Genre-specific naming strategies in crime fiction

Abstract

Among the many factors that influence literary naming, genre tradition plays a prominent role. This analysis focuses exclusively on personal names and is based on the three basic roles in crime fiction: the perpetrator, the detective, and the victim. Although the main focus is on mystery stories, other subgenres are also referred to. Drawing on genre theory, narratology, and hermeneutics, the paper uses selected examples to highlight the consequences of naming silences, name distortion, delays, misdirection, and surprising reversals, while reflecting on the functional diversity of literary naming.