{"product_id":"shell-shock-cinema-anton-kaes-9780691008509","title":"Shell Shock Cinema: Weimar Culture and the Wounds of War","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eHow war trauma haunted the films of Weimar Germany\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eShell Shock Cinema\u003c\/i\u003e explores how the classical German cinema of the Weimar Republic was haunted by the horrors of World War I and the the devastating effects of the nation's defeat. In this exciting new book, Anton Kaes argues that masterworks such as \u003ci\u003eThe Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, Nosferatu, The Nibelungen\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eMetropolis\u003c\/i\u003e, even though they do not depict battle scenes or soldiers in combat, engaged the war and registered its tragic aftermath. These films reveal a wounded nation in post-traumatic shock, reeling from a devastating defeat that it never officially acknowledged, let alone accepted. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eKaes uses the term \"shell shock\"--coined during World War I to describe soldiers suffering from nervous breakdowns--as a metaphor for the psychological wounds that found expression in Weimar cinema. Directors like Robert Wiene, F. W. Murnau, and Fritz Lang portrayed paranoia, panic, and fear of invasion in films peopled with serial killers, mad scientists, and troubled young men. Combining original close textual analysis with extensive archival research, Kaes shows how this post-traumatic cinema of shell shock transformed extreme psychological states into visual expression; how it pushed the limits of cinematic representation with its fragmented story lines, distorted perspectives, and stark lighting; and how it helped create a modernist film language that anticipated film noir and remains incredibly influential today. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eA compelling contribution to the cultural history of trauma, \u003ci\u003eShell Shock Cinema\u003c\/i\u003e exposes how German film gave expression to the loss and acute grief that lay behind Weimar's sleek fa軋de.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Anton Kaes\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0691008507\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780691008509\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Princeton University Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 10\/02\/2011\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 328\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.15lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.10h x 6.10w x 0.90d","brand":"Anton Kaes","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":43981097369855,"sku":"9780691008509","price":32.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_d6a182e3-aa31-4189-8683-9e41eb377631.jpg?v=1683253639","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/shell-shock-cinema-anton-kaes-9780691008509","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}