Sound Technology and the American Cinema

Representationaltechnologiesincludingphotography,phonography,andthecinemahavehelpeddefinemodernityitself.Sincethenineteenthcentury,thesetechnologieshavechallengedourtrustofsensoryperception,giventheephemeralunprecedentedparitywiththeeternal,andcreatedprofoundtemporalandspatialdisplacements.Butcurrentapproachestorepresentationalandculturalhistoryoftenneglecttoexaminethesetechnologies.JamesLastraseekstoremedythisneglect.Lastraarguesthatwearenowherebetterabletotracktherelationsbetweencapital,science,andculturalpracticethaninphotography,phonography,andthecinema.Inparticular,hemapsthedevelopmentofsoundrecordingfromitsemergencetoitsconfrontationwithandintegrationintotheHollywoodfilm.Reachingbackintothelateeighteenthcentury,tonaturalphilosophy,stenography,automata,andhumanphysiology,Lastrafollowstheshiftingrelationshipsbetweenoursenses,technology,andrepresentation.