SCA250

This course investigates the explosion of the Nordic Noir genre--crime novels, television, and film from the Nordic region--on streaming platforms and among booksellers worldwide, since the 1970s. How do these crime fiction authors make political and social critiques so seductive? Is there a magic formula known to crime writers in Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden? Why are so many masterful crime stories set in countries that rank globally as the world's healthiest, wealthiest, and most politically stable? Starting with Sjöwall & Wahlöö's pioneering "Story of a Crime" and concluding with the global economic crisis, we'll scrutinize stories about immigration, neo-Nazism, social class in welfare states, feminism and patriarchy, racism, neoliberalism, and global capitalism. The course culminates in a creative final project: crafting a crime series. Also counts for the Comparative Literature minor. HUMN, Spring semester, Even years.

Humanities (HUMAN), Humanities (HUMN)

Even Years