The next man in line to shape the detective world was Sam Spade, or perhaps his creator, Dashiell Hammett. Hammett’s rise to the literary scene was not one of a stereotypical author. Born in a rural county of Maryland, Hammett was moved to and was raised in the city of Baltimore. After a semester of high school, he dropped out to support his family. After years of odd jobs, Hammett became a private detective for the Pinkerton Agency at the age of 21. Here he worked in the theft division, shadowing suspects and recovering stolen goods-both of which occur in The Maltese Falcon. The shadowing of a suspect begins early in the novel when Ms. Wonderly explains her situation and Spade provides this answer, “It’s simply a matter of having a man at the hotel this evening to shadow him away when he leaves, and shadow him until he leads us to your sister” (7). Spade then proceeds to track stolen goods, the Maltese Falcon, throughout the novel. In the end he finally recovers what they had believed to be the bird. He calls the officers and offers up all of his evidence when he proclaims “I’ve got some exhibits- the boy’s guns, one of Cairo’s, a black statuette that all the hell was about, and a thousand dollar bill that I was supposed to be bribed with” (216). In 1918 Hammett joined the US Army but shortly after contracted the Spanish Influenza, which triggered tuberculosis. After attempting to return to work part-time, Hammett suffered a physical breakdown and was hospitalized. He fell in love with his nurse- an act identical to fellow modernist Hemingway’s character- and was married in Washington. With poor health but a family to care for, Hammett turned to writing as a source of income. (Layman)
However, as Hammett wrote The Maltese Falcon, a strange era was cast upon the American people. Since 1920, alcohol had been outlawed and crime rates began a trend upward. (Crime Rate) Crime was now an influential part of Hammett’s life for several years. His works followed suit as he wrote for the pulp magazine, Black Mask. (Layman) Hammett was beginning to shape his career when he published his first novel, Red Harvest. This novel included the crime that permeated the culture. The detective explains the basis of the story; “He told me to come out to his house last night. I did, but he didn't show up. When I got downtown I learned he had been killed” (Hammett, “Red Harvest” 5). With a strong base in detective crime, Hammett found the niche he would write for. However, this novel was missing a key element, Samuel Spade.
However, as Hammett wrote The Maltese Falcon, a strange era was cast upon the American people. Since 1920, alcohol had been outlawed and crime rates began a trend upward. (Crime Rate) Crime was now an influential part of Hammett’s life for several years. His works followed suit as he wrote for the pulp magazine, Black Mask. (Layman) Hammett was beginning to shape his career when he published his first novel, Red Harvest. This novel included the crime that permeated the culture. The detective explains the basis of the story; “He told me to come out to his house last night. I did, but he didn't show up. When I got downtown I learned he had been killed” (Hammett, “Red Harvest” 5). With a strong base in detective crime, Hammett found the niche he would write for. However, this novel was missing a key element, Samuel Spade.
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