Writing Techniques In The Westing Game By Ellen Raskin

A bomber. Deception. Secrets. The Westing Game had these and more. Sixteen strangers living in an apartment, all under the impression they are the neighbor of a murderer. This is the suspense Samuel Westing created with his game. The Westing Game, as it was referred to, was a method to find an heir to his money and estate. While is was and unorthodox method, it was very efficient in the end. In the novel The Westing Game, written by Ellen Raskin, the mystery elements that were used were: main conflict, setting, characterization, and the author’s technique of giving clues. As the reader followed the plot, the main conflict was person versus person, Turtle against Sam Westing and his game. While it didn’t seem like this, it came to be in the end. The

In reality, the book has three different endings. The first ending is Turtle arriving at Eastman’s home and winning the game (173). The next ending is placed about five years after the Westing Game, when everyone is maturing and starting to act like an adult (173-177). The third, and final, ending takes place when Westing, under the alias of Eastman, is about to die in front of T.R. Wexler (179-182). It seemed very fitting to include this, seeing as the game was wrapped around his "death," and this would be when T.R. Wexler would finally receive the inheritance. Raskin used this to show nothing just ends, and this also tied in to the last chapter being titled “The End?” which was a question, rather than a statement like the other chapters (179). Raskin also used red herrings to manipulate the minds of both the heirs and her readers. By slightly implying that Westing was murdered, it put all of the heirs into a slight state of paranoia and fright (29). The added suspense from this implication kept the readers involved and engaged. Using various writing techniques, Ellen Raskin kept readers guessing, engaged, and interested in the