Christie Talk
Christie Talk - Book Club - Poirot Stories
Poirot Stories
Poirot is Agatha Christie's most famous and popular detective. No doubt he would agree that he deserves that accolade!
Here is the place to discuss all of his stories in detail with other fans. The most insightful comments will be added to the Stories pages. But remember to beware spoilers!
If you can't find your favourite Poirot story here, don't worry - we'll be adding them all soon.
Warning: These discussions may contain spoilers!
Previous Cat Among the Pigeons
1 reply
wildechilde76 on 20 Nov 2009 at 12:52 p.m. GMT
Black shows up white, and so Hastings shows up Poirot, n'est-ce pas? Without Hastings' endearing naivete, we would not appreciate the dazzling genius of Poirot. If not for this rather gullible partner-in-crime, we would probably have to read through copious, mind-numbing paragraphs of passport-type descriptions and stereotypical characterisation, which Christie avoids beautifully. Instead, everything Poirot is and thinks comes through with ease in his conversations with Hastings. The asides and insights he shares with his companion divulge his humanity and subtlety of character, and aren't near as patronising as they would be if Poirot was possessed of a mean spirit. Instead, like a man who is conscious of his superior intellect, without undue pride or rudeness, Poirot treats his friend gently, humorously. If anything it is Hastings who is often shown to bear grudges and repeatedly doubts Poirot's little grey cells (oh, ye of little faith). After all, how many times must a man prove he trully is the greatest detective in the world?!
And yet it is this trait, perhaps, that differentiates the partnership most strongly from that of Holmes and Watson. For where Watson is an obedient, admiring servant, Hastings is given a more independent constitution, which allows Christie to disclose and conceal, clarify and baffle at leisure. In this, Hastings becomes a representative of the common man, who rarely follows blindly where he is led, but instead deliberates, hesitates, doubts and falls prey to human weakness (ah, those auburn locks). Indeed, in this respect Hastings faithfully mirrors us, the readers, who, if dropped between the pages of a book, would surely behave in the same fashion. That is, of course, unless we had the mind of Poirot!
Total visitors online: 50
Newest members: johndanmoon, AndSch77, victoriasymonds, janetyork, lakedweller, koukis
This is Agatha Christie’s first book and also the first Poirot novel. Christie was drawing on her own experiences working in a dispensary during the first world war where she gained experience of working with poisons and seems to have presented a convincing tale here. Many members of the family involved are not particularly endearing. However, did she play fair with readers with Poirot's treatment of John Cavendish? As Hastings says 'the colossal cheek of the little man!'.
A charge that has been laid at her door is that she just copied the Holmes/Watson partnership but is this a fair accusation? It’s true that the best detectives need lesser beings to point up their finer points but is this being a bit unfair to Hastings? As the narrator should he be pushing his talents rather more to the fore?
Could anyone have an inkling from this first offering of what was to come through the following decades?