Williamson, Freud, Foucault, and the Family Photograph

        The photograph of the family also attracts focus on Sigmund Freud’s article on the id, the ego, and the super-ego.  The photograph illustrates the “individual development of human beings” (Freud, 2).  In his article, Freud states that the oldest mental apparatus, the id, “contains everything that is inherited, that is present at birth, that is laid down in the constitution—above all, therefore, the instincts” (Freud, 2).  In the photograph, the baby is the representation of the stage of the id.  It is obvious that the child is unaware of smiling in the presence of the camera. Unlike the more mature members of the family, he has not learned from his parents to smile before the camera. Only his instincts are present, and in this image, his instincts tell him to sleep.   The second oldest mental system is the ego, which has voluntary movement for the purpose of self-preservation.  In a similar picture (image 2) to the one being used for analysis, a boy of about two or three years old stares perplexedly at the camera.  The resulting image is not one shoeing the desired pleasure, but that of confusion and curiousness.  When, later in age, the boy (once the toddler) sees the picture of him being perplexed, he may store up the experience in his memory and remember next time to smile for the sake of self-preservation in a society that desires pleasure.  The third psychical apparatus is the super-ego.  It is similar to the id in that both apparatuses are influenced by the past.  While the id carries physical attributes over to the child, the super ego contains teachings carried over by the parents or other people.  It is similar to the ego in that they must meet the “demands of the immediate social milieu which they represent” (Freud, 3).  In the photograph, the males wear presentable buttoned shirts, acceptable attire for baptismal or other ‘Sunday best’ events.  They have been taught by their parents to appear within traditional family, cultural, and social standards, as well as pressured by the social milieu which they represent.  Both the ego and the super-ego shape people into what their social standards demand, whereas the id only shapes people’s physical image.

        The photograph also pays some attention to Foucault’s article on the panopticon.  As “the panopticon is a machine for dissociating the see/being seen dyad” (Foucault, 202), so is the camera that captures the image of the family. Like the central surveillance station in the panopticon, the camera makes “the presence or absence of the inspector unverifiable” (Foucault, 201) for the members of the family.  Society becomes the inspectors of the photograph, irregularly viewing the family members to see if they have remained within the social boundary (i.e. if they look happy, or if they are wearing presentable clothes).  Additionally, the way the family positions itself before the camera is in a way similar to the architectural alignment of the panopticon cells. Members align themselves in descending rows, so that all their faces are immediately recognizable under the light.  In the panopticon, “full lightning and the eye of a supervisor capture better than darkness” (Foucault, 200).  Through this positioning similar to the panopticon, ultimate surveillance by society is made possible.

        The three articles draw on different aspects of the photograph for analysis.  Williamson’s “Family, Education, Photography” draws on the teenager’s awkward smile to show the social pressures and demand for a happy family.  Freud’s article draws upon the child, and the appearance of the men to illustrate the mental growth of the individual in relation to social pressures.  Foucault’s “Panopticism” analyzes the descending positioning of the family members.  Their positioning clearly shows their faces for society to inspect to see if they have conformed to society’s standards.  Though it may seem simple at first glance, the family photograph is also a reflection of society’s influences on the growth of the family.

Works Cited

Foucault, Michael. “Panopticism.” Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison. Trans.         Alan Sheridan. New York: Vintage Books, 1977. 195-228.

Freud, Sigmund. “The Mind and its Workings.” An Outline of Psycho-Analysis. Ed. and         Trans. James Stratchey. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 1969. 1-21.

Williamson, Judith. “Family, Education, Photography.” Culture/Power/History: A Reader _        in Contemporary Social Theory. Eds. Nicholas B. Dirks, Geoff Eley, and Sherry         B. Ortner. Princeton: Princeton UP, 1994. 236-244.

Image 1

Image 2