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Incorporating American Contemporary Crime Fiction into Criminology Studies:

Examining the Interconnection of Crime Fiction and Criminology

Student’s Name

Institution Affiliations

Course Name

Instructor’s Name

Date

Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the MA in Modern and Contemporary

Literature, Birkbeck College, University of London, August 29, 2023

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Abstract

This dissertation focuses on the examination of the possible benefits and challenges related with

the incorporation of American contemporary crime fiction into criminology studies and

curriculum. The main objective is to explore how crime fiction can be used as a valuable tool for

criminologists to attain deeper perspectives into the difficulties of criminal behavior, the

operation of criminal justice system, and societal issues. Through evaluating the intersection of

crime fiction and criminology, the research has provided recommendations for efficiently

integrating crime fiction into criminology studies. The study starts by offering a comprehensive

background and validation for the research, accentuating the relevance of this topic in the field of

criminology. The research aims are then outlined, concentrating on the investigation of the

possible benefits and challenges connected with the integration of crime fiction into criminology

education and curriculum.

To accomplish this, a detailed literature review is conducted, which composes an overview of

American contemporary crime fiction, the role of crime fiction in the society, and the present

approaches to integrating crime fiction in criminology studies. This review acts as a basis for

comprehending the theoretical and practical implications of incorporating crime fiction into

criminology educations. Moreover, the dissertation employs the use of two crime fiction novels

‘Psycho” by Robert Bloch and ‘Black Dhalia’ by James Ellroy. These crime fiction novels

considerably align with various topics covered in the criminology program and examine

numerous themes which encompasses criminal psychology, law implementation strategies, and

social issues connected to crime.

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Key Words: American contemporary crime fiction, criminology curriculum, criminology

studies, societal issues, criminal behavior, criminology, crime fiction, criminal justice system,

societal issues.

Introduction

American contemporary crime fiction has emerged as a fascinating and powerful genre,

appealing scholars with its exciting narratives, multifaceted characters, and investigation of the

darker factors of the society. Beyond its entertaining value, crime fiction has massive latent to

contribute to the field of criminology, providing exclusive perceptions into criminal behavior,

justice systems, and social issues (Larke, 2023). This thesis purposes to explore into the

captivating realm where American modern crime fiction interconnects with criminology studies

and curriculum, examining how criminologists can connect the power of crime fiction to

improve their insight and practice (Larke, 2023). Crime fiction, with its varied subgenres

comprising detective novels, legal dramas, and psychological thrillers, offer a rich shade of

narratives that replicate and comment on the intricacies of crime and its repercussions

(Mathiesen, 2022). Through introducing American contemporary crime fiction, we can bridge

the gap amid theory and practice, promoting a profound understanding of the complex nature of

crime and its effect on people and society.

Aims of the study

The main purpose of this research dissertation is to examine the approaches and strategies

for effectually incorporating American contemporary crime fiction into criminology studies. Via

evaluating selected crime fiction works, we aim to recognize the underlying psychological,

sociological, and cultural aspects that shape criminal conducts and criminal justice systems
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(Mathiesen, 2022). Through this interdisciplinary method, criminologists can attain fresh

insights, challenge existing suppositions, and advance innovative policies to address actual-

world-crime- connected challenges (Larke, 2023). To accomplish this aim, the thesis will

integrate an inclusive theoretical framework that draws from criminology, literary studies, and

cultural examination. Through evaluating the themes, protagonists, and narrative structures of

American contemporary crime fiction, we will reveal the fundamental sociological and

psychological perceptions that can inform criminological research and exercise (Maher &

Bassnett, 2022) . This analysis will not only boost criminologist’s insight of the field but

similarly equip one with a further nuanced perception to engage with scholars and fellow

experts.

Additionally, this thesis will research how criminologists can acquire from crime fiction.

Through evaluating the depiction of crime, convicts, and law execution in these narratives,

criminologists can gain understanding into the civic perspective of crime, the dynamics of

criminal examinations, and the difficulties of the criminal justice system (Maher & Bassnett,

2022). This examination will allow criminologists to critically explore the gaps between fiction

and realism, objecting preconceived concepts and fostering an extra subtle comprehension of the

complexities of crime and justice. Via integrating American contemporary crime fiction into

criminology studies and curriculum, we can generate an active learning context that inspires

critical thinking, affinity, and a profounder insight of the human state (Larke, 2023). Moreover,

crime fiction acts as an influential tool for criminologists to examine the inspirations behind

criminal behavior, the complexities of forensic science, the challenges encountered by law

implementation, and the ethical predicaments inherent in the quest for justice.
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Similarly, via this thesis, we purpose to provide practical commendations and guidelines for

instructors and practitioners on how to effectually introduce American modern crime fiction into

criminology studies and curriculum. Through adopting the rich tales and thought-provoking

themes of crime fiction, we can stimulate a novel generation of criminologists who are equipped

with a complete perception of crime, justice, and the intricacies of human psyche.

Research Questions

The research questions encompass;

1. What are the possible benefits of introducing American modern crime fiction into

criminology education and curriculum?

2. What are the obstacles related with incorporating crime fiction into criminology studies?

3. How can crime fiction portray the operational of the criminal justice system, and what

can criminologists gain from it?

4. In what ways does crime fiction address social problems pertinent to criminology?

5. How does crime fiction show the operative of criminal justice system, and what can

criminologist acquire from it?

6. What the recurrent themes in American contemporary that related to criminology?

7. How do criminology scholars and educators view and engage with crime fiction in the

context of their education?

8. What educational approaches can be employed to effectually integrate crime fiction into

criminology curriculum?
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9. What are the ethical that require to be taken into consideration when incorporating crime

fiction into criminology education?

10. What recommendations can be made for incorporating crime fiction into criminology

education and program based on the research findings?

Chapter One

An overview of the American Contemporary Crime Fiction

American contemporary crime fiction is a genre that has attained substantial popularity

and comprises an extensive range of novels and stories set in the current day United States. It

revolves around culprit activities, pursuit of justice, and investigations, offering readers with

thrilling provocative themes (Rzepka et al., 2020). One of the primary reasons for the continuing

popularity of American modern crime fiction is its capability to offer readers with a logic of

escapism while similarly addressing actual-world challenges. The novels constantly act as mirror

of the society, reflecting the social and cultural challenges of the modern time (Kounadi et al.,

2020). Through examining themes encompassing political corruption and ethnic tensions, the

crime fiction narratives shed light on the darker factors of the community and incite readers to

consider the difficulties of the world they live in. One of the notable characteristics of American

contemporary crime fiction is its examination of numerous themes (Rzepka et al., 2020).

Detective works, assassinations, organized crime, corruption, and the dark underbody of society
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are common themes found in American contemporary crime fiction. These themes enable writers

to delve into the intricacies of crime and its influence on people and community at large.

American contemporary crime fiction has a rich history of its gritty pragmatism with

prominent writers who have made substantial contributions. Writers endeavor to generate an

authentic depiction of crime and its repercussions, regularly drawing motivation from real-life

occurrences or conducting broad research to ensure precision (Haycraft, 2019). Authors such as

James Ellroy, Patricia Cornwell, Michael Connelly, and Gillian Flynn have made fascinating

stories that have enchanted readers globally (Haycraft, 2019). Their work showcases the

multiplicity and depth of the American contemporary crime fiction, providing unique insights

and narratives styles. Correspondingly, the writer’s attentiveness to detail enhances depth and

reliability to the tales given, making them extra immersive and conceivable.

Furthermore, intricate and flawed characters are a trademark of American contemporary

crime fiction. The genre surpasses in generating complex and faulty characters. Protagonists are

frequently multi-dimensional, with their own demons and constraints (Rzepka et al., 2020). For

instance, they may have a disturbed past, internal battles, or ethical predicaments that they must

navigate while resolving crimes or in search of justice (Rzepka et al., 2020). This refines the

characters and makes them appropriate to readers, who can sympathize with their strains and

basis for their accomplishments. The protagonists can be private investigators, detectives, or

even offenders (Butt et al., 2020). Their defectiveness and individual struggles add deepness to

the narratives, making them extra relevant and engaging. Likewise, the complex plots and

suspenseful stories makes the readers desperate, captivating them into more readings eager to

discover the truth.

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Other than protagonists, American contemporary crime fiction similarly features well-

progressed antagonists. These anti-heroes can be intelligent, captivating, and manipulative,

posing a tough challenge to the protagonists (Butt et al., 2020). The cat-and-mouse dynamic

amid the protagonist and the villain increases tension and suspense to the narrations, keeping

readers engaged and capitalized in the result. In addition, American contemporary fiction

examines the psychological aspects of lawbreaking exploring into the inspirations and both

offenders and those in quest of justice (Kounadi et al., 2020). This examination of the human

psyche increase layers of intricacy to the narratives, making them more than merely simple

anecdotes of crime and punishment. Similarly, the psychological complexity enables readers to

gain understandings into the human states and the decisions individuals formulate when faced

with tough circumstances (Butt et al., 2020). Also, American contemporary fiction is popular for

its determined realism, reflecting the social and cultural matters of the time. it tackles subjects

encompassing ethnic tensions, socioeconomic inequalities, political corruption, and the influence

of technology on crime (Butt et al., 2020). Through addressing these matters, the genre not

merely entertains but similarly prompts students to reflect on the universe around them.

