Hi list. Can anyone direct me to who was the first person to explicitly make the connection between the detective and the flâneur? Benjamin says the flâneur is LIKE a detective in putting together the lives of those he observes. But who was it who first made the jump from ‘like a detective’ to ‘IS a detective’? This is more than just semantics, as I’m arguing that professional investigators – like private eyes, detectives and reporters – are NOT flâneurs, since their JOB is to patrol the city. Flânerie is an exclusively leisure activity, and therefore based within (Benjaminian derived) discourses about class. Any help? Dr. Mikel J. Koven Lecturer, Dept of Theatre, Film and Television Studies University of Wales, Aberystwyth [log in to unmask] http://users.aber.ac.uk/mik ---- For past messages, visit the Screen-L Archives: http://bama.ua.edu/archives/screen-l.html