In this Book

  • Criminology Goes to the Movies: Crime Theory and Popular Culture
  • Book
  • Nicole Rafter, Michelle Brown
  • 2011
  • Published by: NYU Press
summary

Investigating cinema under the magnifying glass

From a look at classics like Psycho and Double Indemnity to recent films like Traffic and Thelma & Louise, Nicole Rafter and Michelle Brown show that criminological theory is produced not only in the academy, through scholarly research, but also in popular culture, through film. Criminology Goes to the Movies connects with ways in which students are already thinking criminologically through engagements with popular culture, encouraging them to use the everyday world as a vehicle for theorizing and understanding both crime and perceptions of criminality. The first work to bring a systematic and sophisticated criminological perspective to bear on crime films, Rafter and Brown’s book provides a fresh way of looking at cinema, using the concepts and analytical tools of criminology to uncover previously unnoticed meanings in film, ultimately making the study of criminological theory more engaging and effective for students while simultaneously demonstrating how theories of crime circulate in our mass-mediated worlds. The result is an illuminating new way of seeing movies and a delightful way of learning about criminology.

Table of Contents

restricted access Download Full Book
  1. Cover
  2. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Contents
  2. pp. vii-viii
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Preface
  2. pp. ix-x
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Note on Use of Dates
  2. p. xi
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. 1. Introduction: Taking Criminology to the Movies
  2. pp. 1-13
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. 2. “For Money and a Woman”: Rational Choice Theories and Double Indemnity
  2. pp. 14-27
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. 3. “He’s Alive!”: Biological Theories and Frankenstein
  2. pp. 28-46
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. 4. “Blood, Mother, Blood!”: Psychological Theories and Psycho
  2. pp. 47-66
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. 5. “You Talking to Me?”: Social Disorganization Theories and Taxi Driver
  2. pp. 67-82
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. 6. “You’re Giving Me a Nervous Breakdown”: Strain Theories and Traffic
  2. pp. 83-100
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. 7. Getting the Drift: Social Learning Theories and Mystic River
  2. pp. 101-118
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. 8. “Pornography in Foot-High Stacks”: Labeling Theory and Capturing the Friedmans
  2. pp. 119-137
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. 9. Fight the Power: Conflict Theories and Do the Right Thing
  2. pp. 138-152
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. 10. “Let Her Go”: Feminist Criminology and Thelma & Louise
  2. pp. 153-166
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. 11. A Matter of Time: Life-Course Theories and City of God
  2. pp. 167-183
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. 12. Conclusion: The Big Picture
  2. pp. 184-186
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Appendix of Films
  2. pp. 187-189
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Notes
  2. pp. 191-203
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Bibliography
  2. pp. 205-219
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Index
  2. pp. 221-225
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. About the Authors
  2. p. 227
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
Back To Top

This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. Without cookies your experience may not be seamless.