Even without being able to name its particulars, though, it seems clear that the impression many readers have is of her apparent dislike of the medium, a sour note of approbation for the whole grubby business.įor some clue to Sontag’s motivation in undertaking the project we can turn to a long interview Jonathan Cott conducted with her in 1978. At the same time, most readers would probably find it difficult to parse the line of argument actually taken in the book, which is perhaps more known for its near endless quotability, than for what, precisely, Sontag has to say. But there is no arguing the fact that it is ubiquitous, and that this in itself is a significant phenomenon. This popularity is by no means a point in the book’s favour, especially among more academically inclined critics, or even those sick of its increasingly dated ubiquity. It’s difficult to name any other piece of sustained writing on the subject of photography that has gained the same kind of audience, whatever else might be said about its influence one way or another. And, in many respects, the book is nearly unique. Sontag’s writing has a sureness of tone, a certainty, that seems to have guaranteed its lasting authority.

This longevity might seem unlikely, but in fact, some of the reasons for the book’s popularity aren’t hard to grasp. In much the same way, it has long been a familiar touchstone used to bolster any number of middle-brow articles on the subject, especially those aimed at a non-specialist audience.

It’s probably a source of bemusement for some that Susan Sontag’s venerable 1977 book On Photography still serves as an entry point into the nebulous world of photographic theory for a great many readers.

Henri Cartier-Bresson, Susan Sontag, 1972.

Sontag susan on photography