The author Agatha Christie wrote more than sixty detective novels between 1916 and 1973. Christie wrote her detective stories during a time in which English society also experienced the first and...Show moreThe author Agatha Christie wrote more than sixty detective novels between 1916 and 1973. Christie wrote her detective stories during a time in which English society also experienced the first and second wave of feminism. This thesis will investigate to what extent the first and second wave of feminism influenced Christie’s depiction of her well-known female detective Miss Marple and her views on women’s roles and identities in British society. This analysis will focus on the following three Miss Marple novels: The Murder at the Vicarage (1930), A Murder is Announced (1950), and Nemesis (1971). Eventually, this thesis will show that the feminist thought and activism key to the first and second wave of feminism have had a significant influence on Christie’s depiction of Miss Marple. Throughout these years, Christie has gradually increased Miss Marple’s agency, prominence and engagement with feminist thought expressed in her time. Even so, the exploration of feminist thought concerning same-sex relationships presents to be a boundary for Christie.Show less
While much scholarly work has been done on American Cold-War science fiction, John Wyndham’s work has received relatively little attention from literary scholars. Only a handful of sustained...Show moreWhile much scholarly work has been done on American Cold-War science fiction, John Wyndham’s work has received relatively little attention from literary scholars. Only a handful of sustained literary discussions of his work have been published. An unfortunate event, since many of his books give a representation of post-war developments in the form of (post)-apocalyptic stories, and these narratives reflect the society’s fear of what humankind was able to invent, and how these inventions could be harmful to its very existence on a global scale. By embedding non-fictional post-war developments in his science fiction, Wyndham created stories that – even today – can be read as warnings against such dangers. This thesis examines the ways in which post-war social, political and economic developments are embedded in Wyndham's The Day of the Triffids (1951), The Kraken Wakes (1953), The Chrysalids (1955), and The Outward Urge (1959), and what rhetorical force his stories have. Moreover, the thesis concentrates on how the science fiction genre enabled Wyndham to warn his readership for the possible fatal consequences of the Cold War parties’ behaviour and how the genre facilitated Wyndham in expressing criticism of these two power blocs. Furthermore, it focuses especially on Cold War elements that affected British society, such as the nuclear threat, the Space Race, and the changing social position of women.Show less
