The Campus Murders
Encyclopedia
The Campus Murders is a 1969
paperback
novel by Gil Brewer (1922 - 1983) published under the name Ellery Queen
. It is the first of three novels to feature "troubleshooter" Mike McCall, a U.S. governor
's special assistant.
In The Campus Murders, McCall is sent to Tisquanto State College to investigate the disappearance of a female student. Rather than for its largely predictable plot, the novel is remarkable for its depiction of late 1960s student life. McCall, who is in his early thirties, is confronted with radical, violent, long-haired, dirty, drug-taking, and promiscuous students on the one hand and traditional faculty on the other who are unable to understand what is going on on campus
and who do not know how to react adequately to the demands voiced by hippie
s and yippies
.
s, who is stabbed after his life-size effigy
has been burned on a stake specially erected by a group of students. The second victim is a female student whose body is found dangling from a rope in the campus bell tower. The missing student is found near a river, severely beaten up and in a coma
. In the end it turns out that one of the rebellious students is the killer. However, the murders are nothing to do with radical student politics: In a drug-induced frenzy, the killer has murdered the people who stood in his way to personal success or who were threatening to expose his criminal schemes.
1969 in literature
The year 1969 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:* The first Booker Prize is awarded.* "Penelope Ashe", author of the bestselling novel Naked Came the Stranger, is found to be several people who each took a turn writing a chapter of what they described as "junk" in...
paperback
Paperback
Paperback, softback or softcover describe and refer to a book by the nature of its binding. The covers of such books are usually made of paper or paperboard, and are usually held together with glue rather than stitches or staples...
novel by Gil Brewer (1922 - 1983) published under the name Ellery Queen
Ellery Queen
Ellery Queen is both a fictional character and a pseudonym used by two American cousins from Brooklyn, New York: Daniel Nathan, alias Frederic Dannay and Manford Lepofsky, alias Manfred Bennington Lee , to write, edit, and anthologize detective fiction.The fictional Ellery Queen created by...
. It is the first of three novels to feature "troubleshooter" Mike McCall, a U.S. governor
Governor (United States)
In the United States, the title governor refers to the chief executive of each state or insular territory, not directly subordinate to the federal authorities, but the political and ceremonial head of the state.-Role and powers:...
's special assistant.
In The Campus Murders, McCall is sent to Tisquanto State College to investigate the disappearance of a female student. Rather than for its largely predictable plot, the novel is remarkable for its depiction of late 1960s student life. McCall, who is in his early thirties, is confronted with radical, violent, long-haired, dirty, drug-taking, and promiscuous students on the one hand and traditional faculty on the other who are unable to understand what is going on on campus
Campus
A campus is traditionally the land on which a college or university and related institutional buildings are situated. Usually a campus includes libraries, lecture halls, residence halls and park-like settings...
and who do not know how to react adequately to the demands voiced by hippie
Hippie
The hippie subculture was originally a youth movement that arose in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to other countries around the world. The etymology of the term 'hippie' is from hipster, and was initially used to describe beatniks who had moved into San Francisco's...
s and yippies
Youth International Party
The Youth International Party, whose members were commonly called Yippies, was a radically youth-oriented and countercultural revolutionary offshoot of the free speech and anti-war movements of the 1960s. It was founded on Dec. 31, 1967...
.
Plot summary
Against the background of a student rebellion, two murders are committed on the Tisquanto State College campus. The first victim is one of the conservative deanDean (education)
In academic administration, a dean is a person with significant authority over a specific academic unit, or over a specific area of concern, or both...
s, who is stabbed after his life-size effigy
Effigy
An effigy is a representation of a person, especially in the form of sculpture or some other three-dimensional form.The term is usually associated with full-length figures of a deceased person depicted in stone or wood on church monuments. These most often lie supine with hands together in prayer,...
has been burned on a stake specially erected by a group of students. The second victim is a female student whose body is found dangling from a rope in the campus bell tower. The missing student is found near a river, severely beaten up and in a coma
Coma
In medicine, a coma is a state of unconsciousness, lasting more than 6 hours in which a person cannot be awakened, fails to respond normally to painful stimuli, light or sound, lacks a normal sleep-wake cycle and does not initiate voluntary actions. A person in a state of coma is described as...
. In the end it turns out that one of the rebellious students is the killer. However, the murders are nothing to do with radical student politics: In a drug-induced frenzy, the killer has murdered the people who stood in his way to personal success or who were threatening to expose his criminal schemes.
Read on
- Hillary WaughHillary WaughHillary Baldwin Waugh was a pioneering American mystery novelist. In 1989, Waugh was named a Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America.-Career:...
's Last Seen Wearing …Last Seen Wearing ... (Hillary Waugh novel)Last Seen Wearing ... is a U.S. detective novel by Hillary Waugh frequently referred to as the police procedural par excellence...
also revolves around a female college student who goes missing. - Malcolm BradburyMalcolm BradburySir Malcolm Stanley Bradbury CBE was an English author and academic.-Life:Bradbury was the son of a railwayman. His family moved to London in 1935, but returned to Sheffield in 1941 with his brother and mother...
's The History ManThe History ManThe History Man is a campus novel by the British author Malcolm Bradbury set in 1972 in the fictional seaside town of Watermouth in the South of England. Watermouth bears some resemblance to Brighton. For example, there is a frequent and fast train service to London.-Plot introduction:Howard Kirk...
is about the goings-on at a "progressive" university in the South of England. - Todd GitlinTodd GitlinTodd Gitlin is an American sociologist, political writer, novelist, and cultural commentator. He has written widely on the mass media, politics, intellectual life and the arts, for both popular and scholarly publications.-New Left activist:...
's The Sixties. Years of Hope, Days of Rage (1987) is a first-hand account by a professorProfessorA professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
of sociologySociologySociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...
at the University of California, BerkeleyUniversity of California, BerkeleyThe University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
. - See also the list of plays and novels at School and university in literatureSchool and university in literature-School in literature:*Thomas Bailey Aldrich: The Story of a Bad Boy*Laurie Halse Anderson: Speak*Christine Anlauff: Good morning, Lehnitz*F...
.