Nordic Noir - Location, Identity and Emotion

Understanding and discussing the impact of the Nordic element in ‘Nordic Noir’ is the main purpose of this article. This is pursued by tracing the concepts of location, identity and emotion in selected episodes of TV series and serials representative of Nordic Noir – Wallander (2005-) Forbrydelsen (The Killing, 2007, 2009, 2012), and the Swedish-Danish co-production Bron |Broen (The Bridge, 2011-). Considering the roots of Nordic Noir is important in order to understand the implications of the concept, including its melancholic and dark features. The common roots and the different ways in which the Nordic countries traditionally see each other are therefore investigated – with Denmark and Sweden in the main roles. In terms of theory, the concept of emotions as “structures of feeling” (Raymond Williams 1978) has recently been revived, paving the way for studies of the relationship between culture and emotion (Sharma & Dahl 2013, Tygstrup 2013, Pribram 2011, Laine 2011). Their concepts are applied in the analyses. The article concludes with a perspective considering the role of Nordic Noir vis-à-vis international TV drama productions.