Conversational Narration

"The Master Key."

"The Master Key" remains a five-sided conversation with two men recounting events on Cain while three listen and comment. There is no transition to a multi-page first person narrative, therefore no need for the reverse transition back to dialogue. At the end, van Rijn, Poirot-like, solves the case, deploying several malapropisms:

"'A man with a superiority complexion...'" (p. 323);

"'Recapitalize.'" (ibid.)

"'In puncture of fact...'" (ibid.)

"'I make no blasfuming...'" (ibid.)

As blog correspondent, David Birr, once argued in the combox, van Rijn proves his mastery of languages when necessary, which demonstrates that his Manglic (mangled Anglic) is an act, to make opponents underestimate him.

We approach the end of a rereading of "The Master Key." However, the story concludes with an anthropological observation requiring further discussion.