Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2880 in Books
• Published on: 1979-09-27
• Binding: Paperback
• 224 pages

Synopsis
First published in 1973, this is a study of the force of photographic images which are continually inserted between experience and reality. Sontag develops further the concept of 'transparency'. When anything can be photographed and photography has destroyed the boundaries and definitions of art, a viewer can approach a photograph freely with no expectations of discovering what it means. This collection of six lucid and invigorating essays, the most famous being "In Plato's Cave," make up a deep exploration of how the image has affected society.

Customer Reviews

Girl on Film
We were born into a world ruled by photography. From x-rays to holiday snaps, our memories and sense of self are now shaped by this magical little black box. But how has photography affected reality since its invention? Has our perception of the world changed since our gathering of images (either as photos or films) slowly spiralled out of control? Could we, perhaps, be undermining our notion of the real by treating photos as if they were more real than their subjects? (think of the people who felt 9/11 was "like a movie".)

In this collection of six essays, published in 1973, Susan Sontag brilliantly explores the origins of photography and how it has affected world culture (mostly western, though she has some intriguing points to make about China and Japan.) She proves, somewhat ruthlessly, that photography deposed poetry and painting as the main rulers of the art world; dismisses the Surrealists in one fell swoop; and even goes so far as to claim that photography single-handedly caused the Modernist movement (the first exhibition by the Impressionists, for example, took place in a photography studio; and many painters claimed photography freed them to explore abstract subjects.)

It helps if you know the work of some of the big names in photography, like Diane Arbus, since Sontag often uses their work to back up her arguments. But even if you have never picked up a camera before, you will find enough ideas in Sontag's essays to reflect on. I was particularly impressed with her prescient views on "reality" television, as well as disturbed by her conclusion that photography is leading us towards a supreme, and new, form of totalitarianism.

Definately worth a read
After reading various books on photography technique I decided to find books which covered the theory behind it all. It is a very good read and a facinating insight if a little dry.

The best source for photographic theory
This is an exceptional book and one that is best read by flicking through and reading litery snap shots of Sontags work. If you are about to do a photography course this is the book for you and if you have ever wondered about photography this book will inform you. I read two short quotes from this book to my father in law who has no real connection with photography, he walked away and said 'i thought a photograph was just a photograph" and asked if he could borrow the book... Thats how good it is....