GRE Reading Comprehension

Home > GRE Test > GRE Reading Comprehension Questions

Next steps

Source: CHP

Practically speaking, the artistic maturing of the cinema was the single-handed achievement of David W Griffith (1875-1948). Before Griffith, photography in dramatic films consisted of little more than placing the actors before a stationary camera and showing them in full length as they would have appeared on stage. From the beginning of his career as a director, however, Griffith, because of his love of Victorian painting, employed composition. He conceived of the camera image as having a foreground and a rear ground, as well as the middle distance preferred by most directors. By 1910 he was using close-ups to reveal significant details of the scene or of the acting and extreme long shots to achieve a sense of spectacle and distance. His appreciation of the camera's possibilities produced novel dramatic effects.

Question List: 1 2

The author's attitude toward photography in the cinema before Griffith can best be described as

  • A sympathetic
  • B nostalgic
  • C amused
  • D condescending
  • E hostile

Show Answer

Previous       Next