Canadian Noir: Consumer Culture, Colonial Nationalism and the Cardinal Series

2020 ◽  
Vol 56 (3) ◽  
pp. 280-294
Author(s):  
Manina Jones
Keyword(s):  
National Identity ◽  
Consumer Culture ◽  
Crime Fiction ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Cultural Authenticity ◽  
Moral Principles ◽  
Crime Dramas ◽  
Police Procedural ◽  
Cultural Dominance ◽  
Past Injustices

Abstract Giles Blunt’s Cardinal police-procedural novels and their recent television adaptations evidence the noir genre’s sombre aesthetic, focus on a morally tainted hero, are preoccupied with seemingly irrational violence, and fixate on unresolved past injustices. In doing so, they reflect Canada’s aesthetic and ethical relationship to questions of national and transnational culture, colonial territoriality, and the moral principles at stake in the representation of violence. This Canadian ‘re-branding’ of noir features is haunted by deep-seated historical dissension and the present-day repercussions that are at the heart of the country’s national identity. Focusing on the first season of Cardinal (2017) and the novel from which it was adapted, Forty Words for Sorrow (2002), this essay examines the series’ stylish – if conflicted – reworking of noir’s roots in American crime fiction and film, and its use of contemporary Nordic influences, which work to salvage a form of Canadian cultural authenticity from the cultural dominance of US television and film crime dramas.

The problem of language identity in Volodymyr Vynnychenko’s novel I want! in contemporary sociocultural context

2020 ◽  
Vol 2019 (2 (11)) ◽  
pp. 211-227
Author(s):  
Ekaterina V. Baydalova ◽  
Keyword(s):  
National Identity ◽  
Russian Literature ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Sociocultural Context ◽  
Main Character ◽  
Life Goal ◽  
Language Identity ◽  
National Question ◽  
In The Beginning ◽  
Ukrainian Society

The novel by Volodymyr Vynnychenko I want! (1915) was, on one hand, his literary answer to the discussion on the national question in Ukrainian society, and, on the other, it was his reaction to the accusations of him being a renegade resulting from his shift towards Russian literature. In 1907-1908, after the publication of his dramas and novels which were impregnated with the idea of “being honest with oneself” (it implied that all thoughts, feelings, and acts were to be in harmony), his works could be more easily published in Russian than in Ukrainian. This situation was taken by his compatriots as a betrayal against his native language and the national cause. In the novel I want! the problem of language identity is directly linked with national identity. In the beginning of the novel the main character, poet Andrey Halepa, despite being ethnic Ukrainian, spoke, thought, and wrote poems in Russian, and consequently his personality was ruined and his actions lacked motivation. It seems that after his unsuccessful suicide attempt and under the influence of a “conscious” Ukrainian, Halepa got in touch with his national identity and developed a life goal (the “revival” of the Ukrainian nation and the building of a free-labour enterprise). However, in the novel, national identity turns out to be incomplete without language identity. Halepa spoke Ukrainian with mistakes, had difficulty choosing suitable words, and discovered with surprise the meaning of some Ukrainian words from his former Russian friends. The open finale emphasises the irony of the discourse around a fast national “revival” without struggle and effort, and which only required someone’s will.

scholarly journals Place matters: geographical context, place belonging and the production of locality in Mediterranean Noirs

GeoJournal ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicola Gabellieri
Keyword(s):  
20Th Century ◽  
Crime Fiction ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Late 20Th Century ◽  
Literary Works ◽  
Geographical Discourse ◽  
Detective Stories ◽  
Narrative Medium ◽  
Geographical Context

AbstractScholars have been investigating detective stories and crime fiction mostly as literary works reflecting the societies that produced them and the movement from modernism to postmodernism. However, these genres have generally been neglected by literary geographers. In the attempt to fill such an epistemological vacuum, this paper examines and compare the function and importance of geography in both classic and late 20th century detective stories. Arthur Conan Doyle’s and Agatha Christie’s detective stories are compared to Mediterranean noir books by Manuel Montalbán, Andrea Camilleri and Jean Claude Izzo. While space is shown to be at the center of the investigations in the former two authors, the latter rather focus on place, that is space invested by the authors with meaning and feelings of identity and belonging. From this perspective, the article argues that detective investigations have become a narrative medium allowing the readership to explore the writer’s representation/construction of his own territorial context, or place-setting, which functions as a co-protagonist of the novel. In conclusion, the paper suggests that the emerging role of place in some of the later popular crime fiction can be interpreted as the result of writer’s sentiment of belonging and, according to Appadurai’s theory, as a literary and geographical discourse aimed at the production of locality.

scholarly journals Immigrants in Finland as a Problem Discussed in Leena Lehtolainen’s Minne Tytöt Kadonneet

2014 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 66-76
Author(s):  
Martyna Kokotkiewicz
Keyword(s):  
Detailed Analysis ◽  
Social Issues ◽  
Crime Fiction ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Main Subject ◽  
Racial Hatred ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Different Cultures

