Catalan crime fiction as a national allegory

What is it about?

This article examines the way in which crime fiction - in this case from Catalonia - circulates as a form of world literature through translation. We argue that due to the strong sense of place associated with crime fiction, when crime novels are translated they act as allegories of the original national context. The article explores what happens when such novels move beyond their culture of origin, in particular which national allegory is played out, and how it is read in the foreign context.

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Why is it important?

This article provides a much more nuanced understanding of the production, circulation and reception of crime fiction in translation. Rather than merely representing a specific place, we argue that crime fiction in translation is simultaneously local and global.

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