Celluloid mushroom clouds: Hollywood and the atomic bomb
This dissertation investigates the development of the imagery associated with atomic technology found in Hollywood film produced and distributed between 1948 and 1964. Based upon a content and thematic analysis of a sample of 90 Hollywood produced films, the research examines the construction of nuclear images, their transformation throughout the fifteen year period, and the specific socio-political context and conditions of production which helped determine their selection. From the early experimentation with the issue, in searching for a profitable way to present atomic subjects, to the development of a science fiction genre which capitalized upon the public's anxiety over uncontrollable transmutational properties of nuclear energy, Hollywood filmmakers chose to perpetuate certain images and ignore others. These films provided the audience with a specific set of representations for constructing a view of atomic technology and all that it entailed. The industry's production practices and economic structure, prevailing ideologies, political pressure, and the social and cultural context helped determine what representations reached the screen. The findings illustrate how texts of popular culture are constructed, as a result of often contradictory determinants which include economic practices, signifying practices, and more general social conflict. Film content consists of texts composed on the basis of stylized conventions and codes, drawing on familiar or latent cultural myths and images. Film content can capitalize upon popular anxieties through use of metaphor and selection of genres. Hollywood selectively incorporated residual themes within the culture to exploit the fears and anxieties of audiences, and to allow a venue for questioning the wisdom of official government agenda. These potentially oppositional sentiments were defused, and governmental criticism and pressure avoided by holding the images within the margins of cold war ideology.
- Research Organization:
- California Univ., San Diego, La Jolla, CA (United States)
- OSTI ID:
- 7169122
- Resource Relation:
- Other Information: Thesis (Ph.D.)
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Energy social system
TH-D-16A-01: Medical Physics Workshop: Editorial Vision and Guidance On Writing and Reviewing Papers