‘The Pictures Which We Publish To-Day Are Fearful to Look Upon’: The Circulation of Images of Atrocity During the American Civil War

IF 0.3 2区 艺术学 0 ART History of Photography Pub Date : 2021-01-02 DOI:10.1080/03087298.2021.1993621
A. Cross
{"title":"‘The Pictures Which We Publish To-Day Are Fearful to Look Upon’: The Circulation of Images of Atrocity During the American Civil War","authors":"A. Cross","doi":"10.1080/03087298.2021.1993621","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"This article explores the circulation of photographs of prisoners of war that were taken at the US General Hospital in Annapolis, Maryland in 1864. More specifically, it considers the publication of these images as wood engravings in Harper’s Weekly’s illustrated newspaper as part of a broader network of photographic circulation, and the circulation of images of atrocity during the American Civil War. This project follows recent interventions in photographic history that have emphasised reproduction and circulation, and that have decentred the photographic print as the primary site for the production of meaning. By examining the multiple visual and narrative contexts in which photographs of the Annapolis prisoners appeared, including as wood engravings in Harper’s Weekly, this article reveals how divergent meanings were ascribed to the images, as both the press and the public sought to make sense of the prisoners’ deterioration and to use their images for political purposes. Ultimately, the article employs circulation as a methodology to understand how audiences used photographs to make sense of the seemingly ineffable trauma and devastation of the American Civil War. This project also demonstrates how Harper’s Weekly relied upon an existing public archive – of text and images, particularly cartes de visite – to report the news and to further its rhetorical position. It is important to highlight that the images in this article are disturbing. They show men in states of significant emaciation and were presumably taken without full consent. These pictures are shown as part of an effort to understand the ways in which images of atrocity were circulated in the nineteenth century, and, as such, requires that we consider the appropriateness of publishing and exhibiting such images both then and now. A question of care and of an ethics of looking must be at the forefront of this critical engagement.","PeriodicalId":13024,"journal":{"name":"History of Photography","volume":"45 1","pages":"20 - 33"},"PeriodicalIF":0.3000,"publicationDate":"2021-01-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"History of Photography","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1080/03087298.2021.1993621","RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"艺术学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"0","JCRName":"ART","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0

Abstract

This article explores the circulation of photographs of prisoners of war that were taken at the US General Hospital in Annapolis, Maryland in 1864. More specifically, it considers the publication of these images as wood engravings in Harper’s Weekly’s illustrated newspaper as part of a broader network of photographic circulation, and the circulation of images of atrocity during the American Civil War. This project follows recent interventions in photographic history that have emphasised reproduction and circulation, and that have decentred the photographic print as the primary site for the production of meaning. By examining the multiple visual and narrative contexts in which photographs of the Annapolis prisoners appeared, including as wood engravings in Harper’s Weekly, this article reveals how divergent meanings were ascribed to the images, as both the press and the public sought to make sense of the prisoners’ deterioration and to use their images for political purposes. Ultimately, the article employs circulation as a methodology to understand how audiences used photographs to make sense of the seemingly ineffable trauma and devastation of the American Civil War. This project also demonstrates how Harper’s Weekly relied upon an existing public archive – of text and images, particularly cartes de visite – to report the news and to further its rhetorical position. It is important to highlight that the images in this article are disturbing. They show men in states of significant emaciation and were presumably taken without full consent. These pictures are shown as part of an effort to understand the ways in which images of atrocity were circulated in the nineteenth century, and, as such, requires that we consider the appropriateness of publishing and exhibiting such images both then and now. A question of care and of an ethics of looking must be at the forefront of this critical engagement.
查看原文
分享 分享
微信好友 朋友圈 QQ好友 复制链接
本刊更多论文
“我们今天发布的图片令人不敢看”:美国内战期间暴行图片的流传
本文探讨了1864年在马里兰州安纳波利斯的美国总医院拍摄的战俘照片的流通。更具体地说,它认为在哈珀周刊的插图报纸上以木版版画的形式出版这些图像是更广泛的摄影流通网络的一部分,也是美国内战期间暴行图像流通的一部分。该项目遵循了最近对摄影历史的干预,强调复制和流通,并将摄影印刷品作为生产意义的主要场所。通过研究安纳波利斯囚犯照片出现的多种视觉和叙事背景,包括哈珀周刊的木版,本文揭示了这些图像的不同含义,因为媒体和公众都试图理解囚犯的恶化,并将他们的图像用于政治目的。最后,这篇文章采用流通作为一种方法来理解观众如何使用照片来理解美国内战中看似无法形容的创伤和破坏。这个项目也展示了《哈伯周刊》是如何依靠现有的公共档案——文本和图像,特别是访问记录——来报道新闻并进一步阐述其修辞立场的。必须强调的是,这篇文章中的图片令人不安。照片上的男性非常消瘦,想必是在未经完全同意的情况下拍摄的。这些照片的展示是为了理解暴行图像在19世纪传播的方式,因此,我们需要考虑当时和现在出版和展示这些图像的适当性。在这种批判性的接触中,关注和观察的伦理问题必须摆在最前面。
本文章由计算机程序翻译,如有差异,请以英文原文为准。
求助全文
约1分钟内获得全文 去求助
来源期刊
CiteScore
0.30
自引率
50.00%
发文量
23
期刊介绍: History of Photography is an international quarterly devoted to the history, practice and theory of photography. It intends to address all aspects of the medium, treating the processes, circulation, functions, and reception of photography in all its aspects, including documentary, popular and polemical work as well as fine art photography. The goal of the journal is to be inclusive and interdisciplinary in nature, welcoming all scholarly approaches, whether archival, historical, art historical, anthropological, sociological or theoretical. It is intended also to embrace world photography, ranging from Europe and the Americas to the Far East.
期刊最新文献
The ‘Chok’ of Image ‘Constellations in Themselves’: Reframing Walter Benjamin’s ‘Little History of Photography’ (1931) Maria Morris Hambourg: A Curator Lighthouse for Photography Sandra S. Phillips with Allison Pappas and Natalie Zelt: Excerpt from Framing the Field Interview Transcript, 21–23 March 2022 Deborah Willis with Allison Pappas and Natalie Zelt: Excerpt from Framing the Field Interview Transcript, 8–9 June 2022 After the Flood: Notes on Photography and the Archive
×
引用
GB/T 7714-2015
复制
MLA
复制
APA
复制
导出至
BibTeX EndNote RefMan NoteFirst NoteExpress
×
×
提示
您的信息不完整,为了账户安全,请先补充。
现在去补充
×
提示
您因"违规操作"
具体请查看互助需知
我知道了
×
提示
现在去查看 取消
×
提示
确定
0
微信
客服QQ
Book学术公众号 扫码关注我们
反馈
×
意见反馈
请填写您的意见或建议
请填写您的手机或邮箱
已复制链接
已复制链接
快去分享给好友吧!
我知道了
×
扫码分享
扫码分享
Book学术官方微信
Book学术文献互助
Book学术文献互助群
群 号:481959085
Book学术
文献互助 智能选刊 最新文献 互助须知 联系我们:info@booksci.cn
Book学术提供免费学术资源搜索服务,方便国内外学者检索中英文文献。致力于提供最便捷和优质的服务体验。
Copyright © 2023 Book学术 All rights reserved.
ghs 京公网安备 11010802042870号 京ICP备2023020795号-1