In the Media

Prof. Emeritus David Thorburn speaks with Washington Post reporter Laura Bradley about the rise of a new type of female detective archetype in TV crime shows. “Though the women who populate the crime dramas of today are notably contemporary, they share a key characteristic with their literary forebears — a nebulous relationship with law enforcement,” Bradley writes.  “There’s a long tradition of a certain kind of detective being at odds with the cops,” says Thorburn. “It goes back to Sherlock Holmes, who always mocked the London police and kept exposing them.”