The Concept of an Artificial Body in Cinematograph of German Expressionism

This work is devoted to the study of the features of the representation of images embodying the idea of an artificial body in German cinema in 1916–1927. The relevance of this study is confirmed by the fact that the myth of the artificial body is firmly rooted in culture and is the object of increased attention, which manifests itself in literature, cinema, video games, and other media, as well as in the field of modern cultural studies. The purpose of the study is to attempt to document the features of the representation of images of an artificial body in German film expressionism, to establish the reasons for such representation and to determine its influence on world cinema. The object of the study is German expressionist cinema, among which examples are the films of O. Rippert “Homunculus” (“Homunculus”, directed by O. Rippert, 1916), K. Beze and P. Wegener “The Golem, How He Came into the World” (“Der Golem, wie er in die Welt kamt”, dir. K. Beze, P. Wegener, 1920), R. Wiene “Orlac’s Hands” (“Orlac’s Hände”, dir. R. Wiene, 1924) and F. Lang “Metropolis” "(Metropolis, dir. F. Lang, 1927). The subject of the study is the concept of an artificial body. As a result, a complete picture of the transformation of the idea of an artificial body in Western culture from antiquity to modernity was obtained, as well as to establish the features of the representation of images of an artificial body in German film expressionism, among which a negative assessment, fear of progress and loss of humanity, and the danger clearly transmitted by characters of artificial origin predominate , however, the images of the artificial body evoke sympathy from the audience, despite the fear. Another result is to establish the reason for this representation, which lies in the collective trauma of the Germans, formed due to the defeat of Germany in the First World War. The result of a comparative analysis of films of German expressionism and Hollywood cinema was the identification of continuity in the representation of images of the artificial body: from German directors to US directors.