A walk through the criminal's city: John Kiriamiti's 'My life in crime' and 'My life in prison'.
Date
2008-09-05T12:02:20Z
Authors
Musangi, Jennifer Beatrice
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Abstract
ABSTRACT
A Walk through the Criminal’s City: John Kiriamiti’s My Life in Crime and My
Life in Prison is an examination of Kiriamiti’s use of the criminal figure to represent
the urban space and its discourses. Among the various ways through which this
study achieves its aim is by undertaking an overview of the crime genre in terms of
its history and development, particularly the most popular of which is the detective
crime sub-genre. Secondly, the study examines Kiriamiti’s (re)construction of the
fictional criminal figure as a hero through the principles of the crime thriller. In the
examination of Kiriamiti’s representation of the urban space, this study digs into the
various zones in which the criminal undertakes his daily activities like the bar,
certain neighbourhoods and the prison. Finally, the study examines the use of
stereotypes, as forming part of the discourses that order the urban space, in
Kiriamiti’s crime writing.
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Keywords
criminal, Crime, city, interpellation, reader