Reverberations of Troy in Crime Fiction: Metafictional Rewriting in Don Winslow’s City on Fire (2022) and City of Dreams (2023)
Abstract
This article analyses Don Winslow’s novels City on Fire (2022) and City of Dreams (2023) against the backdrop of the contemporary profusion of Trojan-themed narratives rewriting the Greco-Roman epic tradition. Critical emphasis is placed on the techniques employed to reposition and interweave the mythic material, their actants and reading strata. As a corollary, close attention is paid to the complex metafictional negotiation mainly executed in City of Dreams, especially in relation to the Aeneid, while critically scrutinising the transposition of the love affair between Dido and Aeneas. By resignifying ancient and modern myths, this saga offers a profound reflection on the vectors of Western culture, human existence and literature itself.
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