In the mystery genre one can agree that for a mystery to work the way it does, it must contain elements such as a case that needs to be solved, a detective, or someone playing the role of detective and, in most cases, murder. But in the story “A Scandal in Bohemia”, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, a social scandal is part of the theme, which is also seen in “Witness for the Prosecution”, by Agatha Christie and “Amber Gate”, by Walter Mosley. Just as a murder or crime disrupts an aspect of society, a social scandal works the same way. Normally, what we consider “private life” and “public life” are kept separate because private life operates as a “fantasy” of the two worlds creating the image of a “normal life”, which consists of a good and happy life. husband and wife, the ability to be financially stable, social well-being and in some cases even a child. On the other hand, public life is made up of the poor, considered liars and cheaters, criminals, murderers and atrocious women. Private life works predominantly in favor of the man, especially the white male, and when the public, or the characteristics of the public, alter the established private life, then his happiness ceases and the private fantasy is disrupted or destroyed. Specifically, the marginalized threaten to unmask the social hierarchy by disrupting the private domestic imagination by unmasking its instability. Provided that the fantasy surrounding private life works mostly in a man's favor, we see that this happens because the man is “in charge” of that fantasy. Consequently, he is influenced primarily by the alternations of that fantasy. For example, in “A Scandal in Bohemia,” Watson, our narrator says, “My complete happiness, … middle of paper … enters the realm of social scandals. In summary, social scandals are important to the mystery genre because in order for a detective to be called into a private setting, that setting must be threatened or disrupted in some sense, and social scandals serve as disruption. While privacy operates predominantly against men and particularly white males, we can also analyze how they operate across categories or themes such as race, class, and gender. This ultimately allows the mystery genre to challenge misconceptions by writing under the theme of social scandal. Works Cited Doyle, Arthur C. "Scandal in Bohemia." The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. 1892. Project Gutenberg. PDF.Christie, Agatha. "Witness for the prosecution". The Hound of Death and Other Stories. October 1933. PDF file.Mosley, Walter. "Amber Gate." Six easy pieces. September 2003. PDF file.