The Arts

Tattoos in crime and detective narratives

Marking and remarking

by Kate Watson, Katharine Cox

Description

Tattoos in crime and detective narratives examines representations of the tattoo and tattooing in literature, television and film, from two periods of tattoo renaissance (1851-1914, and c1955 to present). It makes an original contribution to understandings of crime and detective genre and the ways in which tattoos act as a mimetic device that marks and remarks these narratives in complex ways. With a focus on tattooing as a bodily narrative, the book incorporates the critical perspectives of posthumanism, spatiality, postcolonialism, embodiment and gender studies. The grouped essays examine the first tattoo renaissance, the rebirth of the tattoo in contemporary culture through literature, children's literature, film and television. The collection has a broad appeal, and will be of interest to all literature and media scholars, but in particular those with an interest in crime and detective narratives and skin studies.

More Information

Rights Information

Albania, Algeria, Angola, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Bahrain, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Canada, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, China, Colombia, Comoros, Congo [DRC], Congo, Republic of the, Costa Rica, Ivory Coast, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Djibouti, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Faroe Islands, Finland, France, French Guiana, Gabon, Gambia, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Honduras, Hongkong, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kuwait, Latvia, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macau, China, Macedonia [FYROM], Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Mali, Malta, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mayotte, Mexico, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Reunion, Romania, Russia, Rwanda, Saint Helena, Sao Tome and Principe, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Serbia, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Somalia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Syria, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tokelau, Tunisia, Turkey, Uganda, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Venezuela, Vietnam, Western Sahara, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Sudan, Cyprus, Palestine, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Liechtenstein, Azerbaijan, Jamaica, Kyrgyzstan, Dominican Republic, Myanmar, Monaco

Reviews

Tattoos in crime and detective narratives: Marking and remarking examines representations of the tattoo and tattooing in literature, television and film from two periods of tattoo renaissance (1851-1914, and c. 1955 to present). The book aids our understanding of the crime and detective genre and the ways in which tattoos act as a mimetic device that marks and remarks these narratives in complex ways. Tattooing is focused on as a bodily narrative, incorporating the critical perspectives of posthumanism, spatiality, postcolonialism, embodiment and gender studies. The importance of the tattoo is explored through analysis of the writings of early genre exponents of detective fiction including Louisa May Alcott, Edgar Allan Poe, Arthur Conan Doyle, and the contemporary rebirth of the tattoo through the writings of Stieg Larsson, Sarah Hall, Alan Kent, Caryl Férey, Jeffery Deaver, Peter Robinson and China Miéville, amongst others. The volume includes a separate section on children's literature, examining the work of J. K. Rowling and Lemony Snicket in particular. Sections on film and television focus on Christopher Nolan's Memento, adaptations of the Bounty mutiny, and the television series Supernatural, Dark angel, Criminal minds, CSI: NY, and Law and order. The collection will have a broad appeal, and will be of interest to all literature and media scholars, but in particular those with an interest in crime and detective narratives, and skin studies.

Author Biography

Kate Watson is a Teacher of English and an Independent Scholar Katharine Cox is a Principal Lecturer in English at Sheffield Hallam University

Trusted Partner
Manchester University Press

Manchester University Press

Manchester University Press is a leading UK publisher known for excellent research in the humanities and social sciences.

View all titles

Bibliographic Information

  • Publisher Manchester University Press
  • Publication Date February 2025
  • Orginal LanguageEnglish
  • ISBN/Identifier 9781526182623 / 1526182629
  • Publication Country or regionUnited Kingdom
  • FormatPrint PDF
  • Pages304
  • ReadershipGeneral/trade; College/higher education; Professional and scholarly
  • Publish StatusPublished
  • Dimensions234 X 156 mm
  • Biblio NotesDerived from Proprietary 4395
  • Reference Code17070

Subscribe to our

newsletter