The Role of Crime Fiction in the Society

Crime fiction serves a complex role in the society, comprising numerous factors that

contribute to its relevance and impact. One of the primary roles of crime fiction is entertainment

and escapism (Amelia et al., 2020). Crime fiction, involving novels, television shows, and films,

provide a captivating and delightful types of entertainment. It submerges readers and viewers in

exciting tales, enabling them to engage with fascinating mysteries and experience a sense of

diversion from their everyday lives (Amelia et al., 2020). The mesmerizing plots, suspenseful

twists, and captivating characters provide an entertaining and engaging experience for audiences.
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The subsequent role of crime fiction is reflection of social matters. The genre regularly

acts as a reflection of social issues predominant in the society. It investigates and illuminates on

matters including, corruption, violence, inequality, and justice (Rzepka et al., 2020). Through

presenting these matters within a fictional setting, crime fiction provides a lens via which readers

can study and consider real-world challenges. It evokes discussions and inspires readers to

analytically analyze and reflect upon social problems and their implications (Katsushima et al.,

2021). Another role of crime fiction in the society is examination of human psychology. The

genre investigates into the intricacies of human psychology, specifically the inspirations and

behaviors of culprits and detectives (Rzepka et al., 2020). It provides perceptions into the minds

of both perpetrators and those in quest of justice, offering a profounder insight of human nature

and the aspects that drive illegal behavior. Through examining the psychological factors of

crime, crime fiction improves our perspective of the human state and the complexities of human

behavior.

Additionally, crime fiction acts as a critique of the criminal justice system. Contemporary

crime fiction serves as a podium for reviewing the faults and shortcomings of the criminal justice

system (Katsushima et al., 2020). It can accentuate issues encompassing unlawful convictions,

systemic prejudices, and police misconduct. Through depicting these topics within fictional

narrations, crime fiction evokes deliberations and raises consciousness concerning the urgency

for reform and enhancement within the judicature (Katsushima et al., 2020). It can stimulate

readers to question the existing policies, promoting a desire for a more just and just system.

Moreover, crime fiction plays a role of empathy and perspective. Crime fiction enables

readers to sympathize with characters from varied backgrounds and experiences. It offers a broad

window into the lives of people impacted by crime, nurturing empathy and insight for victims,
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witness, and criminals (Campedelli et al., 2020). Through submerging readers in the perception

of numerous characters, crime fiction stimulates empathy and fosters a profounder understanding

of the intricacies of crime and its effect on individuals and societies (Amelia et al., 2020).

Similarly, crime fiction plays a role in exploration of morality and ethics. Crime fiction regularly

raises ethical predicaments, challenging readers to contemplate queries of right and wrong,

revenge, and justice (Haycraft, 2019). The genre presents multifaceted protagonists and

situations that necessitate readers to navigate via moral gray areas. Through examining these

dilemmas, crime fiction evokes discussions regarding the intricacies of ethical decision-making

and the moral considerations within the criminal judicial system. Crime fiction inspires readers

to logically evaluate their personal values and beliefs.

Correspondingly, crime fiction serves as a stimulation for real-world investigations.

Crime fiction is recognized to motivate real-world explorations and developments in forensic

science (Rzepka et al., 2020). Fictional narratives and techniques portrayed in crime fiction can

spur notions and innovations that contribute to resolving real crimes and enhancing exploratory

practices (Katsushima et al., 2021). Crime fiction acts as a source of motivation for law

execution experts, criminal investigators, forensic researchers, leading to developments in the

field and the progression of novel investigative techniques (Katsushima et al., 2021). Lastly,

crime fiction plays a role in cultural and historical reflection. Crime fiction often acts as a

reflection of the ethnic and historical context in which it is formed. The genre captures the

zeitgeist of a specific period. Providing perceptions into social mentalities and anxieties

dominant at the moment of its generation (Rzepka et al., 2020). Through inspecting crime fiction

form diverse eras, one can attain a profounder insight of the cultural and historical impacts that

shape society’s perspective of crime and justice.

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Justification of the Thesis Topic

The genre of crime fiction a wonderful and historical almost like a journal reporting on

crime ranging from the hard-boiled detective to crime telling stories that vary on their styles and

technique on telling a certain story (Butt et al., 2020). A murder and then the process of solving

the crime or it can be a murderer as the main character going his way on his murdering sprees.

This genre has more to offer other than telling a story of a crime or a criminal. I believe if we pay

attention to elements that make up the genre, we can get way more than what is just in the novels

and can direct them to a better direction of studies such as criminology, criminal justice, and

society and fulfill the artistic imagination of a criminologist in the field of crime in order to

predict or better solve crimes (Butt et al., 2020). In this paper I aim to discover aspects of this

crime fiction that appeals to many people including scholars and criminologists and how it can

contribute to the field of criminology. Of course, when we begin to think about how a novel can

teach or expand on a topic of crime and help in solving it, it is a good question (Kounadi et al.,

2020). I intend to discover how fiction, specifically crime related, can teach us to expand our

artistic imagination and show us how characters of the fictional world can help give criminology

insights on developing characters of crime.

Criminological imagination is a term that I will focus on because from this term we begin

to understand ourselves through criminals in the work of fiction. We start placing ourselves in

the shoes of criminals to understand their mind and actions towards committing a heinous crime

in society. My concept of taking a work of literature or in the case of research paper a few works

is to tackle them from perspectives of a scope or lenses, this lens is literature using the vehicle of

novels to give out a message (Wilson, 1963). Additionally, as a criminologist when diving into a

world of literature and novels it will not be his sole practice where he reads novels on crime and
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then apply them to real life but it is to define his critical imagination, thinking, analyzing.

Touching on analyzation, one when reading literature infuses himself in the text to come up with

a result, such a criminologist when reading clues around him to reach a point of resolution to a

crime, he will develop skills necessary in pattern recognition through novels. (Amelia et al.,

2020) How might this be infused or integrated in the study of criminology? It can be through

professors giving a short paper or excerpt from a novel to assess the capabilities of

criminological imagination and thinking leaving aside the empirical data that criminologist also

follows but the argument here is to bring these both together to supplement the study (Amelia et

al., 2020). My offering here in this paper is to provide a way from literature to bolster

criminological study through expanding imagination, empathizing, and placing oneself in an aura

to see better. (Wilson 1963) states that when students rely on textbooks, and he describes them as

surveys of specific movements the taste and color of learning is lost and so is the student. This

can also add to my plate by showing that different methods of enhancing and sparking an

engagement of interest using literature or specifically fictional crime novels that beneath it has a

meaning to it for the criminologist to savor and hone his critical thinking. (Wilson 1963) also

states that criminology students have no motivation to art using literature which in my case I

think a gap that needs to be filed or looked at least in the world of academics.

He carries on speaking that instead of only focusing on technical courses for the students

they must have a broader background and then emphasizes the better way to enrich the

experience is through related literature, in our case crime fiction. He discusses that if the

individual or the student does not go through such an experience, he will be narrowed and it will

be a loss for himself and the society or nation as he describes it. (Wilson 1963) brings an

example of what might be like what my research paper will go on about which is two plans, and
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my focus will be on the 2nd plan because it draws from specific readings for specific courses. His

idea is to bring a few chapters from a book in his case Dostoyevsky's “Crime & Punishment” and

he uses this example and excerpt to supplement criminologists in the field of detection and

deception (Wilson, 1963). He describes this example of novel a “beautiful description in

literature and the interplay of psychological of the suspect and the interrogator”. He then uses

passages from the novel to show and elaborate on the student discovering this and wanting to

read more on the topic and immerse himself in the novel wanting to carryon to finish it, also, he

found himself understanding the innate reactions and behavior of an intelligent murderer and the

same calibre of an interrogator walking away with universal principles of interrogation.

Another thing that a novel might help bringing the criminologist to more understanding is

a piece of historical social condition. The well-crafted novel is situated in a place and time where

the society has issues and it is like a journal of events teaching its readers, treated like an artifact

a thing from a specific time of history that enlightens us more on a specific issue or thing.

(Wilson 1963) aside from discussing a few novels of social conditions and treating them with a

philosophic eye, he ends his argument with the need to pay attention to literature and professors

giving opportunities to students to foster the need of literature within them to understand

previous societies and have a keen eye to details at the same time enjoying themselves better

while doing readings related to their subject (Wilson, 1963). I believe the same in order to

change the way of study and to enhance it by bringing literature into play with criminology and it

shall be used by coming generations in order to understand the problems and issues of

criminality back then and from that come with better methods or ways of thinking about the

crimes happening in their society, and not only that but also help the criminological empathize

and better understand criminals through the artistic imagination.

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In the abstract (Smith 1987) mentions that eben though criminal justice is a social science

it must also rely on the art and humanities, especially literature specifically fiction and should

then infuse them in their courses or core courses for teaching. (Smith 1987) enlightens us by

saying that these approaches towards literature help students have more insights and have a

distinguished various aspect of the topic of criminality. I believe that infusing the humanities and

as my research paper is about which is fiction and criminology think that it should be in the

curriculum of the subject and it will help extend the study and enlighten the student sharpening

the criminological imagination leaving aside the empirical data and help in honing the skills of

the criminologists in understanding first the society and reading novels in enhancing their critical

capabilities in analyzing. (Smith 1987) argues that short stories, fiction specifically that are well-

crafted can be inserted in the teachings of criminal studies. It is because it presents the human

behavior of the criminal with a good amount of insight within the character which then involves

the reader who in my case will be the criminologist.