Abstract Leena Lehtolainen belongs to the most appreciated Finnish authors of crime fiction. One of the significant features of her works is that she discusses some most alarming social issues in them. The problem concerning immigration and its different aspects can definitely be considered as an example of such an issue. Since the problem of cultural antagonisms, racial hatred and xenophobia has been widely discussed by many other Scandinavian authors of crime fiction as well, it is worth analyzing how Lehtolainen herself approaches the problem. The aim of this article is to discuss some aspects concerning the problems of immigrant societies in Finland, basing on one of Leena Lehtolainen’s novels, Minne tytöt kadonneet, which main subject could be described as a collision of two completely different cultures and attitudes to the reality. Its aim is not, however, to discuss any formal aspects of the text, since such a kind of detailed analysis cannot be the subject of one article only. That is why the article concentrates on the plot of the novel and its possible relations to some actual problems the Finnish society faces. Taking it all into consideration it may be seen as an introduction to a wider analysis of Leena Lehtolainen’s works.

scholarly journals The Logical Basis of a Literary Text, or What Does Porfiry Petrovich Hide in F. M. Dostoevsky’s “Crime and Punishment”?

2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 239-259
Author(s):  
Valentina E. Vetlovskaya
Keyword(s):  
Literary Text ◽  
Crime Fiction ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Crime And Punishment ◽  
Logical Basis ◽  
The Aesthetic ◽  
The Individual

<p>The article explores the role of logical connections in an epic text. It is these connections, according to the author of the article, that connect the individual components of the narrative (motifs, complexes of motifs) and make up in the reader&rsquo;s perception for the missing elements. The reticence and failures to mention, common in fiction, appear in the narrative for various reasons. Sometimes due to the aesthetic principles of the writer who prefers ambiguity to a completed statement depriving readers of the opportunity to finish thinking over a vague idea. And sometimes, due to the author&rsquo;s conviction that there is no need to explain the idea implied by what has been earlier said. But it also happens that the omissions in the narrative are engendered by the requirements for the presentation of a chosen topic, for example in crime fiction. But these reasons may go together as it occurs in Crime and Punishment. These ideas are illustrated by the analysis of one of the themes of the novel Crime and Punishment.</p>

scholarly journals TRACING THE ARMENIAN DESCENDANTS AND SELF-IDENTITY: AN ANALYSIS OF CAN THESE BONES LIVE?

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 01-10
Author(s):  
Muhammad Nasir
Keyword(s):  
Crime Fiction ◽  
Historical Background ◽  
New Historicism ◽  
Ethnic Cleansing ◽  
Self Awareness ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Literary Critic ◽  
Self Identity

Purpose of the study: The purpose of this study demonstrated how Armenian Massacres as crime fiction developed in response to finding their identity by tracing the ethnic criminal or heritage against their descendants. Besides, by looking at this genocide against the Armenian racial, I found it increasingly difficult to ignore the link between self-identity and the race criminalization conducted by the authority Methodology: In this study, the writer implemented New Historicism theory by looking at the historical background, and combined with Horney Psychoanalysis of Personality, through the activities conducted by the characters. Then, through analyzing the plot and the whole story, the writer found that self-awareness of those characters could be seen in different forms and cultures. Based on those theories that people who know themselves will know what they think, feel, and believe; they will be able to take responsibility for themselves and be able to determine their values by reflecting their personality Main Findings: Self-identity and Armenian descendants could be portrayed significantly, and they were very appropriate with the identity of the characters shown in the texts. Here, the writer also found that a novelist like Tom Frist (2015) used the backdrop of massacres to write about the inner lives of Turkish criminals. He focused directly on the narrative dilemmas posed by American Armenian. His work attempted to uncouple race from crime, and this writer showed us how massacres fiction became a necessary identity form for American Armenian who lived as migration and diaspora. Applications of this study: So, the study of Armenian descendants was not only useful for a literary critic but also presented the history and ethnic cleansing in Turkey. And through this analysis, we learned more about the bitter experiences faced by deportees as shown in the setting places and the author’s perspective. Novelty/Originality of this study: Finally, I believed that tracing the Armenian descendants and self-identity was fascinating by identifying the characters shown in the novel.

The Politics of Memory

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicole Maurantonio
Keyword(s):  
National Identity ◽  
New Media ◽  
Consumer Culture ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Politics Of Memory ◽  
Monuments And Memorials

This chapter considers the definitional and disciplinary politics surrounding the study of memory, exploring the various sites of memory study that have emerged within the field of communication. Specifically, this chapter reviews sites of memory and commemoration, ranging from places such as museums, monuments, and memorials, to textual forms, including journalism and consumer culture. Within each context, this chapter examines the ways in which these sites have interpreted and reinterpreted traumatic pasts bearing great consequence for national identity. It concludes with a discussion of the challenges set forth by new media for scholars engaging in studies of the politics of memory and identifies areas worthy of future research.

