film studies Film studies is an academic discipline that deals with various theoretical, historical, and critical approaches to cinema as an art form and a medium. It is sometimes subsumed within media studies and is often compared to television studies. ...

, historical poetics is a scholarly approach to studying

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

, which

David Bordwell David Jay Bordwell (; born July 23, 1947) is an American film theorist and film historian. Since receiving his PhD from the University of Iowa in 1974, he has written more than fifteen volumes on the subject of cinema including ''Narration in th ...

outlined in his book ''Making Meaning'' (1989).Ira Stig Bhaskar (2004), "Historical Poetics, Narrative, and Interpretation" in ''A Companion to Film Theory'' (eds. Toby Miller & Robert Stan). Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing, p. 387. Bhaskar's article is a critical account of historical poetics. Poetics studies the ''text itself'' rather than its

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...

reception Reception is a noun form of ''receiving'', or ''to receive'' something, such as art, experience, information, people, products, or vehicles. It may refer to: Astrology * Reception (astrology), when a planet is located in a sign ruled by another p ...

or cultural significance and it can therefore be seen as a logical first step - though expressly not the last step - in terms of understanding how a narrative text (i.e. a

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite television, satellite, or cable television, cable, excluding breaking news, television adverti ...

or a film) works.Michael Z. Newman (2006) "From Beats to Arcs: Toward a Poetics of Television Narrative." ''

The Velvet Light Trap ''The Velvet Light Trap'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal covering film and media studies. It is edited by graduate students at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and the University of Texas at Austin. Each issue covers critical, theoret ...

'' Number 58, Fall 2006, p. 26.

Overview

Bordwell argues that theory-driven, interpretative approaches should be eschewed and argued that historical poetics was a better approach to studying film. Bordwell argues that " y inquiry into the fundamental principles by which a work in any representational medium is constructed can fall within the domain of poetics."David Bordwell (1989), "Historical Poetics of Cinema" in ''The Cinematic Text'' (ed. R. Barton Palmer). New York: AMS Press, p. 371 Henry Jenkins makes a distinction between descriptive poetics and prescriptive poetics where the former examine "how artworks ''have been'' constructed" and the latter make a case for "how artworks ''should be'' constructed."Henry Jenkins (1989), "Historical Poetics" in ''Approaches to Popular Film'' (ed. Joanne Hollows and Mark Jankovich). Manchester: Manchester UP, p. 100 Much of Bordwell's own research falls within the former category while an example of the latter is the '' Dogme 95 Manifesto'' by

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish ance ...

director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''Di ...

Lars von Trier Lars von Trier (''né'' Trier; 30 April 1956) is a Danish filmmaker, actor, and lyricist. Having garnered a reputation as a highly ambitious, polarizing filmmaker, he has been the subject of several controversies: Cannes, in addition to nominat ...

and

Thomas Vinterberg Thomas Vinterberg (; born 19 May 1969) is a Danish film director who, along with Lars von Trier, co-founded the Dogme 95 movement in filmmaking, which established rules for simplifying movie production. He is best known for the films ''The Celeb ...

. Bordwell's research into the stylistic changes in Hollywood cinema demonstrates four specific changes: the use of more rapid editing, an increasingly frequent use of very long or very short lenses, a more prevalent use of close shots, and more camera movement.David Bordwell (2002) “Intensified Continuity: Visual Style in Contemporary American Film” in ''

Film Quarterly ''Film Quarterly'', a journal devoted to the study of film, television, and visual media, is published by University of California Press. It publishes scholarly analyses of international and Hollywood cinema as well as independent film, including d ...

'' 55(3), 16-28.David Bordwell (2006) ''The Way Hollywood Tells It. Story and Style in Modern Movies'' Berkeley: University of California Press. Historical poetics and neoformalism are part of the "post-theory" trend in

. Bordwell has repeatedly argued that some approaches — ones based in "Grand Theories" — do not study films ''per se'' but instead use films to confirm predetermined theoretical frameworks. He and

Noël Carroll Noël Carroll (born 1947) is an American philosopher considered to be one of the leading figures in contemporary philosophy of art. Although Carroll is best known for his work in the philosophy of film (he is a proponent of cognitive film theory) ...

coined the term "S.L.A.B. theory" which refers to theorists Saussure,

Lacan Jacques Marie Émile Lacan (, , ; 13 April 1901 – 9 September 1981) was a French psychoanalyst and psychiatrist. Described as "the most controversial psycho-analyst since Freud", Lacan gave yearly seminars in Paris from 1953 to 1981, and ...

Althusser Louis Pierre Althusser (, ; ; 16 October 1918 – 22 October 1990) was a French Marxist philosopher. He was born in Algeria and studied at the École normale supérieure in Paris, where he eventually became Professor of Philosophy. Althusser ...

, and

Barthes Roland Gérard Barthes (; ; 12 November 1915 – 26 March 1980) was a French literary theorist, essayist, philosopher, critic, and semiotician. His work engaged in the analysis of a variety of sign systems, mainly derived from Western popular ...

. Historical poetics is considered to be related to

cognitive film theory Aesthetic cognitivism is a methodology in the philosophy of art, particularly audience responses to art, that relies on research in cognitive psychology. Although the term is used more in humanistic disciplines than scientific ones, the methodolog ...

.Annette Kuhn and Guy Westwell (2012). "Neoformalism" in ''A Dictionary of Film Studies''. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

References

{{Filmstudies Film theory

Overview

See also

References