The dramatic dialogue can provide experimental acts even in a real situation cannot be

replicated which offers more and when we have more we have more to comprehend and learn in

order to be a step ahead. It can also be the criminal having a dispute Wilhelmsen or his

conscience that will then teach a criminologist how a criminal can think later n when he is on a

case or figuring out types of criminals. (Smith 1987) adds that the fictional works should be well

chosen and three should be 3 criteria to choose from which is the literary criticism on the

material, the criminal justice research on the topic and in our case the criminological research,

related research such as psychology, sociology, and finally, the knowledge of the author’s and

his carefully structuring of the work. With that then comes in the use of as previously I

mentioned the well-crafted novel to be infused in courses of criminology for students to foster
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their imagination and better enhance themselves as people or individuals working on a vision

towards a better one.

As I examine a couple of novels, I also explore what scholars and professors in

criminology, criminal justice, and law had to say about the genre of crime fiction. I aim to

discover if this genre can give the capacity of imagination towards the study of criminology by

studying novels that are crime focused, then we start to look further into novels that depict the

society of crime, human behavior, and detection methods. My paper is about literature

influencing the imagination of criminologists that make them empathize and place themselves in

criminal minds by reading novels that can take the imagination of the reader to insightful

expressions and make them view the world of criminal or the society of crime. Afterall, as a

literature student what is gained from all my courses that deal with novels or poems is

understanding the novel as n artistic expression that is waiting to be analyzed. This artistic

expression has within it elements that we as literature students begin to absorb and understand, it

can be simple as the beginning of a novel then the middle and the conclusion. We start to put the

pieces together and understand structures of novels and the characters within the them and begin

to view the dynamics of the novels and moreover the novel is an informative paper on a specific

time of history that one can go back to see how society was, specifically novels that talk about

society and has a message of a specific issue arisen in the world.

Now, going back to the point of the novel and the need for it to be analyzed by literary

scholars or students can be treated just like a crime. The crime when it happens also has

underlying structures and characters and dynamics, and like a novel it has a begging and a

middle and an ending (Amelia et al., 2020). So, when we begging to connect crime and novels, I

start to paint a picture of what I want to do. When I place myself in the shoes of criminologists, I
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can see that they study through empirical data, but I argue that this shouldn’t be the case all the

time and they should rely on other methods to use and study a crime or a criminal (Butt et al.,

2020). To do that the mind needs to be stretched and instead of it being directed in one direction,

I argue that a criminologist must have or acquire mental elasticity and exercises capability I

insert novels into this play to make the whole process complete.

I believe that when criminologists place themselves in other people's lives through having

insights of what goes on from other perspective then we will have criminologists that are capable

of understanding crime better. I don’t challenge the methods of criminological studies rather I

seek to insert novels in the curriculum criminology that I think will supplement the criminologist

(Haycraft, 2019). Empathy is something the people in criminal justice need and criminologist

need to be in the space of criminals and crimes and to introduce this in another way is through

novels. when reading the novel, the criminologist will start using imagination (Haycraft, 2019).

So, when the imagination is excursed then the criminologist will acquire criminological

imagination which I think can be parallel and not against empirical evidence. When empirical is

gathered then we also start thinking of motives and reasons why might crimes happen or why do

criminals behave this way and to explore this in another way is through the novels (Kounadi et

al., 2020). The question that might come up when reading this paper is why use novels when we

can learn from real life situations then I will answer by that novels always were used to gather a

point of a period of history or notes down a specific culture of a moment in history so the novel

might not only teach us about the innate of criminals or the society around us rather it can inform

us of a specific period of time and this period of time might be treated as history and history was

our teacher and still is.

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Moving back in time when criminology wasn’t yet introduced as a social science in the

19th century, literature was in play to reflect on the drivers of crime Wilson claims. Building on

his point, I think literature was a vehicle for many voices of social sciences as it was always

telling us a story or how things went in history (Wilson, 1963). Wilson claims that social

sciences such as criminology intersect or crosses path with literature and humans have the

capability to draw on theories and ideas from artistic imaginations, expressing them with writing.

When this type of intersection happens, a new thing emerges of what can be used as a tool for

critical thinking and imagination, creating a platform for critiquing the society and learning from

narratives which can end up being used in social science studies through the mediator, or the

vehicle which is literature (Rzepka et al., 2020). He claims that crimes are texts, and every text

has its own audience waiting to be read and analyzed. Text gets shaped by societal conditions

and these conditions can be discovered and analyzed in the narratives then emerging a broad

understanding of issues through the written expressive imagination us humans created to learn

about something in specific to my paper crime.

Having said that I believe crimes on paper can give us a breadth understanding of

criminal behavior, methods of detecting crime, & society impact on criminals by using this

imagination of written word on a paper. And that is by seeing society through at, art is a way to

express a thing in society through images or colors or in our case words. Following on my point,

Wilson believes that crimes can be studied as literary texts, and in doing so we can uncover

underlying structures within a text that may supplement the critical theory of criminology

through fiction. I believe that in crime narratives we get insights into the criminal mind, and we

can have a sense of what to be in the mind of a criminal through the stories, a psychological

overview of the character & then sociological representation that has been made up by
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imagination that might add to the criminological theory. My thoughts on crime fiction being able

to provide for the field of criminology studies and students might be at first thought of an

interesting idea then it will move on to become far of a stretch but I think this is possible by

understanding criminal behavior, detection, and society in the infrastructure of the novel that will

bolster add to the theory of criminology waiting to be discovered. How will it bolster the edifice

of criminological theory one might ask; my answer would be by reading fiction and this fiction

will present characters that are fictional that can be people in this world with real attributes and

the way they deal with other people is a way that criminologist might understand and look in to.

Whenever I read a novel, I start to relate these fictional characters with people I know

and see the similarities and start to understand them and the novel gives you this space to think

about them and to discover Moe people through this written expression. It is difficult to absorb

or try to lean from literature that it can teach us on criminals but I think when this disciplines is

used right it will open doors to an interdisciplinary connection that can be both sided for

criminology is adding to the way le think and for literature is to understand criminology to be

noted down in history for future generations of literature students and scholars to understand a

period of time that has crime or how the society was in dealing with crime or what types of

people and how they were criminals.

In the search of criminology, Sagarin states that “Criminologists have more to learn from

the literary world rather than the reverse”. Greek dramatist's Roman Poets, & the writers of

renaissance attention were caught by issues of crime Sagarin states that ““Criminologists have

more to learn from the literary world rather than the reverse”. Greek dramatist's, Roman Poets, &

the writers of renaissance attention was caught by issues of crime. The social scientist is

informed through literary art, as sociology is a type of art form (Sagarin1980, Nisbet 1976). The
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subjects of novels of Dickens, Balzac, Zola, etc., were that they were examining environments

and social issues or factors of the time which sociologist doing the same thing but in difference

to novelist they were informing on it and the sociologist examine such cases (Sagarin 1980). To

elaborate more they were both looking at the same object in front of them but from different

angles which can then be a similar conclusion for both artists, the literary and social artist. So,

both fields can be in a relationship together to pull and supplement information to one another.

Yet, the novel will tell us the message and it is set to be true, and we will appreciate the

beauty of its aesthetics and on the other hand the social scientist will gather empirical evidence to

inform. My point since both fields can contribute to each other than the novel can be a useful

tool to add to the field of criminology almost like a journal of the world in a setting of

imagination exploring dilemmas and issues to help us wrap our minds on these thoughts and

ideas and get more advanced in the field of criminology with the right gathered empirical

evidence by a society (Larke, 2023). In this paper I set to explore how we can use a novel to

create a criminological imagination from within a novel and use it side by the field of

criminology by discussing and examining the societies, criminal mind/ behavior, and the process

of detection. I will also make an attempt to pick from certain novels important elements and try

and attempt from these novels to see if I can analyze the underlying structures of these artworks

and apply them to real life criminology (Mathiesen, 2022). My Queston can stretch to how useful

is this genre crime fiction and can it be taken seriously and studied as and taught to social science

in specific criminology and criminal justice. By doing so I encourage after my paper has been

submitted to not end at this point rather, I hope it gets picked up and adds to the gaps that might

not be covered in this research (Mathiesen, 2022). I hope for criminologists and researchers to
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use the novel of crime more seriously to analyze the structures and give them a world of fiction

to apply their knowledge into.

I believe that crime novels give insights on criminal behavior and motivation and social

factors that have major effects on a criminal or the psychological mentality of a criminal. In

novels the worlds created is a representation of the world we live in with representations of

institutions, environments, spaces, and characters that pass by our daily lives, however, these are

all representations, and the novelist then creates a representation of a character that can be

analyzed as the individual in a society. Following on that point, (Sagarin 1980) claims that the

criminologist identifies a representation and the job of the novelist is to create a representation of

a character so these two have some sort of concrete interplay together. Both the novelist and the

criminologist must be aware to provide for a vision on humanity, and the novelist owns data such

as the setting, character, and the plot which is like the criminologist, but the novelist has only his

gut feeling to provide while the criminologist uses bodies of data that are statical (Sagarin,

1980). The novelist creates no conclusions while the social scientist follows logical structures

that lead to a conclusion and the artist does not present data on statistics and rates of crimes as

the social scientist but then provides us with the imagination of the difficult lives that hardly

survive and informs us of a social fabric that can add to the studies and motivations that then will

deepen our knowledge of the world (Sagarin 1980). Just like in Dostoyevsky's “Crime &

Punishment” on Raskolnikov action which was killing and old woman and instead of leading

himself to do other sorts of social injustice such as destroying society he does his won aownof

killing which then can be seen as a sort of pressure from society that he experiences which he is

a victim of social inequality then becomes a victimizer.

