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Dawkin’s coinage of the term meme, rooted in Darwinian discourse, understandably failed to anticipate the nomenclature lending itself so readily to the theatrical hodgepodge of the internet. The proliferation of image-plus-text memes seems inexhaustible, and the enthymemic quality (or, “I get it”-ness) of memes have led to the emergence of of “meme literacy,” a system … Continue reading
In sight of the nigh-infinite number of images authored, uploaded, downloaded, archived, shared, duplicated, and deleted, Lister argues that prevalent threads of photographic theory fail to account for the current “ocular white noise within visual culture” (2). Citing Paul Frosh’s analysis of the internet stock photograph and Geoffrey Batchen’s argument regarding biographical snapshots, Lister takes … Continue reading
In something of a throwaway comment within a broader discussion, Catherine Zuromskis situates amateur, domestic pornography as an “alternative” snapshot practice, in the same league as other “misuses” of snapshot material available to us (61). This makes sense in the context of her argument, that primarily deals with material, family snapshots, and the regulatory discourse … Continue reading
Critics devoted to the study of family photography have privileged the materiality of this phenomenon. Approaches have largely examined the printed materials themselves, preferring a semiological close reading of noteworthy images (69). Rose notes an oversight in the scholarship on photography, and insists that family photographs cannot be defined simply by their visual content (74). … Continue reading
Attempting to establish – while acknowledging the paradox of – an eidetic science of (P)hotography, Barthes recounts an “ontological desire” that informs his critical framework (3, my emphasis). That is to say, Barthes introduces affect into structural modes of analysis. Camera Lucida reconciles historical, philosophical criticism with a subjective, experiential phenomenology. Barthes details the difficulty … Continue reading
A few weeks ago, class discussion led to the question as to whether or not a technological artifice – in this case, camera technology from the mid 20th century onward – can be inherently racist (and, by extension, be considered in a number of other hierarchical antagonisms such as classist, sexist, ableist, and so forth). … Continue reading
Rhetoric of the Digital Image 