Author P.D. James declared in an interview for Paris Review that “I had an interest in death from an early age.  It fascinated me.  When I read, ‘Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall,’ I thought, ‘Did he fall or was he pushed?’”  This course explores classic tales written by American and English writers about those who pushed and were pushed.  In so doing, the course focuses on the ways in which detective fiction both reflects and challenges cultural values, including views of race, gender, class, ethnicity, and age.  As noted by writer Amanda Cross, “formula fiction,” which includes the detective novel, has “with astonishing success challenged the oldest formulas of all,” such as those focused on gender roles and patriarchal traditions.  “Detective Fiction and Cultural Values” begins with Edgar Allan Poe, widely credited with establishing the genre of detective fiction, and concludes with Mark Haddon, who expanded its parameters with his compelling portrayal of an autistic, 15-year-old sleuth.