 21

So then when a work of art in crime fiction when prepared the right way can be used to

lead us into insights of the psychological human behavior (the guardian). the detective work can

be udefeul to this paper in terms of detecting a criminal (Rzepka et al., 2020). The way to catch a

murderer is by psychological profiling, offender signatures, and all elements of criminology that

showed up in the (BAU) or FBI behavioral analyst unit in the 1960s-70s which can be read in

fiction. A question is how we might able to pull something like this through a novel. (TRUE

CRIME JSTOR) I think that the crime genre can supplement criminology by offering insights on

the causes of crime & social harm (Theoretical & Philosophical criminology) how and what to

look in a novel or how can we use a novel to supplement the social science. In this research

paper I aim to discover the conversation in the scholar’s world on crime fiction being able to

supplement the edifice of criminology and criminal justice with much attention to criminology. I

also intend to explore what they are saying on this topic and I intend to ask questions such as

how can it be used for the purposes of criminological studies and can it add to the field and in the

teaching curriculum of the social science.

Chapter Two

What are the scholars saying about crime fiction and criminology?

Crime fiction and criminology are two different fields. However, they regularly

interconnect and impact one another in several ways. Scholars have examined numerous aspects

of this connection between crime fiction and criminology (Campedelli et al., 2020). For instance,

regarding portrayal of crime, researchers explore how crime fiction depicts criminal behavior,

exploratory approaches, and the criminal justice system (Campedelli et al., 2020). They explore

how crime novels reflect social mentalities towards crime and justice. For example, crime fiction

may portray diverse forms of crimes, the techniques used by culprits, and the problems
 22

experienced by law enforcement in resolving cases (Catello, 2023). Through researching these

depictions, scholars can gain understanding into cultural perspectives of crime and the criminal

justice system.

Additionally, concerning social commentary, crime fiction acts as a podium for societal

commentary. Researchers discuss how crime novels address matters encompassing power

dynamics, corruption, and inequality (Presser & Sandberg, 2019). Crime fiction can illuminate

on social challenges and evoke critical thinking through investigating themes and narrations that

reflect real-world matters (Presser & Sandberg, 2019). For example, crime novels might examine

the influence of social inequity on crimes scopes or expose systemic corruption within rule

implementation agencies. Moreover, regarding psychological perceptions, criminologists explore

crime fiction to attain perspectives into the psychology of offenders and reasons behind their

actions (Selmini, 2020). They evaluate the portrayal of culprit behavior, profiling approaches,

and the correctness of psychological theories represented in crime novels. Through examining

these factors, criminologists can enhanced understand the motives and though processes of

lawbreakers, which can inform their study and contribute to the advancement of theories in the

field of criminology. Another aspect of consideration is impact on criminology (Catello, 2023).

Various scholars claim that crime fiction has influenced the advancement of criminology as a

discipline. They imply that fictional detectives and their investigative techniques have enthused

real-life exploratory methods and forensic science progressions. For instance, approaches

comprising profiling, forensic prove collection, and crime scene evaluation have been impacted

by fictional representations in crime novels (Campedelli et al., 2020).

 23

“It is probably true that criminologists have more to learn from the literary world than the

reverse”

- Edward Sagarin (1980)

The world of crime fiction and criminology combined would be such a fascinating

intersection in the field of social sciences & literature. However, in pursuing such a subject we

must be careful of the limitations that might arise from such interdisciplinary crossover (Wilson,

2021). We can benefit yet lose a lot but, in this chapter, we discover the works and thoughts of

scholars on such topic that discuss the possibility of the genre of crime fiction and how it can be

taken seriously and might it be useful to the edifice of legal sociology studies such as the main

focus here which is criminology and stretch further to law, and criminal justice (Campedelli et

al., 2020). By discovering the worlds of scholars and professors in criminology and their

direction in the literary world of bringing together these two disciplines to supplement each other

but the focus here in this chapter is to see if the genre of crime fiction can build new theories for

criminology. (Wilson 2021) states that a Canadian criminologist that goes by the Charles Talbot

studied crime fiction crime rates in the fiction compared to real life.

When looking at his study (Talbot, 1982) claims that the genre of crime fiction provides

for the researcher a huge amount of “moral & ethical data” which the author as I have described

before informs us based on his perceptions which then examines the society. If that is the case,

then the novel of crime can be used to offer us more in terms of discovering the world we live in.

(Wilson 2021) talks about the fact of Ronald Corbett absorbing fiction and studying it as

sociology. Then we can start saying that there might be a chance of exploring novels as an

informing journal on our society, but then can we take the novel as a credible means to

supplement the edifice and theory of criminology? Let's look at what literature can offer in the
 24

field of criminology and how it can help. (Wilson 2021) states that criminology and literature is

theoretically in the interest of scholars, which then offers a strive across culture and the era of the

time. As the novelist draws his ideas and expression from his imagination, building upon the

mind to create a representation of this world into crime characters (Wilson 2021) states that both

these representations of societies and psychological minds of the fictional world or “literary

expressions” he describes is a crime theory for criminological studies that is on hold and to be

further discovered.

As much as it sounds very interesting and captivating, but the question is how that might

be? (Wilson 2021) sheds light on the discipline of criminology stating that it became a

distinguished academic field in the 21st century & before that literary critics sought to compare

Shakespeare and dickens as criminologists. While seeing through that can be relevant as to

writers such as Dostoyevsky and others offered insights into criminal acts and plots while

immersing us into the minds of the murders and their motivations. Which then can offer

psychological and sociological breadth of crimes in societies. The use of the human imagination

is important in criminology as to we are dealing with criminals who develop in their crimes and

the way they think can sometimes be sought after by thinking what might happen next but in

terms of criminology it is the profiling and analysis of the criminal that emerged in the (BAU) or

behavioral analyst unit in the FBI in 1960-70s.

(Wilson 2021) the two disciplines relate to one another even through the scientific studies

of elements such as criminals, and crime with the artistic expression of the imagination of a

human written. Following on that point the reason of crimes being read as texts can be helpful as

to catch a criminal and read the behavior, we must interpret the criminal and to reach to the

deeper meaning and motivation of a text and the underlying structure within it then we must also
 25

analyze and interpret the text. Comparing the text to the crime then we reach to a conclusion of

the text can be juxtaposed beside the crime and defined as one which is created by humans, with

the society conditioning and shaping the text such in the real world shaping a criminal behavior.

Then in this case crime can be studied as a text and (Wilson 2021) states that in doing so we

unravel new meaning and understandings of the structures and the motivations of crime when

reading crime as a text. So, when approaching fiction in this manner questions arise to me such

as how this can be utilized and in what ways can we look at fiction to help in the process of

analyzing crime and bolstering criminological imagination? (J. Frauley 2010) takes us in the

direction of understanding fiction in literature as social reflections that can be used in expanding

our mind and wrapping them around concepts of analytical theories and fiction acting as a

mediator. It is important to understand that this type of literature provides us with the

imagination creativity for thinking in the field of criminology.

Just like a research paper, they hold within them an argument or information full of

insight into our own societies. As he describes them, a “puzzle” for scholars to work with and

put them together. (McGregor 2020) suggests that fiction provides criminological research just

like the traditional sources of criminological studies and can be a good source of data for the

field which requires scholars' attention in that field. So, explaining a crime or social disturbance

that is caused by a crime requires an analysis or criminological research of the causes implies

(McGregor 2020). Then when we look at a novel that has perfect elements on crime & society

informing us about why and how we can start to see how we might be able to understand the

concept of using this literature genre of crime fiction into the studies of criminology and

supplementing research into it. As (Evers 2009) suggests, when crime fiction is cooked the right

way, the writing of the fiction may be able to provide valuable insights into our society leading
 26

us to understand more about human behavior and their psychology ending in the studies of

criminology & more. (Worthington 2011) states that the development of crime fiction through

time helped us put different set of glasses and represented the realities in cities as it draws from

the spaces of urbanization and informs us from a realistic point of view providing the anxieties of

these spaces.

As (Worthington 2011) describes that the genre of crime fiction can be the only genre of

fiction that can rely on facts. It allows the reader to gain access to legal procedures and moral

values of society as the narrative must be aware of the realities of the legal & criminal facts

(Worthington 2011). As these points are building the question that comes in mind is what way

we might actually use a novel to perform an analysis? In great works of literature such as Hamlet

& Macbeth we can see crimes and motives and we can be lead inside the minds of the murderers

which hold literature to have the capacity for being criminological. Moreover, (Saleh 2013)

states that murder has been explored in a vast amount of literary works and in the world of

literature we can have fiction being the vehicle to drive us in the minds of the murderer to

discover what is underlying. He draws on Macbeth and calls them mentally tormented

murderers. Having that said we delve into the field of psychology through writing and follow

that by these stories of the murderers being a good source of insight into the mind of a criminal.

Introducing the concept of criminological imagination from (J. Frauley 2010), as he

mentions there is a lot of fiction that can do, and he emphasizes on the fact that it can present us

with ideas. As I mentioned previously, they can present reality through the eyes of fictional

worlds. These Ideas can be useful for a criminologist in the way that can place the criminologist

in the shoes of criminal through experiencing a novel and the characters of this novel and how

they are shaped I can be treated just a like a case study on a criminal or the society and the
 27

corruption of the institutions that inflicts damage n people that then will turn them into criminals

wanting vengeance or the situation of the people that turn into criminals As (J. Frauley 2010)

mentions, he describes the disciplined use of systematic use of criminological concepts and what

that does enhances the imagination, creativity and disciplines the concept of criminological

thought and imagination. Such as the use of language and the data that can be extracted to source

our studies in criminology through fictional realities presented to us by a social journal or novel

providing insights to us that might play a vital role in supplementing the study. (J. Frauley 2010)

explores the “criminological imagination” can portray three main things which can be an

ontology on society, a conceptual system, and finally a methodology of society.

