本文將從不同時期文學作品中的「主婦偵探」（housewife detective）形象，來討論女性主義運動的發展。首先將簡述並回顧女性主義之流變，接著討論三部文學作品中的主婦偵探如何和女性主義運動產生呼應。主婦偵探雖屬於女性偵探，卻不是傳統上以偵探工作為主要職務、或至少視之為專業的女性角色。主婦偵探仍是一名家庭主婦，但卻知道如何以自身的女性知識，去觀察家庭內、乃至郊區生活中隱藏的各式符碼，進而化身為隱性的女性偵探，跳脫男性偵探小說的敘事傳統。格拉斯拜（S. Glaspell）為了回應第一波女性主義而創作的舞台劇《芝麻小事》（Trifles），可說是「主婦偵探」的早期代表作品。接下來，雷文（I. Levin）的小說《超完美嬌妻》（The Stepford Wives），則延續了主婦做為隱性女性偵探的敘事模式，並於同時反映了第二波女性主義興起時，女性主義者自覺的處境與可能做出的各種反抗。值得一提的是，在都會女性文學（chick flick）興起的當下，韋納（J. Weiner）雖同樣以主婦偵探為主角，寫出《晚安，無名小卒》（Goodnight, Nobody）一書，卻帶出女性處於消費社會中對外在打扮的焦慮與自我反射，暗示九○年代以後，後女性主義的崛起與女性形象的轉變。

This article reflects on the development of the feminist movement through analyzing the changing images of the “housewife detective” in literary works. The current article first reviews the feminist movement before discussing how the “housewife detectives” in literary works respond to its development. The “housewife detective” differs from the ordinary “female detective,” who treats detective work as her main occupation or profession. The housewife detective is still, broadly speaking, a “housewife,” but she knows how to read the hidden signs within her house, or the community she lives in, with her female knowledge and her unique life experience, to further become a detective figure. The housewife detective cannot be, therefore, defined by the narrative traditions of male detective fiction. American playwright Susan Glaspell’s Trifles, which responds to the first-wave feminist movement, can be seen as the early representation of the housewife detective. In 1 , Ira Levin furthers the significance of the housewife detective with his thriller The Stepford Wives, in which he also echoes the manifesto of the second-wave feminist movement and demonstrates how a woman can resist oppression from men with various strategies. Finally, along with the rise of post-feminism and the changing image of the modern woman after the 1 0’s, Jennifer Weiner portrays a housewife detective, who is highly aware of her appearance in the consumerist society, with her bestselling chick flick Goodnight, Nobody.