GER 455 - Der Krimi

This seminar explores the genre of the Krimi (crime novel, crime film, crime show). We will define the genre’s main characteristics and attempt to explain its continued popularity in German-speaking countries. Our method will be close reading, but we will borrow questions and assumptions from theoretical approaches, such as Rezeptionsgeschichte and reader response theory. Texts and films include Jakob Arjouni’s Ein Mann, ein Mord, Patrick Süskind’s Parfum, Volker Kutscher’s Der nasse Fisch (either the graphic novel or the Netflix series, entitled Babylon Berlin), Dominik Graf’s television movie Im Angesicht des Verbrechens, and, finally, the television series Tatort.

Prerequisites & Notes
German 250 or permission of the instructor.