CRIME FICTION IN FILM AND LITERATURE

Course Objectives: Throughout this course, we aim to achieve the following objectives:

• Introduce fundamental concepts and recurring themes within crime fiction.
• Expand your understanding of the history of crime, criminology, and the sociopolitical factors contributing to violence, all within the context of crime fiction.
• Provide insight into how culture reflects and addresses contemporary social, political, economic, and cultural challenges of a given society at a specific point in time.

Course Content: Crime Fiction is an introductory course that delves into the captivating genre with roots dating back to the mid-1800s. From Edgar Allan Poe’s Auguste Dupin to the zenith of popularity achieved by Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Dr. Doruk Tatar Core Program Frida Holmes, this course traces the evolution of crime fiction throughout the 20th century. Hard-boiled detectives of the noir world in the 1930s, the social realism of Scandinavian fiction, tales of espionage during the Cold War, post-modern appropriations of the genre such as The Name of the Rose and The Big Lebowski are some of the examples. We will also explore the currently rising trend of true crime and serial killers on TV and streaming services. Over the semester, we will engage in a critical examination of the role played by social, political, and cultural contexts in the creation of crime fiction narratives.