
Murder in Motion
A Sociological Analysis of the City, Transit, and Identity in the Modernist and Postmodernist Thriller
Michael Mirabile(Author)
Routledge (Publisher)
1st Edition
Published on 7. May 2026
252 pages
978-1-040-63092-1 (ISBN)
System requirements
for ePUB without DRM
E-Book Single Licence
You are acquiring a single user licence for this eBook, which you might not transfer. [L]
Available for download
Description
Alles über E-Books | Antworten auf Fragen rund um E-Books, Kopierschutz und Dateiformate finden Sie in unserem Info- & Hilfebereich.
Murder in Motion examines the fictional category of the thriller - one founded on the affects and objects of suspense - through the lens of city dwelling. In particular, the purpose is to locate the mechanism of suspense against the backdrop of the increased mobility and speed of modern life, employing exegetical tools drawn from urban sociology and related fields to determine the significance of representations of anxiety within metropolitan settings.
Existing scholarship has tended to treat suspense as a technique of temporal delay and the thriller as a formal genre. Quite differently, this study reads key (literary, cinematic, and televisual) narratives in relation to epochal transformations of society, from industrialization and modernity to globalization, placing emphasis on the intersection of modern transport and identity. It is a phenomenon the sociologist Hartmut Rosa has designated "social acceleration." It becomes evident through the classical, modernist, and postmodernist phases of the thriller, while the meaning of suspense changes according to the velocity and spatial compressions resulting from technological change.
The audience for the book will be students, instructors, and researchers in literary studies, film studies, media studies, as well as researchers in sociology and critical theory.
Existing scholarship has tended to treat suspense as a technique of temporal delay and the thriller as a formal genre. Quite differently, this study reads key (literary, cinematic, and televisual) narratives in relation to epochal transformations of society, from industrialization and modernity to globalization, placing emphasis on the intersection of modern transport and identity. It is a phenomenon the sociologist Hartmut Rosa has designated "social acceleration." It becomes evident through the classical, modernist, and postmodernist phases of the thriller, while the meaning of suspense changes according to the velocity and spatial compressions resulting from technological change.
The audience for the book will be students, instructors, and researchers in literary studies, film studies, media studies, as well as researchers in sociology and critical theory.
Reviews / Votes
"Murder in Motion draws upon spatiality studies and mobility theory, as well as urbanism and other areas, to look at the ways that 20th and 21st century crime fiction reflects the acceleration and velocity of modern urban life. This is an enriching and interesting approach that opens up both classic cinema and newer cinematic texts, and their interrelationship with modern social life."Robert T. Tally, Professor of English and International Studies, Texas State University
"Most studies of the thriller, whether in fiction, film, or television, approach the subject as a question of genre, which has an acknowledged set of rules that define it. Murder in Motion adopts the methodology of urban sociology as espoused by Paul Virilio, Henri Lefebvre, Walter Benjamin, Marc Auge and others to show how the modern thriller tracks the transformational shifts in society brought on by industrialization and forms of rapid transit. The suspense and the abrupt shift from the ordinary to the extraordinary that are hallmarks of the thriller elucidate the sociological account of modern angst. It's a thrilling work that will be of social value and importance for some time to come."
Joseph Conte, Professor of English, University of Buffalo
More details
Series
Edition
1. Auflage
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Target group
College/higher education
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
Reflowable
Illustrations
4 Halftones, black and white; 4 Illustrations, black and white
File size
3,03 MB
ISBN-13
978-1-040-63092-1 (9781040630921)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

Michael Mirabile
Murder in Motion
A Sociological Analysis of the City, Transit, and Identity in the Modernist and Postmodernist Thriller
Book
approx. 05/2026
1st Edition
Routledge
€60.70
Not yet published

Michael Mirabile
Murder in Motion
A Sociological Analysis of the City, Transit, and Identity in the Modernist and Postmodernist Thriller
Book
approx. 03/2026
1st Edition
Routledge
€208.50
Not yet published
Person
Michael Mirabile is an Assistant Professor of English at Lewis & Clark College, where he teaches courses in film and post-World War II fiction. He earned a PhD in Comparative Literature from Yale University. He is the author of Edges of Noir: Extreme Filmmaking in the 1960s (2024).
Content
1.Introduction: The Speed of Suspense. 2.Mistaken for No One: Intersubjective Transfers on Trains. 3.Suspensions of Identity: Social Acceleration and Character. 4.The Child Vanishes: Spatial Enclosure in Aero-Thrillers. 5.Remapping Espionage: Don DeLillo's Narratives of Transnational Intrigue. 6.New Frontiers for Suspense: Dispatches from the Multiverse. 7.The Suspense of Speed. 8.Bibliography.
System requirements
File format: ePUB
Copy protection: without DRM (Digital Rights Management)
System requirements:
- Computer (Windows; MacOS X; Linux): Use a reader that can handle the file format ePUB, such as Adobe Digital Editions or FBReader – both free (see eBook Help).
- Tablet/Smartphone (Android; iOS): Install the free app Adobe Digital Editions or the app PocketBook (see eBook Help).
- E-reader: Bookeen, Kobo, Pocketbook, Sony, Tolino and many more (not Kindle).
The file format ePUB works well for novels and non-fiction books – i.e., 'flowing' text without complex layout. On an e-reader or smartphone, line and page breaks automatically adjust to fit the small displays.
This eBook does not use copy protection or Digital Rights Management
For more information, see our eBook Help page.