This research explores the structure of detective genre in Nancy Drew Mystery Stories. This is a descriptive qualitative library research. The main data is the first novel from Nancy Drew Mystery Stories entitled The Secret of the Old Clock. Meanwhile, the supporting data include the related books, journals, articles, online references, and other academic writings books.
The objective of this research is to explain the structure of detective genre which constructs the Nancy Drew Mystery Stories, also to find the characteristic of children’s literature in Nancy Drew Mystery Stories. The researcher used Robert Stanton’s Structuralism theory and structural approach in this research. The theory focuses on the internal characteristic of the short story, examines the elements (theme, plot, setting, character, title, point of view, style and tone, symbolism, and irony) which builds the story and avoids the external elements of the story.
The research comes up with the result that every element of fiction is supporting one another and builds one good realistic detective story. Another result shows that this Nancy Drew Mystery Stories: The Secret of the Old Clock is really aimed for children audience. Therefore it can be categorized as a children’s literature. It is in line with the criteria of Children’s literature brought by Prof. Neli Chamburidze. Every aspect from Prof. Neli Chamburidze’s criteria perfectly suits the story, whether about the plot, the choice of words, development of imagination, adventure, aesthetic values, moralizing the readers and light humor.
It is recommended for other researchers to use other theories to do a research on Nancy Drew. Since there are a lot of stories which can be used, it will eventually add more points of view in researching Nancy Drew. Moreover, the use of other theories and approaches is essential to enrich the type of research in English Department.