Sherlock in Tibet: Revisiting The Mandala of Sherlock Holmes - Einzelansicht

Arthur Conan Doyle's most famous character Sherlock Holmes has been one of the most famous detectives in the history of fiction in a genre that has spawned other famous detectives like Miss Maple, Hercule Poirot (or even Batman?) among others. Yet, the fascination with Sherlock Holmes has persisted in the 21st century in the form of film and TV adaptations with famous actors like Benedict Cumberbatch playing the detective. In this course, we will be talking about the detective in a different vein: his "adaptation" by a Tibetan writer who mingles the 19th century detective and brings in other famous characters to talk about Tibet and the Great Game. Could this be seen as a form of fan-fic? Or does adaptation of Sherlock create a different (textual) site of existence where Sherlock Holmes allows us to talk about colonialism?  

In this course, we will be discussing Sherlock Holmes and (post)colonial studies by discussing some early Sherlock mysteries where the colonial metropolis is the site of mystery and intrigue. The class will then talk about the way in which detective fiction functions before delving into the novel itself. We will be reading the novel via talking about issues of colonialism, writing back to the empire, and the ways in which adaptation creates a hybrid space for discussing these issues.  

The novel, along with the short stories, and the reading material will be provided via Moodle.
Please write me at priyam.goswami.choudhury@uni-potsdam.de for questions and queries. 

For full credits, students will have to write an abstract for their prospective essays in the middle of the semester.
For 3 ECTS, students will be expected to write a short essay of at least 1500 words.
For 6 ECTS, students will be expected to write a long paper of at least 3000 words.