The British School Film : From Tom Brown to Harry Potter (Hardcover)

ID: XxCly3xI0g

Manufacturer: Palgrave MacMillan UK

Through close textual and contextual analysis of British films spanning a century this book explores how pupils teachers and secondary education in general have been represented on the British screen. The author addresses a number of topics including the nature of public (fee-paying) and state schooling; the values of special single-sex and co-education; the role of male and female teachers; and the nature of childhood and adolescence itself. From the silents of Hitchcock to the sorcery of Harry Potter British cinema s continued explorations of school life highlights its importance in the nation s everyday experience and imaginary landscape. Beyond this the school film varying in scope from low-budget exploitation to Hollywood-financed blockbusters serves both as a prism through which one can trace major shifts in the British film industry and as a barometer of the social and cultural concerns of the cinema-going public. This applies especially for gender race and in all senses class.