As a soldier in the French army, Pierre Bourdieu took thousands of
photographs documenting the abject conditions and suffering (as well as
the resourcefulness, determination, grace, and dignity) of the Algerian
people as they fought in the Algerian War (1954-1962). Sympathizing with
those he was told to regard as "enemies," Bourdieu became deeply and
permanently invested in their struggle to overthrow French rule and the
debilitations of poverty.
Upon realizing the inability of his education to make sense of this
wartime reality, Bourdieu immediately undertook the creation of a new
ethnographic-sociological science based on his experiences--one that
became synonymous with his work over the next few decades and was
capable of explaining the mechanics of French colonial aggression and
the impressive, if curious, ability of the Algerians to resist it.
This volume pairs 130 of Bourdieu's photographs with key excerpts from
his related writings, very few of which have been translated into
English. Many of these images, luminous aesthetic objects in their own
right, comment eloquently on the accompanying words even as they are
commented upon by them. Bourdieu's work set the standard for all
subsequent ethnographic photography and critique. This volume also
features a 2001 interview with Bourdieu, in which he speaks to his
experiences in Algeria, its significance on his intellectual evolution,
his role in transforming photography into a means for social inquiry,
and the duty of the committed intellectual to participate in an
increasingly troubled world.
