HISTORICAL FILMS PERCEPTIONS OF THE PAST The first films were made in the first half of the twentieth century and along with this the first historical films were made. These include ‘The Pass 2800w
HISTORICAL FILMS PERCEPTIONS OF THE PAST The first films were made in the first half of the twentieth century and along with this the first historical films were made. These include ‘The Pass 2800w
HISTORICAL FILMS PERCEPTIONS OF THE PAST 2800w
The first films were made in the first half of the twentieth century and along with this the first historical films were made. These include ‘The Passion of Joan of Arc’ in 1924, ‘The King of Kings’ in 1927 and ‘The Four Horseman of the Apocalypse’ in 1921. Even since the first historical films were made, this genre has become one of the most popular out of all types of film. Due to this, millions of people watch these films every year and therefore get their perception of History mostly from film. This poses a problem for the historian.
Robert Rosenstone clearly states this, “Let’s be blunt and admit it: historical films trouble and disturb professional historians and have troubled and disturbed professional historians for a long time” (Rosenstone R, 1995, p.45). Furthermore, William Guynn provides evidence of this, “In cinema, history empties out its significance and leaves us with the cold artifice of representation” (Guynn W, 2006, p.6). On the other hand, Guynn admits, “For some Historians, the cinema is not entirely lost; indeed, it can be salvaged if we acknowledge that historical film is the ‘most fictional of genres’ and abandon the idea of film as a vehicle of historical representation” (Guynn W, 2006, p.6).
What this means is that although film cannot be an instrument for representing the past, it can
The first films were made in the first half of the twentieth century and along with this the first historical films were made. These include ‘The Passion of Joan of Arc’ in 1924, ‘The King of Kings’ in 1927 and ‘The Four Horseman of the Apocalypse’ in 1921. Even since the first historical films were made, this genre has become one of the most popular out of all types of film. Due to this, millions of people watch these films every year and therefore get their perception of History mostly from film. This poses a problem for the historian.
Robert Rosenstone clearly states this, “Let’s be blunt and admit it: historical films trouble and disturb professional historians and have troubled and disturbed professional historians for a long time” (Rosenstone R, 1995, p.45). Furthermore, William Guynn provides evidence of this, “In cinema, history empties out its significance and leaves us with the cold artifice of representation” (Guynn W, 2006, p.6). On the other hand, Guynn admits, “For some Historians, the cinema is not entirely lost; indeed, it can be salvaged if we acknowledge that historical film is the ‘most fictional of genres’ and abandon the idea of film as a vehicle of historical representation” (Guynn W, 2006, p.6).
What this means is that although film cannot be an instrument for representing the past, it can