THE HERO OF THE NOVEL BY I. MALYSHEV “NOMAKH” AND THE YEGOR LETOV’S POETICS

2021 ◽  
pp. 92-101
Author(s):  
Denis L. Karpov ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Civil War ◽  
Consumer Culture ◽  
Contemporary Literature ◽  
Literary Tradition ◽  
Cultural Discourse ◽  
The Novel ◽  
The West ◽  
Difficult Situation ◽  
Literary Life ◽  
Civil War Era

Contemporary literature is being formed in a difficult situation of polyphony of the modern consumer culture. Mainstream discourses are mixed with subcultural ones, the authors are influenced not only by the literary tradition itself, but also, for example, by rock culture. Thus, the countercultural, subcultural experience, which until recently was considered as peripheral, is actively being introduced into the socio-cultural discourse of modern Russia through the assimilation by authors claiming a place in the center of the country’s literary life. The novel by I. Malyshev “Nomakh” may be considered as an example of such influence. It became a finalist of the literary prize contest “Big Book” in 2017. The novel is clearly influenced by countercultural ideology, in particular by E. Letov, one of the most popular and reputable representatives of the West Siberian counterculture. At the same time, there are no direct references or quotations from the poetry of the Omsk musician in the novel. Rather, one can see some stylistic likenesses, similar figurative complexes. The reception of a historical character from the civil war era is based on the learned principles of poetics and Letov’s worldview. In addition, adopting the intellectual experience of the counterculture, I. Malyshev’s novel not only relays a certain ideology, but also, with the help of artistic means, recreates or completes the images of its hero, historical character, and cultural heroes, which he focuses on.

Architecture, Environment and ‘Scenic Effect’ in May Sinclair’s The Divine Fire

May Sinclair ◽  
2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Terri Mullholland
Keyword(s):  
Consumer Culture ◽  
Rapid Change ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Spiritual Values ◽  
Modern Life ◽  
Architectural Space ◽  
High Esteem ◽  
The One

Published in 1904, The Divine Fire was May Sinclair’s third novel and the one that was to make her name. Ironically, as Suzanne Raitt notes, ‘The novel which made her both famous and relatively wealthy [is] a critique of the bookselling industry in which she was now earning her living’. Sinclair’s novel is, in fact, an astute engagement with the commercialisation of modern life and consumer culture. In this chapter I examine how Sinclair uses carefully staged representations of architectural space in order to highlight the play between illusion and reality, exterior and interior, and the commercial versus the domestic. Throughout The Divine Fire Sinclair wants us to look beneath the surface of her textual realism, to realise that what is seen should not necessarily be believed. Sinclair was writing at a time of rapid change, and in her use of the imagery of modernity – the commodities, the dazzling lights, the decor – Sinclair reveals society’s growing obsession with surface illusion and ‘the new’. But alongside this, Sinclair also reveals an alternative world that holds art, and the spiritual values it represents, in high esteem; a world she hopes can survive the bright lights of commercialisation now dominating modern life.

scholarly journals Who We Are Is What Makes Us Laugh: Humour as Discourse on Identity and Hegemony

2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 113-127 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian Ylagan
Keyword(s):  
National Identity ◽  
Social Organization ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
National Identities ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Literary Canon ◽  
Comic Strips ◽  
The Status ◽  
Popular Representations

There exists a sociocultural function to humour that is geared towards maintaining order through a subversion (or inversion) of the more serious, structured status quo, and while there is a pragmatic side to the dispensation of humour across any given society, humour can also serve a fundamentally ontological function in determining and representing a group’s identity. Though notions of social organization and culture exist and are perpetuated primarily within a group’s literary canon, as espoused for example in the privileging of genres such as the epic or the novel as loci of national identity, this paper argues that such identities can be just as effectively – if not better – constructed through popular representations in humour, especially in satirical content found in “ephemeral” mediums such as comic strips. Such representations in turn can be mobilized to complement or even dismantle the status quo and offer alternative paradigms of understanding national identities and cultural affiliations.

scholarly journals Food and Crime Fiction: Two Complementary Approaches to the Vietnamese Past in Tran-Nhut's Les travers du docteur Porc

2013 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tess Do
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Heritage ◽  
Food Habits ◽  
17Th Century ◽  
Crime Fiction ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Detective Novels

With a series of detective novels set in 17th century Dai-Viet that showcase the traditions, beliefs and customs of an exotic culture, in which the food and food habits of the Vietnamese people play a prominent role, Thanh-Van Tran-Nhut, an engineer-turned-novelist of Vietnamese origins, has carved a niche for herself in the popular crime fiction market in France. This paper focuses on the novel Les Travers du Docteur Porc, in which Doctor Porc, forensic investigator and gourmand extraordinaire, adopts the mantle of chief detective from Tran-Nhut’s usual protagonist, the loyal mandarin Tan. In this movement, we argue, the author has shaped two different but complementary approaches to her birth-country’s turbulent past that coalesce in the gargantuan figure of the (politically unencumbered) doctor and connoisseur of Vietnamese cuisine. Whereas the process of ‘solving the crime’ can be read as an attempt to seek answers and restore order in the wake of senseless bloodshed, it is food, we contend, that emerges, not only as a source of pleasure, succour and stability, but as a cultural heritage that war and upheaval failed to destroy.

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