GBH Openvault
Culture Shock; Shock of the Nude, The: Manet’s Olympia
12/14/1999
Reel 2 of 2 closed captioned / DVS mix on Ch. 3 RT: 55:07
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- Series
- Culture Shock
- Program
- Shock of the Nude, The: Manet’s Olympia
- Program Number
101K
- Series Description
This series tells the stories of classic works of art -- in literature, music, film and painting -- that have been controversial and explores their current relevance. 102 - Hollywood Censored: Movies, Morality & the Production Code/The Devil's Music: 1920s Jazz--The mass appeal of movies, including their graphic portrayals of sex and violence, has made them a target of censors since the early days. In the 1930s, Hollywood studios enforced a set of guidelines for movie content, known as the Production Code, to answer growing charges of immorality. The Code, which lasted for more than 20 years, continues to influence movie making today. As feature films still have the power to provoke controversy, the question remains: Do movies reflect -- or cause -- social behavior? Ellen Barkin narrates. In its early years, jazz faced resistance across America. Like today's rap, jazz was considered a dangerous influence on young people and society. It featured improvisation and the liberating rhythms of the black American experience over classical music forms. As jazz's popularity grew, some fought to suppress the music on moral grounds -- but it finally won acceptance as an art form. Dion Graham narrates. Series release date: 1/2000
- Program Description
This series tells the stories of classic works of art -- in literature, music, film and painting -- that have been controversial and explores their current relevance. 101 - Born to Trouble: Adventures of Huckleberry Finn/The Shock of the Nude: Manet's Olympia--One of America's most beloved and banned books, Mark Twain's novel was attacked for its low morals when it was published in 1885. Later, it became part of the American literary canon, only to become controversial again on grounds of racism -- a charge still debated in schools today. Is Huck Finn a brilliant satire against racism or does it reinforce stereotypes? Courtney B. Vance narrates. The painting is now regarded as a masterpiece, but scandal surrounded the 1865 Paris exhibit of Olympia. Manet had dared to paint visual art's most universal subject, the nude, as an unidealized woman -- a prostitute who boldly stares directly at the viewer. By flouting the accepted ideas of beauty and propriety in art, Manet outraged audiences. Today's visual artists continue to test society's conventions, stirring up new controversies for the modern age. John Lithgow narrates.
- Asset Type
Broadcast program
- Media Type
Video
- Genres
- Documentary
- Creators
- Bemko, Marsha (Series Producer)
- Citation
- Chicago: “Culture Shock; Shock of the Nude, The: Manet’s Olympia,” 12/14/1999, GBH Archives, accessed June 2, 2023, http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_3B7AD26F2BDA4CFF87F54CC487AC1DF8.
- MLA: “Culture Shock; Shock of the Nude, The: Manet’s Olympia.” 12/14/1999. GBH Archives. Web. June 2, 2023. <http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_3B7AD26F2BDA4CFF87F54CC487AC1DF8>.
- APA: Culture Shock; Shock of the Nude, The: Manet’s Olympia. Boston, MA: GBH Archives. Retrieved from http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_3B7AD26F2BDA4CFF87F54CC487AC1DF8