Cinema is consistently making a claim to particular memories, histories, ways of life, identities, and values that always presuppose some notion of difference, community, and the future. Given that films both reflect and shape public culture, they cannot be defined exclusively through a notion of artistic freedom and autonomy that removes them from any form of critical accountability.
Interpretation
Cinema influences and reflects society's values and identities while remaining accountable to public culture.
In this quote, Henry Giroux emphasizes the profound role of cinema in shaping and reflecting societal memories, identities, and values. He argues that films are not merely expressions of artistic freedom; they are embedded in a cultural context that requires them to be critically examined in relation to the communities they portray and the future they envision.
In practice
During a film studies class, I used this quote to explain the relationship between cinema and societal values.
Where I grew up, learning was a collective activity. But when I got to school and tried to share learning with other students that was called cheating. The curriculum sent the clear message to me that learning was a highly individualistic, almost secretive, endeavor. My working class experience...was disparaged.
I'm a great audience. I cry very easily. I suspend disbelief in two seconds.
Write because you love it and not because it is something that you think you should do. Always write about something or somebody you know about - something that you feel deeply and passionately about. Never try and force it.
I grew up like Athena — covered with playing cards instead of armor — and, at the age of seven, materialized on a TV show, doing magic.
For Christ plays in ten thousand places,/ Lovely in limbs, and lovely in eyes not his/ To the Father through the features of men’s faces.
I write from real life. I am an unrepentant eavesdropper and a collector of stories. I record bits of overheard dialogue.
Someday I'll design a typeface without a K in it, and then let's see the bastards misspell my name.
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