncovers the truth, they get neutralized to protect cash assets. This narrative sets up the path for someone to bring down the underground criminal establishment and bring justice to the people most vulnerable to them.
The Characters in
this story are written in a way that it feels like an old western set in modern
times. There are no horses, or standoffs, but the dialogue feels like at any point,
someone is going to get active is some capacity or another. For example, in the
opening scenes where the lawyer, Vance Richmond, is explaining the incident that
took place to the detective, the detective is hyper fixated on Mr. Chrostwaite’s
appearance and body shape. Like, if me moves in a way that the detective doesn’t
like, the detective is going to put his hands on him or something. This is shown
by how Mr. Chrostwaite is described: a drunk, fat, not interested, etc. Of
course this doesn’t happen, but it paints such an awkward interaction that perfectly
shows how the rest of the story is written – attention to detail to the
point it makes character interactions dynamic. Lastly, the detective is never
named; this makes the character feel more real in a sense that in reality, a lot of
crime is solved by people that is unknown to the general public.
I initially did not notice that the detective was not named, at least until I'd read your review last week. I think it is pretty important to have him nameless because it gives the illusion that the reader and the detective are interchangeable beings. The story is told in first person, with the author dropping the details as the narrative progresses- and this could be because it helps the reader feel more like they are also being thrust into the scene. The reader solves the mystery with the detective as it happens, and much like in real life- we forget to pay attention to the little details.
ReplyDeleteI think the comparisons you made to western dramas are a super unique way to look at it because they are weirdly similar in content. The story structure is built in such a familiar way, and you can almost hear the classic western movie whistle sound that happens in standoffs. Thanks for your insight, you're totally right.