On Photography [Paperback]

Susan Sontag (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 1990

Winner of the National Book Critics' Circle Award for Criticism (1977), this is "a brilliant analysis of the profound changes photographic images have made in our way of looking of the world and ourselves over the lost 140 years."-Washington Post  BOOK WORLD

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A brilliant analysis of the profound changes photographic images have made in our way of looking at the world and at ourselves over the last 140 years."—Washington Post Book World

"Every page of On Photography raises important and exciting questions about its subject and raises them in the best way."—The New York Times Book Review

"A book of great importance and originality . . . All future discussion or analysis of the role of photography in the affluent mass-media societies are now bound to begin with her book."—John Berger

"Not many photographs are worth a thousand of [Susan Sontag's] words."—Robert Hughes, Time

"After Sontag, photography must be written about not only as a force in the arts, but as one that is increasingly powerful in the nature and destiny of our global society."—Newsweek

"On Photography is to my mind the most original and illuminating study of the subject."—Calvin Trillin, The New Yorker

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

From the Publisher

Winner of the National Book Critics' Circle Award for Criticism (1977), this is "a brilliant analysis of the profound changes photographic images have made in our way of looking of the world and ourselves over the lost 140 years."-Washington Post BOOK WORLD

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Anchor (July 1, 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385267061
• ISBN-13: 978-0385267069
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.2 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (41 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #124,233 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #48 in Books > Arts & Photography > Photography > Criticism & Essays

More About the Author

Susan Sontag was born in Manhattan in 1933 and studied at the universities of Chicago, Harvard and Oxford. She is the author of four novels, a collection of stories, several plays, and six books of essays, among them Illness as Metaphor and AIDS and Its Metaphors. Her books are translated into thirty-two languages. In 2001 she was awarded the Jerusalem Prize for the body of her work, and in 2003 she received the Prince of Asturias Prize for Literature and the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade. She died in December 2004.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

58 of 68 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A classic, though somewhat dated, collection of essays, May 14, 2003

By 

Thomas Emerson (Massachusetts, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: On Photography (Paperback)

I am not a big fan of artistic criticism: I often find it pretentious and prolix. Sontag's essays can be described by these adjectives, at least on first reading. I suspected that critics are inherently like this (until I read Nancy Newhall), but I reread "On Photography" recently and have changed my opinion slightly: critics can be pretentious, but that is the nature of the task.

Sontag's essays are complex and thought provoking, eliciting a flow of ideas that one needs to think about deeply: what is a photograph and how does it convey its message? How much truth does a photograph contain, if any? The answer to that last question is much more difficult with the advent of digital photography and the wonderous (or evil, depending on your viewpoint) manipulations that can be done in the digital darkroom.

An issue that isn't discussed in great depth is the relationship between candid snapshots on one end of the spectrum, and fine art photography on the other; Photography as a medium for artistic expression vs. a medium for recording reality (or unreality or surreality).

The book is not trivially understood: references to philosophy and art history abound, and a dictionary of philosophy and art is almost a requisite. You should also expect to read this a couple of times to get the full impact: do not make your judgement based on a first reading.

25 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An essential introduction to the importance of photography., October 24, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: On Photography (Paperback)

This is the ONE book I always tell my students to read, not because they will be better photographers but, because they will be better equipped to see and understand how photographic images have influenced our culture and our self- images.

This is now more important than ever in the age of digital photography and images which are crafted to manipulate our feelings and decisions to consume, vote, love and even whether we like ourselves.

It establishes a consciousness about the subject which is incisive and memorable. It is a brilliant work and a great contribution.

21 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Enlightening and challenging, April 28, 2000

By 

patricia watkins "Research2Go" (United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: On Photography (Paperback)

Sontag is first and formost a philosopher. Her book is a series of essays that were first published in New York Magazine and later compiled for this book. As such, each essay is distinct and does segue easily to the next. Be prepared with these tools when digesting On Photography: a French dictionary, an English dictionary and a philosophy reference book i.e. Bloom's Closing of the American Mind. From the first essay, In Plato's Cave and onto through to Through Images Darkly (an analysis of Diane Arbus' work), once must be familiar with Plato's Republic and know what Arbus' photos look like. Be prepared to spend time with this book, it is well worth it!