| In this dissertation I examine the social history of film in the United States to illuminate the ideological and organizational foundations of the valuation of art. The main question I address is why some culture is valorized as art. I examine the social history of film in the United States as a case that can illuminate the many influences on perceptions of artistic status. Film, as a medium, was initially regarded as novelty entertainment. American intellectuals disapproved of film as mindless spectacle for the masses and devoid of substance. Over time, film won favor in intellectual circles and the view that film could be art diffused widely. Attempts to valorize film as art began in film's first decades. However, these isolated efforts were not effective. A series of key events and actions coincided in the late 1950s and 1960s both within and outside the film world. In my analysis, there are three main factors in the legitimation of film as art: (1) a changing opportunity space, defined by the wider social context of American society; (2) the institutionalization of resources and production and consumption practices, defined by the actions, events, and developments within the film world; (3) and the development of a legitimating ideology, created by film critics, academics, and intellectuals, and primarily disseminated to the broader public through film reviews. The legitimation of film as art resulted from actions taken by interested members of the film world to valorize film, as well as from reactions by film world members to changing legal and economic circumstances and to the evolving American cultural landscape. The case of film highlights the shifting nature of cultural hierarchy in the United States and the mechanisms involved in creating and maintaining that hierarchy. Moreoever, the analysis I use suggests a way to understand the process of legitimation of ideas outside the artistic realm, such as philosophical, legal, or scientific doctrines. The history of film may highlight common features in the paths to validation. |
