Abstract

This thesis recognizes the introduction of synchronized sound cinema as a point of departure into a study of the cultural and social dimensions of moviegoing. This research focuses on Montreal between 1926 and 1931 where the first Canadian demonstrations and exhibitions of synchronized sound cinema took place. Using film critiques, advertisements for theatres, letters to the editor and editorials in the Montreal popular press to examine appeals made to audiences, I locate patterns and relationships of moviegoing. This study makes clearer the development of a process through which social and cultural experience is articulated, interpreted and contested all of which point to a need to revisit Canadian film history and audiences. By situating early cinema and early audiences within a complex cultural space of performance, diversity of entertainment, theatre architecture and interior design it is clear that more than technology is implicated in shaping cinematic spectatorship and the conception of historical audiences. The relationship between technology and culture is examined in a synchronic manner to avoid missing the crucial dimensions of moviegoing as it pertains to Montreal.