Why Authors Combine Crime with Cities

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Essay London is the capital of England and is one of the most famous cities in the world. This is no different in literature but why exactly do people tell stories about London? The defining features of London, as well as novels such as the ‘Blitzed’ and ‘Sherlock Holmes’, short stories written by Tim and Sam and the BBC’s article on the people’s war all lead to three main reasons to why people tell stories about London. The main reasons that people tell stories about London is because London is always changing, the mood of the story often matches the city and London is full of culture and history. The first reason to why people tell stories about London is because it is always changing. This change is brought about in a number of reasons in different literatures. An example of change in London is one of the defining features in the people. As people grow old, their perspective changes and new generations bring new ideas to the city. There are various examples of this in ‘Blitzed’ where the main character is caught in a time slip and he goes back in time to World War 2 London. During his adventures back in 1942 he realises how the English language has changed from World War 2 times to the american slang english that he is used to in the 21st century. That is why stories are told in London which show the change in the people and their language over time. Another example of how London is always changing is in the weather. The cold and bad weather can change into sunny weather to personify the changes in the mood of the story or the characters. An example of this from Sherlock Holmes is “The streaming umbrella which he held in his hand, and his long shiny waterproof jacket told of the fierce weather of which he had come”. This quote could also personify the hard times in which he had come. This describes how the change in weather can affect the mood of the
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