Patricia Highsmith is considered the undisputed master of the psychological thriller and has shaped the genre like no other author. Born in Texas on January 19, 1921 and died in Switzerland on February 4, 1995, she left behind a body of work that dissects the dark abysses of the human soul with a cool precision that sends shivers down your spine as you read. With this Patricia Highsmith quiz , we commemorate her work, which captivates less through classic police work than through the moral amorality of its protagonists.
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If you study her work, you will inevitably come across a very specific term for her style of storytelling. Do you know what the psychological style of Patricia Highsmith’s crime novels is often called? It is a form of deadly suspense that is not based on shock effects, but on the agonizing uncertainty and creeping unease that grips you as a reader from the very first page. Surely you know the right word and the correct answer in our Patricia Highsmith quiz .
A look at her work will lead you straight to her unforgettable characters, who often teeter on the edge of madness or total social isolation. Think carefully about the literary character created by the American writer , who became the epitome of the charming but deadly con artist worldwide. This character appears in an entire series of books and challenges your sense of moral compass. Do you have the name at hand?
The cinematic power of her material was recognized early on by the big names in the industry, resulting in one of the most important classics in cinema history. Can you name who directed the 1951 film adaptation of “Strangers on a Train” based on Patricia Highsmith? The director himself is a master of suspense and perfected the visual expression of the anxiety that Highsmith put on paper.
In Highsmith’s world, motives are rarely of a purely material nature, as the inner torments of the characters weigh much more heavily. What emotion dominates many of the characters in Patricia Highsmith’s novels and often drives them to their rash or cruel deeds? It’s an emotion that everyone knows, but in her case it unleashes a destructive force and blurs the boundaries between victim and perpetrator. With the right answer in the Patricia Highsmith quiz , you show that you have really penetrated the psychological depth of her murderous stories.
Take the Patricia Highsmith quiz now and find out if you are a true connoisseur of her dark worlds!
04. February 26, 10:00 – Isabell Slisz
