.gif)
Nancy Drew is a fictional chracter, the female parallel to Hardy Boys, created by Edward Stratemeyer, founder of the Stratemeyer Syndicate book packaging firm. The charcater first appeared in 1930 as a teenage amateur detective in 1930 and drew an instant hit with the youth. Since then many short stories and novels featuring Nancy Drew has made their appearance.
The characterization of Nancy Drew has evolved considerablty since its first launch in 1930 to suit to the changing tastes and culture of Americans. An etensive revision in 1959 saw the removal of racial steriotypes, and after this revisions, critics allege tht the female protagonists original outspoken character has been toned down to make her more docile, conventional, and demure. A new series, The Nancy Drew Case Files aunched in 1980 make the girl more action oriented, in tune with the changing times.
Nancy Drew has, with the passage pf time become a cultural icon and has had a formative influence on a number of prominent women of the times.