| C. Auguste Dupin | |
|---|---|
 Auguste Dupin in "The Purloined Letter" | |
|
Real Name |
C. Auguste Dupin |
|
First Appearance |
The Murders in the Rue Morgue (1841) |
|
Original Publisher |
Graham's Magazine |
|
Created by |
Edgar Allan Poe |
Background
Dupin meets Kid Eternity in Hit Comics #42.
Le Chevalier C. Auguste Dupin is a detective created by Edgar Allan Poe. Dupin made his first appearance in Poe's "The Murders in the Rue Morgue" (1841), widely considered the first detective fiction story even though Poe created the Dupin character before the word detective had been coined.
Dupin is not a professional detective and his motivations for solving the mysteries throughout the three stories change. Using what Poe termed "ratiocination", Dupin combines his considerable intellect with creative imagination, even putting himself in the mind of the criminal. His talents are strong enough that he appears able to read the mind of his companion, the unnamed narrator of all three stories.
Public Domain Appearances
Literature:
- The Murders in the Rue Morgue (1841)
- The Mystery of Marie Rogêt (1842)
- The Purloined Letter (1844)
Comics:
- Hit Comics #42
Notes
- The character laid the groundwork for fictitious detectives to come, including Sherlock Holmes and Hercule Poirot, and established most of the common elements of the detective fiction genre.
- In the first Sherlock Holmes story, A Study in Scarlet (1887), Dr. Watson compares Holmes to Dupin, to which Holmes replies: "No doubt you think you are complimenting me ... In my opinion, Dupin was a very inferior fellow... He had some analytical genius, no doubt; but he was by no means such a phenomenon as Poe appears to imagine".
- Batman and Alfred nicknamed the Batcomputer Dupin in homage to the literary character.