D.W. Griffith's the Birth of a Nation

D.W. Griffith's the Birth of a Nation
Author :
Publisher : Oxford University Press
Total Pages : 741
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9780199887514
ISBN-13 : 0199887519
Rating : 4/5 (519 Downloads)

Book Synopsis D.W. Griffith's the Birth of a Nation by : Melvyn Stokes

Download or read book D.W. Griffith's the Birth of a Nation written by Melvyn Stokes and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2008-01-15 with total page 741 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this deeply researched and vividly written volume, Melvyn Stokes illuminates the origins, production, reception and continuing history of this ground-breaking, aesthetically brilliant, and yet highly controversial movie. By going back to the original archives, particularly the NAACP and D. W. Griffith Papers, Stokes explodes many of the myths surrounding The Birth of a Nation (1915). Yet the story that remains is fascinating: the longest American film of its time, Griffith's film incorporated many new features, including the first full musical score compiled for an American film. It was distributed and advertised by pioneering methods that would quickly become standard. Through the high prices charged for admission and the fact that it was shown, at first, only in "live" theaters with orchestral accompaniment, Birth played a major role in reconfiguring the American movie audience by attracting more middle-class patrons. But if the film was a milestone in the history of cinema, it was also undeniably racist. Stokes shows that the darker side of this classic movie has its origins in the racist ideas of Thomas Dixon, Jr. and Griffith's own Kentuckian background and earlier film career. The book reveals how, as the years went by, the campaign against the film became increasingly successful. In the 1920s, for example, the NAACP exploited the fact that the new Ku Klux Klan, which used Griffith's film as a recruiting and retention tool, was not just anti-black, but also anti-Catholic and anti-Jewish, as a way to mobilize new allies in opposition to the film. This crisply written book sheds light on both the film's racism and the aesthetic brilliance of Griffith's filmmaking. It is a must-read for anyone interested in the cinema.


D.W. Griffith's the Birth of a Nation Related Books

D.W. Griffith's the Birth of a Nation
Language: en
Pages: 741
Authors: Melvyn Stokes
Categories: Performing Arts
Type: BOOK - Published: 2008-01-15 - Publisher: Oxford University Press

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

In this deeply researched and vividly written volume, Melvyn Stokes illuminates the origins, production, reception and continuing history of this ground-breakin
In Motion
Language: en
Pages: 232
Authors: Howard Dodson
Categories: History
Type: BOOK - Published: 2004 - Publisher: National Geographic

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

An illustrated chronicle of the migrations--forced and voluntary--into, out of, and within the United States that have created the current black population.
Canada
Language: en
Pages: 395
Authors: Samy Appadurai
Categories: Political Science
Type: BOOK - Published: 2012-10-02 - Publisher: AuthorHouse

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Canada a Nation in Motion is a bold look at issues facing Canada today from the perspective of a Canadian who truly understands the issues. In his special blend
On Hollywood
Language: en
Pages: 228
Authors: Allen John Scott
Categories: Business & Economics
Type: BOOK - Published: 2005 - Publisher: Princeton University Press

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Preliminary arguments : culture, economy, and the city -- Origins and early growth of the Hollywood motion picture industry -- A new map of Hollywood -- The oth
Words in Motion
Language: en
Pages: 353
Authors: Carol Gluck
Categories: Social Science
Type: BOOK - Published: 2009-12-04 - Publisher: Duke University Press

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

On the premise that words have the power to make worlds, each essay in this book follows a word as it travels around the globe and across time. Scholars from fi