To have a brief explanation of the term “criminological imagination” it first was coined

in 1984 by Frank Williams, which also can be stretched and derived from the 1959 book

“sociological imagination” by C Wright Mills. Williams previewed social scientists as

“intellectual craftsmen”. This goes to show me that intellectual thought is in the creative of a

social scientist and as described earlier in this paper connects it with the informed social scientist

through literary art. As the intellectual gathers his information from the social setting around

him, he gathers data and information through the life of others behavior and actions that end up

shaping a social fabric. In this case the novelist draws from these experiences of individuals and

writes it using the language and the behavior is encrypted in this language and the social scientist

must fill the intellectual gap in his mind by analyzing this language that then turns the behavior

of the human into reality. according to (J. Frauley 2010) criminology in itself needs some

elements to work. These elements are description in regards of personal experience, setting

which includes the institutions in a social environment and whatnot, and the bigger picture which

can be understood as cultural norms and dynamics of a society. So, following this point, in a
 28

novel when these are all combined, they create a story to tell with meaning behind it and it

affects one another. However, (J. Frauley 2010) mentions that cultural criminologists do not rely

on literature as the center of objective analysis but he again he mentions that in the fictional

realities there are an important aspect that can challenge the boundaries of criminology. By

engaging in the fictional world of realities we might be able to extract useful data that might

clarify criminological theories, concepts, and languages. (J. Frauley 2010: Ruggeiro 2003) states

that few criminologists and sociologists take the time to read fiction then pass it forward to

students to clarify concepts of criminology and open discussion for the topic in hand.

Further stretching on crime, crime can be taken as an artistic expression (J. Frauley

2010:38) he mentions that Katz states that crime is an “artifact or lived work” and it is a form of

creative expression, and that is how crime can be situated in the cultural standpoint of society.

So, when crime is considered as a creative expression then it shall be analyzed from the

standpoint of literary expression digging into the underlying structures. How might one use this

to approach literature as a tool to teach it in the criminology & criminal justice curricula? (Engel

2003) states that when we introduce a novel to the student of criminal justice that will end up in

arousing or reaching within the student senses to empathize in understanding of both the victim

and the suspect. Nevertheless, when we have a picture of this and apply to the criminological

studies then the art of the novel by exploring realities will lead to insights of a murder case in the

fictional reality then the student of criminology applies concepts of this study in order to reach to

a conclusion on how to solve a case and research the social setting which reflects on the real

world then understand what factors shape the behavior of this act committed by the murderer.

(Engel 2003) clarifies the use of literature as it helps in adding to an individual “practical

wisdom” then the student can make concise decisions and judge clearly based on the output from
 29

the novel igniting his critical thinking needed in the field. This approach is to supplement the

way criminology looks at crime from the standpoint of literature, after all criminology as

described earlier is embedded in society and literature deals with a whole language.

The language needs to be analyzed then in such case crime is interpreted through

language by using research methods and data of concepts dealing with criminology. Then

coming to understanding as mentioned previously the act of crime can be seen as an artistic

expression ( it is not) then it should be interpreted as one (Engel, 2003). Agreeing with this to an

extent, I can see a gap in whether the student will be able to gather field information on

criminology through studying a novel and trying to apply it in his studies if it is a possible thing

if whether this is only to equip the student with the practical knowledge of critical thinking and

analyzing in the field of interpreting criminal behavior.

According to (Engel 2003) he describes the use of different approaches when introducing

literature to the curriculum of criminal justice to students and a way he mentions is to let a

student write and then present these research papers, and write reflection on the thems explored

in the literature and compare the scenes then ask quite untraditional questions such as if the

student felt if he was in the character of that story and weather he was in his shoes in order to

understand the reasons or motivations behind the act. (Engel 2003) makes use of a couple of

novels that can be used in different ways to explore the study in the classroom. My opinion here

is the same towards the study of criminology, where I believe I can make use of a couple of

novels that can tackle the study of criminology in different ways. He states that One Day in the

Life of Ivan Denisovich in a class of correction. So, on other novels that approach the legal study

from different standpoints such as legal procedures, and criminality and race, so does other

novels can bring insight on different aspects such as the human behavior and criminal mind, the
 30

social influence on crime, & detection process. Having gathered information from professors and

scholars on this field backing up the study of fiction supplementing the studies of criminology is

how to place it all together to end up with a method of utilizing the fictional world into

classroom or curriculum and the studies.

Keeping in mind the intersection of two interdisciplinary field One Day in the Life of

Ivan Denisovich mentions that there must be a back and forth between the department in his case

the English department. In that case the department might have issues that someone outside their

jurisdiction in criminal terminology is using material of their subject and I think that might not

be a problem because the department will provide the fiction that is close to the studies that is

very realistic and well written in order to teach material that is or was supervised by the right

experts who can then decide on to go with the process of using fiction for a course in

criminology and criminal justice. (Engel 2003) recognizes a novel that is much more than just a

novel, it introduces concepts on sociology and psychology, and it explores criminal behavior

theories successfully, taking that point to elaborate more now we have a view also on novels that

introduce us into the mind of criminals and if tackled with the right way then we have a case

study in the form of a novel that we can begin to analyze and from that we extract data useful to

criminology or add to the theories of crime and expand more on it using imagination as we have

discussed in the criminological imagination. (Engel 2003) says that students reading this or even

people, without them leaving with a sense of the perpetrators and their behavior and that is the

specific point we pay attention to.

It also best to consider that there are limitations of imagination especially when it comes

to a topic of solving an actual crime, but my argument here is how does the genre of crime

fiction supplements, bolster, critiques, and creates a platform for analyzing criminal activity
 31

through a lens of fiction (Campedelli et al., 2020). I think that the right use of literature

combined with social science to reach a climax of a solution within the core of the crime is

necessary, also to avoid any kind of unprofessional interpretation that would disrespect both

disciplines. My point is to use both disciplines to shape a study of crime through the eyes of

fiction using criminological imagination and research that will help students in their early stages

of studies to understand and absorb a world of crime through fictional realities, equipping them

with the right critical thinking and analytical skills needed to solve crimes and interfere in social

policy and public deepening their intellectual capability of the society we live in (Amelia et al.,

2020). Shedding light on the limitations of imagination then discussing the importance of using

the right methods of gathering empirical data and evidence then utilizing this bringing it all

together to the study is the right way of doing it and then developing as it goes, (Engel 2003)

mentions that the method he sought is the same I am referring to. He adds to my paper by

discussing that his course focuses on theoretical perspectives and empirical evidence in regard to

the points explored in the literature he uses. In a seminar he was teaching, he assigned students to

explore themes in a specific novel then asked them to write a research paper to discuss the

human rights and incarceration, understanding that knowledge in literature not only can help in

discovering important issues and teaching students of criminal justice but also, we can use

fictions to discover different aspects of the social science of criminology. (Saleh 2013) discusses

that eah novel has a specific message narrowed towards a certain crime theory. He sheds light on

an example of George Bernard Shaw’s "On the Entirely Reasonable Murder of a Police

Constable" and Ormond Greville's "The Perfect Crime" in which deploys theories of classical

school of criminology (Saleh, 2013). He mentions that the pieces also introduce the concept of

criminal events explaining actions of criminals then he stretches that the acts were natural, and
 32

logical. While he states this, he brings other ideas from other novels that explain the positive

school concept of which it is affected by the environment or the society. Mentioning this, I can

see a bridge building that we might use in this paper to identify concepts of criminology in

novels and utilize them in supplementing the study or using the literature in supporting the

criminological imagination.

This method of using a novel or literature intertwining both studies together to create a

powerful curriculum for the students when using the representations of criminals in literature to

develop theories or and I believe that literature has affected many studies not only the concern of

this paper but more disciplines such as psychology, sociology when applying them to real life

(Saleh, 2013). Literature is a key in providing usefulness to the world, intellectual, and

criminologists. And as literature do provide for us rich novels for use in the criminology

cirrucula nd for students to look at I intentd to use a number of 3 novels as examples, keeping in

mind that these are nly examples to be used for my research paper, one must know that when

using novels for courses in criminology it must have the criteria mentioned previously and shall

be researched thoroughly to provide a exquisite experience for the criminological though for

students.

Chapter Three

Human behavior in crime through fictional realities

Human behavior in crime fictional realities refers to the portrayal and examination of

criminal behavior in fiction works encompassing films, books, video games, and television

shows (Cornet et al., 2020). These fictional realities provide insights into numerous aspects of

human behavior connected to crime, comprising the stimulations behind illicit acts, the
 33

psychology of culprits, and repercussions they face (Cornet et al., 2020). One of the main

purposes of researching human behavior in crime via fiction is to entertain and engage

audiences. Fictional works frequently generate fascinating narrations that enable audiences to

experience the enthusiasm and suspense of unlawful activities from a safe distance. These

narratives offer a form of illusion and allows people to examine the darker aspects of human

nature without directly experiencing them in actual life.

Additionally, fictional realities can act as a medium for exploring and comprehending

real-world unlawful behavior. Through investigating into the minds of fictional offenders,

creators can enlighten on the multifaceted factors that cause illicit acts (Moriconi et al., 2020).

