Chapter 1: Exploring The Past with Feature Film

Imagine a world where the film Forrest Gump is the most influential source for learning about the Civil Rights Movement, the Vietnam War, and growing up in the mid-20th century United States. Or a world where the film Glory is the central “text” for high school students learning about the Civil War. Do these worlds make historians and history teachers shift uncomfortably in their chairs? Is it an indication of the dumbing-down of history and a deterioration of scholarly learning? Or are these worlds representing rich opportunities for students to encounter multiple perspectives about the past, develop historical empathy, and cultivate historical thinking skills? For better or worse, the influence of film, particularly Hollywood feature film, on historical knowledge and understanding is a reality of today’s world. Forrest Gump is one of the most widely seen films among high school students (Marcus, 2005), and Glory has been documented to be one of the most used films in United States history courses in at least two states (Stoddard & Marcus, 2006).