Analysis Of Robert Flaherty s Famous Work Nanook Of The...

The challenge of accurately representing ethnography, the critical analysis and systematic inspection of everyday life across cultures, has been repeatedly attempted with myriad intentions and has subsequently evolved over time. This paper will examine four iconic anthropological filmmakers in the mid-twentieth century in their individual distinctive endeavors to contribute to and accomplish this goal of developing ethnographic film. From Robert Flaherty s objective to showcase culture as art, to Margaret Mead and Gregory Bateson’s intent to produce a purely unbiased and scientific cinematic record, to John Marshall’s desire to present works which would engage audiences politically, one can trace the evolving narrative of ethnographic film itself, climaxing in the ultimate quest for reflexivity. Robert Flaherty’s famous work Nanook of the North (1922) artistically depicts the life of Nanook, a fictional Inuk man in the Arctic. Throughout what became known as the pioneering â€Å"documentary† of its field, the film follows Nanook’s family in their day-to-day tasks. With no dialogue, a dramatic score ever-presently serves as narration throughout the staged scenes of trading, hunting, and building igloos. While the film was well-received for invigorating audiences, many critiqued Flaherty’s anti-attempt to accurately represent the native culture of his film’s characters (Fisher, 8 September). This begs the question of how a film can â€Å"remain critical without trivializing, to beShow MoreRelatedMetz Film Language a Semiotics of the Cinema PDF100902 Words   |  316 PagesOxford University Press, 1974. Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 0-226-52130-3 (pbk.) 1. Motion pictures—Semiotics. 2. Motion pictures— Philosophy. I. Title. PN1995.M4513 1991 791.43 014—dc20 90-46965 C1P The French edition of Christian Metz s Essais sur la signification au cinema, volume 1, was published by Editions Klincksieck in 1971,  © Editions Klincksieck, 1968. ÃŽËœThe paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of the American National Standard for Information Sciences-Permanence