This examination may include evaluating the impact of economic, social, and psychological

factors on criminal conducts and the influence of personal encounters and upbringing. Moreover,

fictional realities can question societal perspectives and stereotypes around crime and culprits

(Moriconi et al., 2020). The fictional realities can refine characters who involve in unlawful

activities, emphasizing the multidimensionality of their individualities and the situations that

took lead them to an illegal path (Koto, 2021). This depiction promotes empathy and insight,

inspiring audiences to cross-examine their pre-conceived concepts regarding criminal behavior.

Nevertheless, it is significant to acknowledge that fictional portrayals of crime should not viewed

as a precise depiction of actual-world criminal behavior. While they might draw motivation

from-life incidents and psychological theories, fictional realities regularly prioritize

entertainment value over pragmatism (Cornet et al., 2020). Hence, it is vital to approach these

representations with a critical outlook and avert generalizing them to real-life circumstances.

The first of the selected works is a novel by Robert Bloch “Psycho” which we shall take

then understand through psychological approaches that then will help us understand the crime or
 34

criminality behind the main character of this book. As we also dive into psychological aspects of

the character of Norman bates, I want to introduce a form of literary criticism that is called

psychoanalytical criticism (Barry 2017: 96–100). This form of criticism infuses psychoanalytical

techniques in analyzing and interpreting texts. This form of psychoanalytical therapy can be

described as the stream of consciousness where the patient is talking freely to bring upon the

surface disorders or issues in the mental of the individual. So, as we are dealing with a mind of a

character and his innate, we use an approach of psychoanalytical criticism to help reach the

actions of Norman. Using this technique will seek to analyze the character of Norman Bates and

as a criminologist reads the novel, he will begin to see a character that is very disturbed and then

further understand what it is like to connect with this character through his though process or the

events that take place within the novel.

As mentioned previously, the point of the criminologist is to expand his imagination

using literature in order to become the best version of a well-equipped criminologist using his

artistic imagination in analyzing the character or criminal in the case of criminology.

(Wortley 2011: 17) mentions that some of the theories in psychological criminology actually

influence the life of the person over his life span that makes him an offender, and some are at

birth. We set out to discover also if Norman was influenced during his life, or he was the person

he was from birth. Why is this important for my research is it because in criminology, as a

researcher in the field of criminology it is in the interest of the criminologist to set and discover

differences between individuals categorized as offenders against non-offenders (Wortley 2011:

17). In the novel we also set to discover the personality of Norman Bates, and through this

personality we figure out from the narrative we discover psychological characteristics in Norman

that shows us the ways of thinking, and emotional responses of Bates and as a researcher in
 35

criminology who applies these approaches of psychological criminology theories to novels will

have acquired honed thinking skills and critical, psychoanalytical skills, that make up his

criminological imagination seeking to discover a criminal act if may described that society

pressured him to act in such way then funneling his actions into an artistic expression in the

world of fiction and not in real life but for the criminologist to criticize this expression and

analyze why this happened to understand the factors.

In criminal psychology, psychologists detect the behaviors of criminals through the

psychological process or neurological & biological traits of a person and then shift this to the

tendency of the individual in committing a crime (O’brien and Majid Yar 2008). In

psychoanalytical theories, and the field of Frued, psychoanalyst criminology previews the

individual in having sexual desires and destructive behavior that are built up in the mind and then

it needs to be controlled or projected in the right way or in case of not being able to then results

will be aggression which then the individual won't be able to put a stop to such behavior

concluding with a crime or murder in the case of Norman Bates (O’brien and Majid Yar 2008).

For detecting the individual there are theories of the personality which seek to classify

individuals and place them in categories (O’brien and Majid Yar 2008). That will ultimately help

in detecting crime through the use of psychoanalytical criminology and the use of psychology

and in the novel of Bloch we set to discover through the use of psychoanalytical criticism and

analyzing the personality of Norman to understand his mind and just like a criminologist

researching the factors of a crime happening or happened in order to widen the scope of the

criminology we dive ingo Normans behavior and psyche. So, when placing the individual in a

category the results detect likely behavior coming from this personality type.
 36

One of the things we can notice in the novel as we read it is that Norman is connected to

his mother and through that connection, we see Norman having feelings in relation to his mother

that is way more than needed. So, we then start to see clearly that he wants to be in a relationship

with his mother sexually and that is explained through the jealousy he possesses over her and

through trying to explain the Oedipus complexity to her, he shows intentions to be close to his

mother. Norman was deprived from his sexual motives because his mother shaped him to be this

way, so Norman had repressed his sexual desires causing him to repress this urge to do so. As

(Schultz and Sydney Ellen Schultz 2017) describes, repression “operates on memories” and in

the case of Norman he repressed such feelings of his sexuality causing him to become impotent.

“No, you wouldn't. Not _you_. Because you're impotent. That's the word you couldn't

remember, isn't it? Impotent. The word the books used, the word Mother used, the word

that meant you were never going to see her again because it wouldn't do any good”.

From this excerpt of the novel, we see that Norman is “impotent” repressing his sexual drive

being afraid to interact with the opposite sex due to memories or previous interactions which led

him to become this way and to keep in him the feeling repressed. The memories Norman had

with his mother that may had a hand in shaping him this way in no longer accepting his sexual

desires as a natural human need or want can be traced to a part of the novel in a scene where his

mother scolds him because he was in front of the mirror looking at himself.

“One time Mother caught him at it and hit him on the side of the head with the big silver-

handled hairbrush. She hit him hard, and it hurt. Mother said that was a nasty thing to do,

to look at yourself that way”.

 37

This act towards Norman made him afraid to have such feelings and to think of sexual desires as

sin, causing repression which lets a build-up in him that causes aggression (Schultz and Sydney

Ellen Schultz 2017). So, when developing this mechanism to not feel the sexual urge because of

a past memory that is repressed making him anxious and then we look at an excerpt from the

novel that explains the frustration of not being able to understand the sexual desire that has arisen

within him.

“She was swaying back and forth, back and forth, and now the mirror was wavy again and

she was wavy, and he couldn't stand it, he wanted to pound on the wall, he wanted to

scream at her to stop because this was an evil, perverted thing she was doing and she must

stop before he became evil and perverted too”.

The scene of Norman watching through the peek hole in the motel while Mary is looking at

herself in the mirror, Norman becomes frustrated with himself not knowing to deal with the

repressed feelings and sexual desires that accompany that because his mother inserted in his life

that this was a wrong thing to do and feel through events that took place when he was young

which takes us to the next point of projection. As we said that Norman feels anxiousness, so he

tries to deal with this by projecting his feelings towards another person, then his feelings of

aggression are also put on to this person. (Schultz and Sydney Ellen Schultz 2017) describes

projection because of repressed impulses and it is then projected to someone else, such as

feelings of lust, aggressiveness and so on to be the owner of another person and in matter of fact

it is the individuals' own feelings to feel safe and lessen the frustration.

“That's what the bitches did to you, they perverted you, and she was a bitch, they were all

bitches, Mother was a..”.

 38

As we can see that Norman couldn’t deal with his own sexual desire and lust for a woman then it

resulted to aggressiveness of his own only to be projected at Mary and the only reasons, he came

up with is that she was perverted and sinister for doing this “because she was teasing him” and in

matter of fact he was only frustrated due to his mother’s teachings and shaping since he was

young (O’brien and Majid Yar 2008). This turned him to become aggressive and call her “bitch”

and couldn’t deal with his attraction towards her even though he was lurking and looking

through a peek hole and thinking she was the one trying to seduce him. This also shows us how

Norman can be manipulative.

The mind of a criminal inflicts damage on society, and then the criminal acts on his impulses in

his mind. Part of understanding crime aside from analyzing and interpreting society or looking

into places such as crime factors caused by a certain motivation is to investigate the mind of the

criminal (O’brien and Majid Yar 2008). When understanding the mind of the criminal, one can

see more into the crime and try to come closer to the reasons for committing a crime. So, to

understand crime from a social standpoint criminologist seek psychology to figure out the

behavior or conduct of the individual through understanding & picking out the individual from

the place they are in and then seeking to understand the innate (O’brien and Majid Yar 2008).

The way that I decide to approach this novel is to try to identify how we can use such novel to

make use of expression in literature and analyze this novel using the technique of

“Psychoanalytical criticism” to try to shed light on crime and how might we utilize this into the

studies of criminology by extracting from the novel (Shi, 2013). By doing close readings then

understanding Norman’s mind through psychological criminology and as a researcher in the field

of criminology gain insight from a piece of literature in order to enhance the way criminologist

usually tackle academic books and move away from them to using the Arts & Humanities as a
 39

way to discover crime & criminality then expand horizons of a criminologist imaginative

thinking. When we apply the method of Psychoanalytical criticism to the text, we also get a

process known as “Iser’s Reception theory” (Shi 2013). In this theory both the function of

psychoanalysis and reception works in favor for each other when reading a text, as the researcher

in criminology reads a text he then begins to fill in the gaps, discovering the narrative and

delving into the mental of the character in hand creating connections from the setting and actions

of the character at a specific environment analyzing the structure from a standpoint of

criminologist rather than a literary scholar but by applying methods of psychoanalysis and

reception theory through literature he begins to understand his work through fiction.

(Shi 2013) mentions that the reception theory of Iser, is about how the reader relates to the text

and any person then can start bridging gaps specified to his but with a crime researcher, the main

focus of is directed or can be narrowed to the novel of Robert Bloch, Psycho which is the mind

and responses in order to understand the crime that happened in the novel and to see if this may

have occurred from the environment or was it through birth and how does a criminal act and

placing him in criteria and discovering his psyche through methods of literature while applying

also methods of criminology.

