Lewis Carroll's Photographs - Research Paper Example

 The Victorian era marked the beginning of a new literary era. Many argue that during this era, artists became more predisposed towards displaying an objectivity of content and approach that was more focused upon the entertainment of children.1 Lewis Carroll took his famous photographs in this era and, in order to market his literary works, sought to identify misconceptions long held by adults concerning children. Discovering that most literary artists did not consider real children, he set out to discern the characteristics that defined “children” in the 19th century. For most artists and writers in this era, the child was nothing more than a shadow of the adult. This ultimate meant that rather than being portrayed as they were, they were instead portrayed as adults wanted them to be portrayed.Carroll embraced this theme of the child as a shadow of humanity in his photographs in order to draw attention to how misconceived children were by adults, particularly using the real children that he met in his life. Lewis Carroll sought to show children as adult shadows, the children’s identity as being shadowed by the adults, as well as the shadows that the children cast.2 Therefore, this paper will seek to show how Lewis Carroll used children in his photographs to show their innocence and the misconceptions that adults oftentimes had about them. Xie Kitchin 3 Lewis Carroll exemplified how misconceived children were by undressing them or dressing them through a creation of what he perceived to be his own shadow of being a child.4 Recognized as a leading amateur and child photographer during the Victorian era, Carroll used the photographs he took to displace reality. Because photography in this period was a relatively new phenomenon, Lewis Carroll took it as a means of writing by using light with his most preferred photographic subject being the child as shown in the photographs above. This was obviously something of a new and dynamic approach. At least sixty percent of all his known photographs were of children. At the time, photography was taken as the only art form that could accurately record true reality. Carrol then took this representation of “reality” and created a reverse text for the discussion of children. This reverse text helped to falsify how real a photograph could be .5 In various photographs, rather than giving the audience his own view of who a child should be, Carroll came up with the composition an adult would have of a child. The photo of Xie Kitchin has the child dressed in clothing that is foreign to that era and region. Moreover, Carroll set, or staged, the photographs in a foreign land as a means of underscoring this dissimilarity. In the other photograph of Evelyn Hatch, Lewis Carroll removes all social conventions from her photograph and takes a photo of her in the nude lying on a bed. In yet another photograph, he pictures Alice Liddell in a loose fitting dress seemingly begging for alms. Lewis exerts an agency on the photography act by rewriting the literal text that the initial image would have created to give rise to a new dialogue about what it means to be a child.6 Therefore, Lewis took photography as a way to present a commentary on childhood and the way it was shadowed, misconstrued, and misinterpretedby adults. While it can be argued that Lewis Carroll used children as objects, this was necessary; especially since the child has for a long time been the centre of study by theorists and scholars as they looked for a definition of the child that was consistent and reasonable .7 While it is difficult to offer a definitive explanation of what a child is, Lewis sought to provide a lens through which it is possible to distinguish the child in this era as an entity that was completely separate from grown ups. Lewis Carroll used his photography to define the child’s character via shadows that were cast by the children, rather than as shadows of the adults. Instead of relying upon the preconceived, Carrols photos demanded that the viewer dispel many of the notions they might have held and view the child from a unique and different angle than they might normally. Alice Liddell 8 In the photo of Alice Liddell, the viewer sees a young girl who is approximately 7 or 8 years of age. Lewis ensures that her entire body can be seen with her tattered and ill-fitting clothes appearing to suggest that she is a beggar).9 However, while looking more closely, it is clear that the clothes have been artfully ripped off; while she is looking straight at the camera as she begs for money. She is obviously not a beggar but a child who has been dressed as one. Thus, the question becomes whether the photograph is sexually charged and, if this was the case, then it is not hard to make the presumption that Alice is looking at the camera in a seductive manner. In fact, when taking into consideration the stretched hand, it can also be suggested that she is up for receiving money to sell her body. Naturally, this takes on a new dynamic as it could then be possible that Carroll was portraying her as a prostitute. However, since the image is obviously staged, particularly given Alice Liddell’s well groomed hair; it is possible that Lewis was attempting to show that children are not what adults always assume them to be.10 In fact, she is quite innocent and the only thing that portrays her as a prostitute or beggar is view of the adult’s presuppositions. Evelyn Hatch 11 It might be argued that, rather than showing the innocence of little girls in these photographs, Lewis was taking advantage of the children and their innocence. However, drawing any such conclusions would be premature because the pictures of Evelyn Hatch and Alice Liddell were taken with the full permission of their parents; signifying that the photos were indeed harmless.12 Additionally, girls of this age could not have been aware of their sexuality and, according to various biographies made about Carroll, he was said to be too immature to possess any sexual feelings of this nature. Finally, the controversy that surrounded these photographs as being suggestive started much later. While this image of Lewis as a-sexual were dispelled by reports of his relationships with adult females, who were often married, these latter relationships were what most considered controversial. .13 It can be provisionally stated that Lewis Carroll did have sexual feelings for these children that he took photographs of as most males would. However, he cleverly used the fact that, at that time, children were not associated with love by adults and people would rarely suspect him of any ill motives without becoming suspects. The photographs, therefore, may have been a way for him to show that children, in their innocence, could fall into traps that adults did not think possible for children. It is quite clear that Lewis Carroll liked little girls and had no desire to photograph young boys as is evidenced by an almost total lack of photographs with young boys. He took photographs of little girls after befriending them on beaches and trains; as well as in the houses of his close friends.14 Alice Liddell became one of his greatest works and it has been said that he was enamoured by her innocent eyes. Moroever, it can be said that he was also intrigued by the way that she seemednot to notice adults taking her for granted. However, the current criticism of his photographs, particularly of Alice Liddell and the Hatch sisters, shows that the 21st century has not been very kind to Lewis Carroll’s work. While the two photographs have been taken as a sign that he was a paedophile, the photographs have also been attacked for their objectification of the female body, especially the immature female body. This is despite the fact that the photographs were of innocent girls with no sexual feelings or any idea of their sexual being).15 On the other hand, those who have supported him have claimed that he had no feelings or passion towards children; rather, quite he contrary, he he was often stuttering and shy when around other people. However, these opinions miss the mark and prove Lewis right in his view that adults misunderstand children’s innocence.16By fixating on Lewis Carroll, these critics fail to focus on the most important part of Evelyn Hatch’s and Alice Liddell’s photographs; namely that of their innocence from the thoughts of adults. The fixations on Lewis’ sexual motives shift the attention away from the fact that the children in the photographs had no idea they were sexual beings. Evelyn Hatch does not even cover her genitalia, while Alice Liddell has no idea that her pose is seductive given her age.17 By considering the photographs only in sexual terms, these critics validate Lewis’ theory that adults misrepresented children and cast them, as little forms of adults. Read More