Mystery Genre Vocabulary

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Archetype

Back

A character type that represents a universal pattern in storytelling.

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Inference

Back

Making an educated guess based on details from the text to make a prediction or hypothesis.

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Suspect

Back

The person police or detective think may have committed the crime initially.

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Motive

Back

A reason the person committed the crime -- usually something like revenge, hatred, prejudice, etc.

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Pace

Back

The tempo where the audience knows more than the characters involved.

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Theme

Back

The central idea or message in a story.

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Motif

Back

A recurring element that has symbolic significance in a story.

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Symbolism

Back

The use of symbols to represent ideas or qualities.

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Clue

Back

A piece of evidence or information used in solving a mystery.

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Red Herring

Back

A misleading clue or distraction that diverts attention from the real issue.