No Caption Needed: Iconic Photographs, Public Culture, and Liberal Democracy

by Robert Hariman, John Louis Lucaites

In No Caption Needed , Robert Hariman and John Louis Lucaites provide the definitive study of the iconic photograph as a dynamic form of public art. Their critical analyses of nine individual icons explore the photographs themselves and their subsequent circulation through an astonishing array of media, including stamps, posters, billboards, editorial cartoons, TV shows, Web pages, tattoos, and more. Iconic images are revealed as models of visual eloquence, signposts for collective memory, means of persuasion across the political spectrum, and a crucial resource for critical reflection.
Arguing against the conventional belief that visual images short-circuit rational deliberation and radical critique, Hariman and Lucaites make a bold case for the value of visual imagery in a liberal-democratic society. No Caption Needed is a compelling demonstration of photojournalism’s vital contribution to public life.

Genres: Photography, Nonfiction, History, Cultural Studies, Politics

419 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 2007

Reviews

[Maryjane Strange · Rating 5 out of 5]

read a couple chapters for visual rhetoric seminar & finished it over the summer. really enjoyed the writing style, examples, in-depth description of each photo, the interpretation(s) & explanation behind said perspectives. i feel like the authors explained concepts well & now that im more familiar with ideographs/myths i understood their pov on a deeper level! loved how they incorporated their own narrative in meticulously processing/analyzing their texts. will refer to this book for the rest of my life!!!

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

No Caption Needed is quite important in the field of visual rhetoric, and is written in a beautiful style by 2 very influential scholars of rhetoric.

The authors analyze a handful of iconic photographs for their meanings in public culture; "iconic" is roughly defined as following some essential criteria: the photograph must have been reproduced and appropriated (in some cases parodied) many times, should have no famous public figures (so that we can identify with the people in the photo), and should epitomize some aspect of liberal democracy by being open to interpretation. Hariman and Lucaites ask why these photos are iconic, and state that their ability to instigate public deliberation as well as depict dissent are crucial to democracy. I particularly liked the chapter on the Kent State photograph, finding its claims about the display of emotion in public culture is interesting. I also liked the chapter on "modernity's gamble," about the photos of the tragedies of the Hindenberg and the Challenger.

The authors also regularly maintain a blog (nocaptionneeded.com) to present a fuller picture of their arguments. While their book present the most eloquent and famous iconic photos in American history for our consideration, the blog presents more pictures that are a bit more commonplace.

The book is a must for anyone who is fascinated by the rhetorical power of visual images.

[Meg Bernard]

haven't finished it yet, but I hit the accompanying blog almost daily (nocaptionneeded.com)..

[Michael Greer · Rating 5 out of 5]

A number of things are going on in this work. First, how is a political/cultural identity established? Photography plays a large role in providing publics with images that viewers identify with, using them to support their own positions. Liberal democracy thrive/decline on the quality of news and information, thus the rise of the image is the primary mode of communication. Secondly, patriotic and revolutionary movements use images to fuel continuity over time. Finally, the decline in political discourse finds consolation is abiding images.

[Otto · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tässä kirjassa päästään kuvien katsomisessa sellaiseen syvyyteen johon moni ei näy pystyvän. Opiskeluaikojen muistiinpanojen perusteella näkyy tehneen vaikutuksen: Kirjoittajat välttävät itsetarkoituksellisen sekavan barthesilaisen ja sontagilaisen otteen, mutta myöskin semioottisen saivartelun karikot vältetään. Kuvien yhteiskunnallinen ja poliittinen merkitys korostuvat mehukkaasti.

[Zachary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really engaging content here and I know that this book is referenced a whole lot in visual rhetoric studies, but in spite of this I couldn't get past the fact that it was kind of a chore to read. Some of the commentary just felt a bit long and overdone, even though the general insights provided into each photograph (and visual culture/rhetoric at large) were quite engaging.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found a lot of what the authors had to say was interesting in this book. There were a lot of problems that I found too however. I didn't like how they kept repeating the same facts over and over and that they left out some things in the book that would have slanted their argument the other way. I liked that they chose pictures that were really iconic and that were known to everyone. Most of the content I found to be very interesting and very informative. The book itself however was far too long and they could have cut out a lot of stuff that was in there. Don't bother reading the first two chapters, I found them very boring and didn't make much sense to me without reading the rest of the novel, they probably should have been condensed into one or just left out.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really interesting analysis of iconic photographs in American culture. I recommend skipping the second chapter unless you're truly interested in the theory/methodology of visual rhetoric. As others have noted, I do think some of the chapters could have been tightened up. On the other hand, I also ascribe the repetions between the chapters to the reality that the authors expect that many reading the work will limit themselves to only a chapter or two (i.e. assigned readings to students...).

[Mary]

I read the first couple of chapters and a later chapter to understand the basic theories and goals of the book; definitely an interesting perspective on photographs that become "iconic" in public media. Most intriguing idea, to me, is the notion that photographs are "performative" and actively promote a certain kind of citizenship.

[Peter · Rating 3 out of 5]

(read this before Goodreads, added this years after reading the book)

Probably liked it.