Ideologies work through symbolic codes, which represent and explain cultural phenomena; Barthes claims this symbolic representation is mythic, not as in fairy tales, the traditional sense of being false, but having the appearance of being ‘natural’ or ‘commonsense’. A myth is a social and historically determined idea that has gained the status of accepted truth or naturalness, and a cultures way of thinking about things. Myths may come and go as times change, but ideologies simply find new myths to invest themselves in; myths are fluid, dynamic and always subject to change over time. Motivation plays an important part in a myth, without the motivated form there is no myth.
The photograph I have chosen to analyse was taken in the 1800s and features an English family having afternoon tea in the garden. It was taken at the time of the British Raj in India. First and foremost, significantly, it is a photograph. How we may read this photograph will almost certainly depend upon our knowledge, education and our views. The photograph depicts a typical British upper class family of that time, enjoying the sunshine in their spacious garden, encircled by huge oak trees shading them. Surrounded by their loved ones, dogs playfully running around, and Indian servants at their beckon call. One person may see this as a remembrance of the glorious days of the British Raj, where others may see it as an elitist and exploitive image from the British imperial past. This particular photograph is an open text, open to different views and interpretations. Regardless of a spectators background, some connotations of the photograph are universally identified, such as the photograph is in black and white, obviously implying its an old photograph, the attire that both the servants and family are sporting also reinforce the notion of old times. Looking closer at the picture we can begin to identify some clues about the uniform, postures of the Indian servants, how the furniture is arranged and the general setting. We can see that some of the relatives are sitting, some are standing and all of the servants are standing. We can piece together an idea about the relations between the individuals and what sort of occasion it is. Photographs usually only tell the story that the creator wants you to see. For example; a family photograph album may show exciting events such as births, weddings, christenings, parties etc, but the unexciting, boring times are left out, families can tell selective stories about themselves in this way, and how their history is a particular form of social construct. Within this photograph, some people are looking at the camera and some seem uninterested, looking away. This implies to me, that the occasion isn’t a special one, only an every day occurrence, or maybe the people looking at the camera are enthralled by this new piece of technology and the others aren’t phased. Their poses don’t look staged they look casual and natural, although this may be an act. The table and chairs are set out in a line, all facing the camera, in real life, wouldn’t the chairs be all round the table? Perhaps the sun was coming from that direction and they wanted to face it, or maybe the photograph was one of many that were taken and the family weren’t ready when this one was taken. Only the photographer and people in the photograph and maybe their descendents know the true meaning behind it, but nevertheless I have still attempted to analyse it. A photograph can be more closed in its connotative meanings, illustrating a graphic and emotional manner. We read photographs by interpreting the various elements within them instead of reading a fixed unitary message.
Great Britain was at the threshold of emerging as the dominant global power, encompassing the largest empire the world has known, the South Asian realm- India. The British certainly made positive contributions to Indian life, but colonialism also bought serious negative consequences. This benign self- image of the men who ruled India was tirelessly proclaimed both in Britain and India. The British Raj in India rested on the ability of its servants to extract the small surpluses made by peasant farmers, who at best lived a hand-to mouth existence. The photograph illustrates maybe not the myth, but the fact that the British in India relied greatly upon there Indian associates. It depicts the typical upper class, old- money English family, the English have no real identity and no real culture, so the main myths when reading this picture wouldn’t be that of identity, but maybe of class and superiority. In the eyes of many of the British in India, the brown skin of the indigenous man and woman was perceived to be an even greater burden, serving as a insignia of inferiority and a hindrance to progress towards European political rights and freedoms.
Barthes’s has suggested two concepts for ‘reading’ a photograph, firstly that of ‘studium’. Studium is a Latin word and although is does quite a simple job it has many attributes. By using the studium device, it allows the photographer or creator to make a range of photographic meanings available and obvious to everyone. It draws from a middling effect, it tends not to please nor displease the viewer, just to make them content with what they’re experiencing, it engineers a half-desire. It consists of two main characteristics; unary, where the image is unified and self-contained, the whole meaning can be taken in at a glance. Secondly it is coded, the pictorial space is ordered in a universal, comprehensible way. The second concept is that of Punctum again a Latin word, meaning trauma in Greek. Punctum is the unpredictable penetration of the spectator by a particular detail, unlike studium it isn’t coded and adds to what is already present- the studium. This second element ruptures the studium, as if something rises from the photograph and wounds the observer. Barthes’s claims the expression ‘punctum’ can also have other meanings, in effect the photographs are punctuated hence the word punctum, also the cast of dice is also called a ‘punctum’, implying the fact that every onlooker has different experiences, views and cultural backgrounds. So the opinion that everyone takes on the photograph is different and distinct, just as when you roll a dice. The traits of studium and punctum are quite opposite, with studium expressing reality, truth, showing information and documentation, and with punctum conveying magic, beauty and maybe even poetry. Punctum can inspire a deep and powerful personal significance, as we draw from our private past experiences and involves denotation whereas studium involves connotation.
A photograph becomes surprising when we don’t know why it has been taken, we don’t know what the motive is, or why the interest. In relation to my picture I believe it is purely a picture of a wealthy, powerful family at the time of the British Raj, and used to portray the life that the upper-class families lived at that time. I see the studium that the photographer has achieved, but I don’t feel the picture contains punctum; it won’t have a lasting effect on me. It was interesting to analyse, because of the ambiguity that the photograph contains, and how the Victorian English ways were taken to India and put upon their culture. The image immediately yields a message whose substance is that of prosperity and wealth. The purposes of the functions within the punctum are to inform, represent and to evoke a desire, this photograph didn’t do that for me, instead it induced a refined interest.