By discovering Norman Bate, I seek to discover his psychological thinking throughout the

narrative and oversee his character in the novel. I want to discover how does the character think

and the function of his internal dialogue and try to figure out anything that might add to him

being the character he is and see if anything in his environment shaped him to be like this or

added to his mental state (Barry, 2017). Part of the exploration I set to do in the novel is through

discovering the characteristics of Norman & how he is portrayed throughout the novel (Barry,

2017). The character of Norman Bates is a very interesting one, especially in the relationship he
 40

has with his mother which can be seen as odd and weird. Norman is very possessive over his

mother, and he can be very fond of his mother to extreme limits. In the novel Norman talks to his

mother about a theory of Frued’s which is about the need or desire of the child to have a sexual

relationship with the mother instead of the father doing so (Barry 2017) and in the novel Norman

begins to show a side of his brain on the sexual desire with his mother whom he is very

possessive over

"But I was only trying to explain something. It's what they call the Oedipus situation, and I

thought if both of us could just look at the problem reasonably and try to understand it,

maybe things would change for the better."

When a person looks to his mother in a sexual way or in a relationship to someone who he likes

and wants to be with and in the case of Norman it is his mother who he wants her in her

possession then feelings of jealousy accompany these sexual desires & when Norman finds out

about his mother’s relationship with Considine he builds up feelings of pain and hatred towards

them. These feelings usually accompany any sexual desire then are projected to the individual on

the other side or as Anna describes (Freud 2018). With that in mind then Norman commits the

murder of both his mother & Considine from the feelings he possesses for his mother. In any

other scenario it would be a lover and the partner whom might commit such heinous crime but

gere because of the Oedipus Freudian classical theory and applying psychoanalytical criticism to

the novel we discover the resentment of feelings of Norman that even if the father figure was

there he would then try to remove him from the picture but another male lover with his mom and

such as Hamlet (Barry 2017) Norman shows his resentment through the act of committing a

crime by posing them both after walking in on his mother whilst she was having a sexual

relationship.
 41

“Norman poisoned his mother and Considine with strychnine. He used some kind of rat

poison, served it to them with their coffee”.

“Norman had walked in on his mother and Considine together in the upstairs bedroom”.

When dealing with this character there is a major influence in his life that might be a reason why

Norman is Norman, and that person is his mother. Norman’s mother is a person who might

gaslight him in ways that can subconsciously affect him in being pressured and not dealt with the

right way, after all the character of Norman is a burdened character or mentally unstable.

As we can see in the openings of the novel, we can see a scene of Norman enjoying a book that

is gruesome and he savors it. We can understand a lot about this by only reading but I wish to

explore more about this character and see his motives and how actual serial killers that are

burdened just like him behave and act (Barry, 2017). By using the novel as a lens to try to depict

criminology in fictional worlds, I will try an attempt to analyze the criminal and see if the

criminal is affected by society or is it an innate act pondering outside of him due to mental

illness. In this attempt I will try to profile the criminal. In the opening scenes of the novel the

character is presented to us reading a book that is about the incase rituals and lives, it was “The

realm of Incas” in the book a scene of a victory where the people would gather in circles and

dance to the victory and the enemy’s body would be lying around and the skin would be flayed

and used as a drum (Freud, 2018). The scene was very disturbing, and the ritual was gruesome

yet Norman the character was very pleased, smiling and that brings thoughts to a disturbed

mentality that he would actually care for such thing and enjoy or savor. It is very interesting

historical information on how the old world used to act but never satisfying to a person the scene

of blood and depictions of a stomach cut open (Barry, 2017). Then we start to have a little

understanding of the character but discover deeper mental aspects of a criminal. As he was
 42

immersing himself in the scene of men dancing around and flaying the skin of an enemy laying

his stomach open to be used as drums blood throbbing he was interrupted by his mom’s

footsteps. The scene of the mom entering the room and him trying to continue without

acknowledging her then they get into a heated argument. At first the argument was about why he

hadn't been in the office where he should be and not opening the sign lights, escalating to an

argument that was about not selling the motel she had owned and moving to the new road that

was built to attract more customers was Normans comeback to her when nagging him (Barry,

2017). The mother went on to tell his son you are still 40year old living with me and not taking

initiative to move on with your life and not having any “gumption” for finding a job nor a girl.

Norman replied that she wouldn’t let him and she said” if you were half a man, you would gone

your way” (Freud, 2018). Now considering that this kind of mental abuse or words to a person

psychologically affect a person making him unstable in his personality, then from that we get a

kind of human that is slowly penetrated by his own close circle, family, then what would he be

like towards society and strangers? Now his mother was scolding him using words such as boy

and even though he was a 40-year-old man that stirred something in him “drums that would

throb just like the Incas”. Aside from this at a point she would mention the books that he would

snuggle up and only read as filthy even though he used to do this every day since he was a child,

and she would describe his books filthy. Mentioning that he would reply that “psychology isn't

filthy”.

At a point there was this interesting fact of him trying to explain the Oedipus situation or

complex which in fact was established by the psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud to his mom and the

complex can be explained in that the child would be having possessive sexual desire towards the

mom if he was a boy and vice versa. His mom hated that he would open topics to her like that as
 43

if he was a freak (Barry 2017: 96–100). Now paying attention to details like this makes me

realize that yes, the mother would play a part in making him the disturbed character that he is but

then I would also believe that it was more innate rather than only his mom’s contribution to

making him the person he is. Now slowly we start to build a profile for the character of Norman

bates. The mother would also access some traumas he had in the past about the children bullying

him telling him that “you’re a Momma’s boy” and she would support that and tell him that you

are also a “big, fat, overgrown Momma’s boy”. Norman felt like he was imprisoned, being the

40-year-old, he is living under the roof of his mother being bullied by his close one (Barry,

2017). That goes to tell me that any human being treated in this fashion will certainly develop

problems and negative attributes towards people and society like a kind of hatred or almost

become numb to people where his emotions won't be there and then that’s how criminals are

born (Freud, 2018). Then we start to see some reasonable thinking from Norman, calming

himself down when his mother kept teasing him for a reaction and she would mention that deep

down you would like to “kill me” then the scene gets interrupted by a car driving in to the motel

as Norman tried to control his reaction into a reasonable one saying that if he kept listening to his

mother, he would be sick just like her and that shows me that Norman is yet Afterall might be

sane.

Moving along from discovering bits of Norman’s character, we reach a special scene in the book.

After reading we start to understand that Norman might be normal and a smart person who is just

pressured by his mother. We get a scene where there's a lady who drives up to the hotel and

Norman is there to escort her in but then after settling for the motel and whatnot, Norman

decides to invite her up to have some dinner and coffee (Saleh, 2013). They do sit down and

Norman’s starts to talk to the lady and becomes embarrassed from her and he keeps telling her
 44

about the burdens of him with his mom. The lady suggests that he should send his mother off to

an institute of crazies. The way Norman describes his mother is a way that would make us think

that he is not the victim, rather she is a hero caring for him and he had a hand in making her the

way she is. Now this point is important because as a human who is self-aware, we usually tend to

become comfortable psychologically (Barry, 2017). So did the lady or as described by the

narrator “7 feet tall”. When she intrudes into Norman’s conversation he stands up and becomes

very irritated and says that he would never send his mother to such a place, and he would care for

her only then would he switch quickly to a smiling face. Then the lady leaves and Norman

escorts her to her room, and as they go, she realizes that he never touched a woman which makes

her think that she is safer with this person (Freud, 2018). Where the whole thing happens is in the

next scene where she gets comfortable and starts getting ready then takes a shower, she

recognizes a face behind the curtains and then its Norman killing her. Now as we go on further to

explore the innate nature of Norman and his environment, we start to build a case and then we

can start to profile Norman through the lens of criminology. By using this method then we can

start seeing the use of fiction in criminology by giving the criminologists a playground, and that

can give the ability to stretch theories of criminology and for it to be utilized in novels (Saleh,

2013). That is of course one way, the other way would be that criminology supplementing

literature, how? It is in the way of creating more critical novels that are informative towards

actual criminals using real criminology that wouldn’t be mixed up with mainstream media or

literature to create a canon of works that can be then used in the studies of crime and law (Saleh,

2013). Especially when building a case to catch a killer who the institution responsible for

catching the killer, they ultimately rely on a forensic psychologist who will be able to build a

profile to catch a killer. So then this is our job to try to fit Norman into a profile by discovering
 45

his psychology and innate behavior and see the role of a novel in portraying the actual killer in

the real world. The world of fictional reality can be insightful in the way it is portraying the

character of Norman bates. Of course, in the world of stories there are always plot twists, and so

the plot twist here is yet to be discovered (Freud, 2018). So, in the plot twist the criminologist is

still looking for the evidence and putting the pieces together so that he can have a better view of

the whole story and the events that took place. But here in the novel what takes place is

something different, the story unravels itself for us and all what we must do is to be patient to

figure out who the killer is (Barry, 2017). Reading from the beginning we can tell how the story

might take its course but now what we have to figure out is the elements of literature

supplementing criminology theory and how? Well, when we get criminologists to start to read

fiction and utilize it in the way as if it were. So, criminologists have a chance to practice

researching without a actual crime occurring in real life which in this way no one is hurt and

there is the capability for criminologists to exercise their skills through using literature and

fiction.

