Examination of N. Shpanov and His Traveling Detective : Focusing on the Portrayal of Private Detectives in the Soviet Literature

In contrast to the literature of other countries, private detectives such as Sherlock Holmes were not common in the Soviet literature. Probably, one of the first private detectives who is a Soviet citizen and gained a certain degree of recognition is Kruchinin, in the works of N. Shpanov (1896-1961). In addition, he is accompanied by an assistant named Grachik, a sort of Watson figure. However, Kruchinin first appeared only in 1945, which is very late compared to the appearance of similar characters in the literature of other countries. The reason for the rarity of detective characters in the Soviet literature is explained by the unique nature of their work. Restoring private property can be interpreted as cooperating with the enemies of the working class. From the perspective of the infallibility of the Soviet judiciary and administration, an individual who outwits the court and police and finds the culprit of a crime is not acceptable. Moreover, in the Soviet society, it is inherently difficult to portray the world of crime, since there are no dark spots or the like. These economic, political, and social institutions are the reason for the difficulty in characterizing Soviet citizens as private investigators. Under these circumstances, Shpanov wrote a series of works featuring Kruchinin. Based on the plots of popular police novels in the 1950s (including the resolution of cases by steady, collective investigation), the stories centering Kruchinin were criticized by some literary critics in Soviet Union. In other words, Shpanov was forced to make a story about this private detective in a difficult situation. Therefore, what kind of ingenuity made Kruchinin possible? In this perspective, the setting of the “traveling detective” is particularly noteworthy. At the time of creating this series, Shpanov titled it as “The Adventure of Kruchinin”. As implied by the title, this Soviet detective literally travels abroad. Furthermore, when he celebrates his 60th birthday, he weakens his presence. This paper explores why adventure enables the detective to exist and clarifies the logic for his retirement. Thus, we examine Shpanov\u27s understanding of private detectives in the Soviet literature.[論文