The Price of Desire

The Maltese Falcon

The novel contrasts the immense value characters assign to the falcon with the violence, failed bargains, and private sacrifices that pursuit demands.

increasing

Bearing strength in each event

decreasing

Five Thousand Dollars Five Thousand Dollars from "The Maltese Falcon". Five Thousand Dollars Value stated in cash Joel Cairo offers five thousand dollars for the black bird, a sum large enough to persuade Spade to consider the…

Five Thousand Dollars from "The Maltese Falcon". Five Thousand Dollars Value stated in cash Joel Cairo offers five thousand dollars for the black bird, a sum large enough to persuade Spade to consider the…

Five Thousand Dollars Value stated in cash Joel Cairo offers five thousand dollars for the black bird, a sum large enough to persuade Spade to consider the job. An unverified price The offer establishes a market before anyone can establish the object’s authenticity. Money gives the pursuit urgency while leaving its real value unknown.

A Promise of Millions A Promise of Millions from "The Maltese Falcon". A Promise of Millions Wealth imagined Gutman speaks of a possible half-million-dollar share and claims the bird might realize a far higher price.

A Promise of Millions from "The Maltese Falcon". A Promise of Millions Wealth imagined Gutman speaks of a possible half-million-dollar share and claims the bird might realize a far higher price.

A Promise of Millions Wealth imagined Gutman speaks of a possible half-million-dollar share and claims the bird might realize a far higher price. Desire inflated The scale of the promised fortune makes risk seem rational to the people gathered around Spade. Gutman’s estimates remain promises, not verified evidence.

Bodies Before Payment Bodies Before Payment from "The Maltese Falcon". Bodies Before Payment Human costs accumulate Archer, Thursby, and Jacobi die as the contest over the falcon expands from a private theft to an armed pursuit.

Bodies Before Payment from "The Maltese Falcon". Bodies Before Payment Human costs accumulate Archer, Thursby, and Jacobi die as the contest over the falcon expands from a private theft to an armed pursuit.

Bodies Before Payment Human costs accumulate Archer, Thursby, and Jacobi die as the contest over the falcon expands from a private theft to an armed pursuit. Value measured in lives The supposed treasure commands real sacrifice before anyone can verify that it exists in the claimed form. Its price is therefore not only financial.

A Smaller Settlement A Smaller Settlement from "The Maltese Falcon". A Smaller Settlement Money retained After the bird proves false, Spade returns most of Gutman’s payment but keeps one thousand dollars for his work.

A Smaller Settlement from "The Maltese Falcon". A Smaller Settlement Money retained After the bird proves false, Spade returns most of Gutman’s payment but keeps one thousand dollars for his work.

A Smaller Settlement Money retained After the bird proves false, Spade returns most of Gutman’s payment but keeps one thousand dollars for his work. Labor distinguished from treasure The payment is modest beside the fortune promised, but it gives Spade a concrete measure of what his time was worth, independent of the failed legend.

The Cost of Brigid The Cost of Brigid from "The Maltese Falcon". The Cost of Brigid Desire weighed against duty Spade admits that he may love Brigid but lists the reasons he cannot let her escape, including the danger to…

The Cost of Brigid from "The Maltese Falcon". The Cost of Brigid Desire weighed against duty Spade admits that he may love Brigid but lists the reasons he cannot let her escape, including the danger to…

The Cost of Brigid Desire weighed against duty Spade admits that he may love Brigid but lists the reasons he cannot let her escape, including the danger to himself and the obligations of his work. A private sacrifice He chooses arrest over intimacy. Unlike the falcon’s promised wealth, this cost is real and cannot be recovered through a better bargain.

The afternoon Cairo visits Spade

Saturday afternoon

As the story of the murders unfolds

The morning after the final negotiation

The final morning