Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2016

Scholarship Domain(s)

Scholarship of Discovery

Abstract

This paper explores the motif of representation in a variety of texts to better understand the power that these representations have as a social force. The use of representation in literature has changed throughout history, and the paper analyzes the role of representation in six different fictional texts and in several different critical theories. It gives further consideration to the changing nature of photography in a postmodern world where a true original is never created due to the proliferation of cell phone cameras, digital photograph sharing, and photography-specific social networking websites. In an increasingly visually literate world, photography is a common lens through which individuals choose to see and experience the world around them, and the proliferation and ease of photography is shaping the way society uses and understands representations. Ultimately, the paper investigates portraiture and photography from literary and historical lenses and proves, if not the value of representations in themselves, the importance of representations for society.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Share

COinS