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1、Encyclopediaofearlycinema526Llabormovement:EuropeTwotendenciesintheWestEuropeanlabormovementcanbediscerned(furtherresearchisstillneededonotherpartsofEurope).Onesawthecinemalargelyinanegativelight:itofferedworkersonlyvulgarentertainmentinsteadofculturallyupliftingthem,andatthesam
2、etimekeptthemawayfrompoliticalortradeunionmeetings.Onlybyshowingeducationalfilmscouldthemediumbeputtogooduse.Theother,bycontrast,welcomedtheopportunitythatmovingpicturesofferedtoreachmassaudienceswithanexplicitpoliticalmessage.Wellawarethatfilmwasanexpensivemedium,itlookedforway
3、stoovercomethisobstacle.Germansocialdemocracyoffersagoodexampleoftheformerattitude;theFrench“anarcho-communist”movement,thelatter.Afewearlyexamplesareknownoflabororganizationsshowingmovingpicturesatmeetings.TheManchesterandSalfordbranchoftheIndependentLaborParty,forinstance,enli
4、venedits“GreatestSocialonEarth”inFebruary1898with“livingpictures,”augmentingthelanternslidepicturesthatlonghadbeenacommonfeatureofitsprograms.InhisnovelTheRaggedTrouseredPhilanthropists(1914),RobertTressellgivesavividdescriptionofsuchamagiclanternslideshow.Onthecontinent,laborpr
5、opagandistsalsoweremakinguseoflanternslides:forexample,duringtheDreyfuscampaigninFrance.Butthetransitiontomovingpicturesturnedouttobemoredifficult.Reflectionsonthenatureandfunctionofthecinemadidnotbeginuntilaround1908,aftermovingpictureshadbecomearegularpartofeverydaylife,asevid
6、encedbythegrowingnumberoftheaters.ItwasthepopularityoftheKintopsthatpromptedGermansocialdemocratstoexpresstheirconcern,adaptingargumentsusedinearliercampaignsagainst“Schundliteratur”(vulgarliterature).ThusFranzFörsterwroteinApril1912,inDieneueZeit:“Themoststupidnonsenseispresent
7、edashumor,themostimpossiblebackstairsnovelsareundergoingheretheirresurrection….[T]heinnerlivesofhundredsofthousandsofourfellowcitizensarebeingpoisonedbytheso-calledmoraldramasthataredrippingwithfalsesentimentality.”Thisdismissiveattitudeledtosuchextremesasaresolutionadoptedin191
8、0bytheSocialistFreeYouthinCologne,inwhichworkin