Questioning Style

Robert Sinnerbrink*

*Corresponding author for this work

    Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingChapterpeer-review

    4 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    According to tradition, philosophy begins in wonder. We might add that it usually ends in one of two ways, either in self-assured mastery or in thoughtful perplexity. Philosophical reflection on film presents an intriguing variation on this theme. Here too we find wonder at the cinema: what it is or how it works, what makes it so arresting, enchanting, or overwhelming. Nonetheless, like traditional philosophical reflection on art – think of Plato’s anxiety over the role of poetry in the polis – philosophers of film often end up disenfranchising cinema by reducing it to an instrumental example or passive theoretical object. Alternatively, however, philosophy can engage in a thoughtful meditation that accompanies film, translating the experience it affords into a different register and in doing so perhaps also transforming itself.
    Original languageEnglish
    Title of host publicationThe Language and Style of Film Criticism
    EditorsAndrew Klevan
    Place of PublicationHoboken
    PublisherRoutledge, Taylor and Francis Group
    Pages38-53
    Number of pages16
    ISBN (Electronic)9780415560955
    ISBN (Print)9780203817315
    Publication statusPublished - 1 Jan 2011

    Fingerprint

    Dive into the research topics of 'Questioning Style'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

    Cite this