“Tales from the Darkside”: The Role of the Extractive Industries in the Rebus Novels
As mainstream detective fiction with a strong focus on police procedure, Ian Rankin’s Rebus novels fit the accepted definition of FASP. However, the investigations often touch on other professions and industries, allowing them to also be considered from the perspective of their intersecting professi...
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| Xuất bản năm: | URI:https://journals.openedition.org/ilcea, |
|---|---|
| Tác giả chính: | |
| Định dạng: | Article ou chapitre numérique |
| Ngôn ngữ: | Anglais |
| Được phát hành: |
ILCEA
2023
|
| Những chủ đề: | |
| Truy cập trực tuyến: | Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM |
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openedition-oai:revues.org:ilcea_556 |
|---|---|
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openedition |
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OpenEdition Journal |
| language |
Anglais |
| format |
Article ou chapitre numérique |
| building |
0/Bibliothèque numérique/ 1/Bibliothèque numérique/OpenEdition Journals/ |
| topic |
FASP extractive industries coalmining oil industry Scotland Rankin (Ian) FASP industries extractives industrie charbonnière industrie pétrolière Rankin (Ian) |
| spellingShingle |
FASP extractive industries coalmining oil industry Scotland Rankin (Ian) FASP industries extractives industrie charbonnière industrie pétrolière Rankin (Ian) Leishman, David “Tales from the Darkside”: The Role of the Extractive Industries in the Rebus Novels |
| description |
As mainstream detective fiction with a strong focus on police procedure, Ian Rankin’s Rebus novels fit the accepted definition of FASP. However, the investigations often touch on other professions and industries, allowing them to also be considered from the perspective of their intersecting professional substrats. This paper intends to explore the role of the fossil fuel industries, which are of particular significance, having shaped not only the personal and creative development of the author, but also the national, socio-political context in which the novels were written and set. It is our intention to examine in particular how the representation of the extractive industries generates images of concealment and uncovering, superficiality and depth which have particular resonance with the depiction of Rebus’s police investigations, generally characterised by the revealing of dark truths. More significantly, by linking these themes to the energy sources which have been pivotal to the modern world’s industrial development, and particularly to that of Scotland since the 1970s, the novels foreground the links between commercial, political and social concerns. By doing so, the Rebus novels characterise a modern Scottish literary tradition which reiterates the subordination of modern society to economic forces. However, in resituating the novels within this literary tradition where the extractive industries have always been strongly present, it is possible to question the pertinence of the FASP label in this instance. Instead, it can be seen how the same socioeconomic concerns connected with similar professional themes are shared by a number of Scottish works along a continuum which ranges from commercially-driven detective fiction to more challenging works of experimental writing. |
| author |
Leishman, David |
| author_facet |
Leishman, David |
| author_sort |
Leishman, David |
| title |
“Tales from the Darkside”: The Role of the Extractive Industries in the Rebus Novels |
| title_short |
“Tales from the Darkside”: The Role of the Extractive Industries in the Rebus Novels |
| title_full |
“Tales from the Darkside”: The Role of the Extractive Industries in the Rebus Novels |
| title_fullStr |
“Tales from the Darkside”: The Role of the Extractive Industries in the Rebus Novels |
| title_full_unstemmed |
“Tales from the Darkside”: The Role of the Extractive Industries in the Rebus Novels |
| title_sort |
“tales from the darkside”: the role of the extractive industries in the rebus novels |
| publisher |
ILCEA |
| publishDate |
2023 |
| container_title |
URI:https://journals.openedition.org/ilcea |
| url |
https://ezproxy.univ-orleans.fr/login?url=https://doi.org/10.4000/ilcea.556 https://ezproxy.univ-orleans.fr/login?url=https://journals.openedition.org/ilcea/556 |
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1877292855501783040 |
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openedition-oai:revues.org:ilcea_556 https://doi.org/10.4000/ilcea.556 urn:doi:10.4000/ilcea.556 en https://journals.openedition.org/ilcea/556 2023-03-20T01:00:00Z info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess article info:eu-repo/semantics/article urn:handle:20.500.13089/h046 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/ “Tales from the Darkside”: The Role of the Extractive Industries in the Rebus Novels ILCEA UGA Éditions - Université Grenoble Alpes info:eu-repo/semantics/reference/issn/2101-0609 info:eu-repo/semantics/reference/issn/1639-6073 URI:https://journals.openedition.org/ilcea Leishman, David FASP extractive industries coalmining oil industry Scotland Rankin (Ian) FASP industries extractives industrie charbonnière industrie pétrolière Rankin (Ian) As mainstream detective fiction with a strong focus on police procedure, Ian Rankin’s Rebus novels fit the accepted definition of FASP. However, the investigations often touch on other professions and industries, allowing them to also be considered from the perspective of their intersecting professional substrats. This paper intends to explore the role of the fossil fuel industries, which are of particular significance, having shaped not only the personal and creative development of the author, but also the national, socio-political context in which the novels were written and set. It is our intention to examine in particular how the representation of the extractive industries generates images of concealment and uncovering, superficiality and depth which have particular resonance with the depiction of Rebus’s police investigations, generally characterised by the revealing of dark truths. More significantly, by linking these themes to the energy sources which have been pivotal to the modern world’s industrial development, and particularly to that of Scotland since the 1970s, the novels foreground the links between commercial, political and social concerns. By doing so, the Rebus novels characterise a modern Scottish literary tradition which reiterates the subordination of modern society to economic forces. However, in resituating the novels within this literary tradition where the extractive industries have always been strongly present, it is possible to question the pertinence of the FASP label in this instance. Instead, it can be seen how the same socioeconomic concerns connected with similar professional themes are shared by a number of Scottish works along a continuum which ranges from commercially-driven detective fiction to more challenging works of experimental writing. En tant que romans policiers qui mettent l’accent sur les procédures liées aux métiers de la police, les romans de la série des Rebus de Ian Rankin correspondent à la définition convenue de la FASP. Cependant, les investigations touchent souvent d’autres professions et secteurs d’activité, ce qui nous permet de les considérer du point de vue de l’intersection de leurs différents substrats professionnels. Cette communication cherche à explorer le rôle des industries pétrolières et charbonnières, qui revêtent une importance toute particulière, ayant façonné non seulement l’évolution personnelle et créative de l’auteur, mais aussi le contexte national et sociopolitique dans lequel les romans s’inscrivent. Nous avons surtout l’intention d’examiner la manière dont la représentation des industries extractives génère des motifs de dissimulation et de révélation, de superficialité et de profondeur qui ont une résonance particulière face à la description des investigations policières menées par Rebus, qui se caractérisent souvent par la mise au jour de vérités sombres. De surcroît, en rattachant ces thèmes aux sources d’énergie qui sont déterminantes dans le développement du monde industrialisé, et dans l’histoire de l’Ecosse depuis les années 1970, les romans soulignent les liens entre des enjeux commerciaux, politiques et sociaux. De cette manière, les romans de la série Rebus incarnent une tradition littéraire écossaise moderne qui réaffirme la subordination de la société moderne aux forces économiques. Cependant, en réinscrivant ces romans au sein d’une tradition littéraire où les industries extractives ont toujours été très présentes, il est possible de nous interroger sur la pertinence ici de l’appellation de FASP. À la place, nous constatons que les mêmes questionnements socioéconomiques mis en rapport avec des thématiques professionnelles semblables sont partagés par nombre d’œuvres de fiction écossaise au sein d’un continuum qui passe du roman policer commercial à des œuvres plus exigeantes de littérature expérimentale. |