Tehran – “The Thin Man” by American author Samuel Dashiell Hammett has been published in Persian by Tehran by its current publication.
Ahmad Miralai is the translator of the book, first released in 1933.
“The Thin Man” is a classic detective novel. Its popularity led to a successful film series featuring iconic characters Nick and Nora Charles, where Hammett himself was hired to write the scripts for the first two films.
During the 1932 Christmas season in New York City, amid the decline of the ban, the novel introduces readers to retired private detective Nick Charles and his charming wife Nora. Nick, who is now Greek, spends a lot of time managing his father-in-law’s business in San Francisco, often indulging in heavy drinking. Their peaceful life becomes confused when Nick visits Speakeasy in New York and meets Dorothy Winnant, the grown-up daughter of eccentric inventor Clyde Winnant. Dorothy claims she is about to reunite with her elusive father, who she has never seen since her parents’ divorce.
Soon after, the murder shocks the city. Winnant’s secretary and former mistress Julia Wolf was shot dead. The investigation is led by Li, a suspected John Guild who has Julia’s new girlfriend, Gang Shep Morelli. Morelli is eager to clear his name, but breaks into Nick’s hotel room to protest Nick’s innocence, but thanks to Nick’s quick thinking, he is quickly restrained by the police. Nick is reluctant to be recognized from past incidents, but ultimately he is drawn into the investigation. In particular, his old military friend, Winnant’s lawyer Herbert McAuley, asks to help him find the missing inventor who is rumoured to be working on a groundbreaking invention in secret.
As the story unfolds, Nick digs deeper into the lives of the characters involved, visiting Speak Agee and questioning suspects like former robber and police informant Arthur Nunheim. The plot thickens when it turns out that Nunheim was murdered with the same gun used to kill Julia Wolf. New suspects appear, including Christian Jorgenson. It was later revealed that Christian Jorgenson was Victor Rosewater, former Vendetta associate against him. Meanwhile, Winnant’s ex-wife, Mimi Jorgenson, arrives from overseas in search of more money, and his son Gilbert has produced letters from Winnant, hinting at financial transactions.
The climax reveals that Winnant’s body is hidden under a cement floor, disguised as it appears as the body of a thin man. Nick speculates that Clyde Winnant was murdered by Herbert Macaulay. He was fraudulent and was responsible for multiple murders, including Julia Wolf and Nunheim. When Mimi realizes that she is being fooled and that Macaulay is adjusting the crime, Nick intervenes, knocks him out and hands him over to the police.
Each of the novel’s characters adds depth to this complicated story. Although the story was initially thought of as a more serious San Francisco-based story, Hammett moved to a comedy New York setting, introducing wealthy amateur detectives and changing the tone of the novel.
The social context of “The Thinman” is important. Its opening line evokes the injustice and hypocrisy of the banned era, and evokes speed. Poet W. H. Auden is famous for linking the depiction of novels in corrupt society to political unrest in the late 1930s. Despite its success and cultural influence, Hammett never wrote another novel after “The Thin Man” perhaps because he wanted to pursue health issues and various projects, as pointed out by his contemporary Lillian Hermann.
The success of the novel ranged into Hollywood, with MGM quickly choosing film rights and releasing the film adaptation just a few months after the book’s publication. The film’s popularity led to a series of sequels and a long-running television series, solidifying “The Thin Man” as the basis for American detective novels. Hammett’s work is still influential, combining keen wit, complex characters and a keen sense of social commentary.
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