Photography and the Imperial Propaganda: Egypt under Gaze
Photography and the Imperial Propaganda: Egypt under Gaze

Summary/Abstract: The mid-Victorian era and the Edwardian period witnessed important advances in graphic arts leading to the invention of photography. The eastward imperial expansion of Britain during this period resulted in the emergence of different representations of the Orient. After the role played by paintings in conveying a rather fantasist and imaginative vision based on an orientalist background, photography, in its capacity to reproduce reality, promised a more accurate image. Thus, the aim of this paper is to show that the earliest photographs of the Orient and mainly of Egypt unveiled the role of photography in creating a new orientalist vision tinged with the imperialist ambitions of Britain. It focuses on the use of photography in the press and how it was propelled in the political field to confirm its commitment in a propagandist strategy to gain the support of public opinion. This paper offers a critical review of photography within a specific colonial context and determines the strong links between technological development and the sustainability of the imperialism demanded by the rush to acquire new colonies in the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries. The study of the images published in the Illustrated London News in relation to the situation in Egypt unveils the manipulation of the image to reinforce the imperial system. One of the conclusions is related to the different strategies used to give the image a propagandist role, notably to enhance colonial policies.

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