The Documentary Impulse
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project_muse_669471.pdf
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563.83 KB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
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Author(s)
Shell, Hanna Rose
Mitman, Gregg
Date Issued
July 2017
Journal
Technology and Culture
Publisher
Johns Hopkins University Press
Citation
Shell, Hanna Rose and Gregg Mitman. “The Documentary Impulse.” Technology and Culture 58, 3 (July 2017): 846–855 © 2017 Johns Hopkins University Press
Version
Final published version
Abstract
This article has two interconnected goals. It is, first of all, a review of the film The Land Beneath Our Feet, an exemplary documentary that combines the history of technology, science and technology studies, and environmental history in its exploration of the social, cultural, and natural consequences of the rubber industry’s expansion in Liberia. The essay’s larger purpose, however, is to explore the powerful role documentary film-making practices have to play in the development of new approaches in the history of technology. Here, an interview with historian and film co-director Gregg Mitman provides the framework for an expansive conversation about both the “documentary impulse” that he explores in his film and related written works, and also the growing role of audiovisual practice in scholarly work.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Program in Science, Technology and Society
Terms of Use
Article is made available in accordance with the publisher's policy and may be subject to US copyright law. Please refer to the publisher's site for terms of use.
Persistent DSpace Link
DOI of Published Version
https://doi.org/10.1353/TECH.2017.0084
