Course

The modern genre of crime fiction enjoys enormous popularity internationally, with readers thrilling to whodunits, hard-boiled detective stories, thrillers, police procedurals, and more. Though these works range from the dryly analytical to brutally violent, they tend to be formulaic: the reader knows what to expect in terms of form, and the aim is usually the solution of a crime. But there are many works of literature that are concerned with crime of various kinds that do not follow a generic formula. These, like crime fiction works, can offer glimpses into various societies, the human psyche, relationships, and more. They also present a broader range of literary strategies than generic crime fiction does. 

In this course we will read works by acclaimed authors from three countries: Sweden, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and Ireland. Each week we will read either a short novel or a few short stories, looking at the authors, the historical and societal context of the works, the nature of the crime(s) committed, the genre of the work and how it lends itself to the representation of crime, and more.

Faculty Bio

Linda Haverty Rugg is a professor in Berkeley’s Scandinavian Department. She has taught OLLI courses on Ingmar Bergman, crime fiction, saga literature, eco criticism, and Mark Twain. She is also a recipient of OLLI’s “Distinguished Teaching Award.” She received her undergraduate degree with departmental honors in English and German from Barnard College, and her M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in Comparative Literature from Harvard University. 

This is a Best of OLLI Course

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Member Praise for Linda Rugg

Linda Rugg is such an engaging instructor, and she has a deep passion ... that invigorated all of us.

Dr. Rugg is an exceptionally gifted teacher. She is brilliant, funny and down to earth. The class exceeded all expectations

Faculty Q&A

• Read an interview with Linda Rugg from our archive.