The next crime fiction novel I will incorporate is “Black Dahli” by James Ellroy. I will

integrate various scenes of the novel to examine numerous themes in the field of criminology

which encompasses criminal psychology, law implementation strategies, and social issues

connected to crime (Di, 2020). ‘Black Dahlia” is a renowned crime fiction novel that investigates

into numerous themes connected to criminology. The crime fiction novel was set in Los Angeles

in the 1940s, and it examines the notorious unsolved assassination of Elizabeth Short, referred to

as Black Dahlia (Di, 2020). The crime novel investigates into the dark underbelly of the city,

intertwining actual-life incidences with fictional elements. In the novel, James Ellroy offers a

fascinating narrative that can provide valuable perceptions to criminologists. For instance, the
 46

author states “The Black Dahlia case was the kind of thing that drove men crazy. It had all the

ingredients: a beautiful victim, a sadistic killer, and a mystery that defied solution.” (McGregor,

2021). The above quote is an explanation of the Black Dahlia case, which was infamous

mysterious murder that happened in Los Angeles in 1947. It implies that this specific case had a

captivating impact on individuals, mainly men, because of its intriguing aspects.

First, the quote states a “beautiful victim” implying to Elizabeth Short, the young woman

who was viciously murdered. The idiom “beautiful victim” implies that the physical appearance

of Elizabeth Short played a role in catching public attention and creating interest in the case (Di,

2020). Moreover, the quote mentions a “sadistic killer” showing that the nature of the crime was

primarily cruel and horrific. This element of the case possibly added to its disrepute and the

captivation around it. Also, the quote mentions the case as a “mystery that defied solution.”

(McGregor, 2021) The circumstance that the assassination remained baffling despite wide

investigations and media coverage contributed to its lasting allure. The mysterious nature of the

case left space for theories, speculation, and the imagination of the ones who followed it (Di,

2020). In general, the quote accentuates the fascinating nature of crime cases, mainly those that

encompass aspects of beauty, brutality, and unresolved mysteries. It implies that such cases can

have a deep on the communal imagination and create extensive interest and captivation.

Furthermore, in the novel James Ellroy contends “crime fiction allows us to explore the

darkest corners of the human mind, to understand the motivations behind criminal behavior, and

to question the boundaries between good and evil.” (Comyn, 2020) The above quote underscores

the importance of crime fiction as a means to research into the depths of human psyche and

acquire understandings into criminal behavior (Comyn, 2020). Through submerging ourselves in

crime fiction, we get to examine the darkest corners of the human mind, undo the complex
 47

inspirations that drive people to commit criminalities, and consider the indistinct lines amid

moral and evil (Comyn, 2020). In this case, crime fiction acts as a platform for evaluating the

intricacies of culprit behavior and comprehending the complex factors that lead to it. Via the

narrations and protagonists depicted in such crime novels, we can attain a profounder insight of

the psychological, environmental, and social influences that shape offenders mind.

Regarding James Ellroy’s crime fiction novel “Black Dahlia” there are various themes

that can be explored within the context of criminology. The first theme in the novel relates to

criminal psychology, whereby ‘Black Dhalia’ crime fiction novel investigates into the

psychological factors of criminality, encompassing the stimulations and behaviors of

lawbreakers (Larke, 2023). Criminologists can evaluate the characters, psychological profiles,

their reasons, and the effect of their actions on victims and community. In Ellroy’s novel “Black

Dahlia”, the concentration is on comprehending the psychological aspects that drive criminal

acts (McGregor, 2021). Criminologists can analyze the protagonist’s psychological profiles to

attain understanding of their inspirations, thought processes, and behavioral series. Via

examining these elements, criminologists can better comprehend the fundamental causes of

crime and develop policies to avoid and address illegal behavior efficiently.

The next theme is on law enforcement policies, where the novel delves into the

challenges encountered by law implementation agencies in resolving intricate crimes.

Criminologists can evaluate the exploratory techniques utilized by the crime characters, the

efficacy of these policies, and their significance to real-world law implementation practices

(Erdman, 2022). “Black Dahlia” offers a chance for criminologists to evaluate the investigative

approaches applied by law implementation agencies in the novel (Erdman, 2022). Through

researching these policies, criminologists can assess their efficacy in resolving difficult crimes
 48

and their pertinence to real-world law execution practices. This evaluation can assist recognize

areas for improvement in regulation implementation strategies and lead to the advancement of

extra effective and efficacious investigate techniques.

Furthermore, in “Black Dahlia” the author presents a resolute and corrupt portrayal of

society, whereby crime and fierceness are prevalent (Ashman, 2022). Ellroy portrays a city

plagued by planned crime, police deceit, and a justice system that is regularly inefficient and

faulty. The characters in the novel, comprising police officers and culprits, are ethically vague

and propelled by their personal agendas. Similarly, the novel examines the influence of crime on

society overall (Larke, 2023). The book portrays Los Angeles as a city, where illicit activities are

an ever-present realism. Moreover, it exposes the seedy underbody of LA, disclosing the link

amid organized crime, police dishonesty, and the abuse of vulnerable people. Via this lens James

Ellroy presents a miserable and pessimistic perception of the society, where wrongdoing and

corruption are deeply entrenched.

The writer’s depiction of judicature is critical and emphasizes its shortfalls. Ellroy the

systemic matters within law enforcement, including cover-ups, misuse of power, and the

prioritization of individual benefits over justice (McGregor, 2021). Moreover, the crime fiction

novel examines themes of racism, class divisions, and misogyny, enlightening on the societal

issues that cause the perpetuation of misconduct. In general, “Black Dahlia” provides a critical

insight on the society crime and criminal justice system (Erdman, 2022). It exhibits a world

where justice is subtle, and the lines between moral and evil are blurry. The writing challenges

conventional concepts of crime fiction and offers provocative analysis of the darker elements of

human nature and society at large.

 49

Limitations of the Study

One limitation for the study on introducing American contemporary crime fiction into

criminology studies and curriculum is the possible lack of empirical prove and scholarly research

particularly focused on the connection of crime fiction and criminology. whereas crime fiction

has been extensively consumed and appreciated by readers, there might be inadequacy of

academic literature directing addressing its academic worth and its latent contributions to the

field of criminology.

The subsequent limitation could be the idiosyncratic nature of evaluating and interpreting crime

fiction. Since crime fiction is a type of literature, its evaluation can be impacted by personal

insights, prejudices, and individual interpretations. This partiality may pose problems in

establishing a consistent framework for integrating crime fiction into criminology education and

curriculum.

Moreover, the restricted scope of the chosen crime fiction novels, “Psycho” by Robert Bloch and

“Black Dahlia” by James Ellroy, may limit the generalizability of the results. While these crime

fiction novels align with numerous topics covered in the criminology curriculum, they represent

just a slight fraction of the vast body of American modern crime fiction. Thus, the conclusions

made from the assessment of these particular novels might not entirely capture the extensiveness

and variety of crime fiction as a whole.

Correspondingly, the possible moral implications of using crime fiction as a teaching device in

criminology studies should be contemplated. Crime fiction regularly depicts graphic violence,

ethically ambiguous protagonists, and disturbing themes. It is integral to guarantee that the

inclusion of crime fiction in the program, does not embellish real-world-criminality, but instead
 50

promotes critical thinking, moral discussions, and a nuanced insight of the intricacies of illegal

behavior.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the dissertation has examined the introduction of American contemporary

crime fiction into criminology education and curriculum, and the latent for criminologists to gain

from crime fiction. Throughout the research, we have explored the aims, possible research

queries, and the role of crime fiction in the society, while similarly offering an overview of two

crime fiction novels, “Psycho” by Robert Bloch and “Black Dahlia” by James Ellroy. The

findings of the research have illustrated the crucial alignment amid these crime fiction novels and

numerous topics covered in the criminology curriculum. Both novels have offered useful

perceptions into criminal psychology, social issues related to crime, and law implementation

policies. Via examination of these themes, the novels have provided a rich insight of the

intricacies of criminal behavior and the problems experienced by those in search of justice.

Moreover, the dissertation has emphasized the role of crime fiction in the society. Crime

fiction acts as a reflection of social issues, illuminating on the darker factors of human nature and

the repercussions of crime activities. Likewise, it offers a platform for examining ethical

dilemmas, psychological motivations behind criminal behaviors, and moral questions. the

justification of the thesis statement has been supported by exploration of education usefulness of

crime fiction and its possible contributions to criminology studies. Crime fiction provides an

exceptional insight that complements traditional educational techniques, offering a narrative-

driven examination of crime and justice. Through engaging with crime fiction, criminologists

can improve their perception of actual-world criminal phenomena, advance empathy for varied

perceptions, and cultivate an extra holistic tactic to their work.

 51

While this research has provided useful insights, its is significant to recognize the

limitations experienced. The lack of empirical prove especially concentration on interconnection

of crime fiction and criminology poses a problem. Moreover, the subjective nature of evaluating

and interpreting crime fiction, the restricted scope of the chosen crime novels, and the possible

moral implications of utilizing crime fiction as a teaching tool should be contemplated. To

conclude, the incorporation of American contemporary fiction into criminology studies and

program holds great latent for enriching the academic experience and extending the insights of

criminologists, through adopting crime fiction as a useful resource, criminologists can attain

valuable perspectives into criminality conduct, law implementation policies, and the social

matters surrounding crime. More research and examination in this area are inspired to bridge the

gap amidst crime fiction and criminology, addressing the restrictions identified in this research

and promoting an extra comprehensive comprehension of the benefits and challenges of

integrating crime fiction into the field.

 52

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