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Literature: Detective Fiction in Society and Culture
Course details
Course code
Q00018325Course date
Number of classes
3 sessionsTimetable
Branch
BerkhamstedTutor
Guest SpeakerFee range
How you'll learn
Venue
Friends Meeting House (Berkhamsted)289 High Street
Berkhamsted
HP4 1AJ
Level of study
Entry Levels 1,2,3: If you have never studied this subject before and you鈥檙e not confident in your skills, Entry levels are a good starting point.
Level 1: Covers basic skills and knowledge needed for this subject
Level 2: Building on basic knowledge or experience. Similar to Grade 4/ C at GCSE or O level in England or Standards in Scotland.
Level 3: Learn about the topic in-depth and have a broad range of skills. Independent working Equivalent to an A level in England or Higher in Scotland.
Beginners: A perfect introduction if you have no experience and skills in this subject.
Improvers: The next step if you have basic skills or knowledge but want to progress them further.
Advanced: Build on the solid experience and skills you have in this subject, applying your skills and knowledge in a more complex way.
Course overview
Course description
Course description.
In these lectures Stephen Wilkinson will introduce students to the history of the detective genre and discuss its relationship to the development of capitalism, urbanisation and consumerist commodity culture. Students will be encouraged to read detective fiction as a prism through which societies, their anxieties and underlying psycho-political natures can be understood. Using the examples from the UK, US and Cuba students will gain an insight into the ways in which popular literature gives shape and form to our lives. In the first lecture, Stephen will discuss the origins and characteristics of the detective novel and how it developed from the mid-late 19th Century through to the 20th Century. This will be followed by a discussion of the ways in which the detective fiction changed as western societies became more complex, violent and urbanised through the 20th Century. Particular attention will be paid to the use of detective fiction as a propaganda vehicle in Socialist societies. The course will end with an overview of the way in which the detective novel developed and was transformed in Cuba.
Texts to be referenced include:
Edgar Allen Poe, The Murders in the Rue Morgue
Arthur Conan Doyle, The Hound of the Baskervilles
Wilkie Collins, The Moonstone
Dashiell Hammett, Red Harvest
Agatha Christie, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd
Umberto Eco, The Name of the Rose
Leonardo Padura, Havana Blue
Note: You do not need to have read all these texts. Stephen will post readings nearer to the start of the course.
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What financial support is available?
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We don't want anything to stand in your way when it comes to bringing Adult learning within reach so if you need anything to support you to achieve your goals then speak to one of our education experts during your enrolment journey. Most of our courses are government funded but if you don't qualify or need alternative financial help to access them then let us know.
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What other support is available?
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All of our digital content, teaching and learning activities and assessments are designed to be accessible so if you need any additional support you can discuss this with the education experts during your enrolment journey and we will do all we can to make sure you have optimal access.
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