Sociological Imagination Becoming a Visual Sociologist

iren's Percepti ons of John Grady

Wh eaton College (M A)

ique of Sociology." .

hropometry durin g the ropology and Haven, CT: Yale

Ie Culture of Art. New .ientist Test': 'al Edu c~lfion . 8(1 ):75­ ion of Images in Child

ABSTRACT Th e classroo m provid es a very useful site for developing the ski lls and se nsibilities of visu al sociology. T his paper outlines a ste p by step pro cess by wh ich the visua l novice ca n begin to introduce the analysis of vis ual materials into the classro om and, in the bargain, become more accomplis hed in creating and int erpr eting imag es for research purposes. Th e "cash valu e" - as Willi am James would say - of foll ow ing such a program would not o nly be a more vigorous, ex hilarating, and insight ful soc iology, but also an aca de my full of more versatile, and happi er, sociologists.

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Durin g the last decade interes t in visua l sociology has been growing. Di ana Papadem as has edi ted Visual Sociology and Using Film/ Video in Sociology Courses (1993); Doug Harper (199 4, 200 0) has writt en a review article for Den zin and Linc ol n's The Handbook of Qualitative Research; the Intemation al Visual Soc iology Association (IVSA) now has over 300 members and ju st und er 60 papers, videos, slide-shows and co mpu ter presentation s are deli vered at eac h annual co nfe rence . Also, Doug Harper has tran sformed Visual Sociology , the j ourna l of the IVSA, from an offset printed newsletter into a peer-reviewed bi- annu al journal that meets ar t magazine standar ds for photo graph ic reprodu cti on and design . By now, a careful libr ary and on-line search would yield hundred s and hundred s of articles , mon ograph s and vis ual essays that could be used to construc t a curriculum or flesh out a syllabus. Th is materi al includes edited volumes like Jon Wagn er ' s Images of Inf ormation ( 1979) and, more rece ntly, Jon Pro sser 's Image-ba sed Research (1998 ). So me of these wo rks, like John and Malc olm Co llier's Visual Anthropo logy (1984 ) - the closest thin g to a textb ook in the field ­ and Doug Harp er ' s Working Knowl edge (J 987), arguably have become classic s in co ntemporary social scie nce . In spite of all this activity, how ever, there is littl e evid ence that oth er sociolog ists are integratin g the se materials into their teach ing and research . Fo r visua l soc iology to be thu s margin ali zed is unfo rtunate becau se working with imag es has much to off er the field of sociolog y as a whole. Fir st, visual med ia and me ssages incre asingly dom inate mass communications in co ntemporary soc iety. Not to study how the se messages are produced, wh at they en cod e, and how they are co nsumed ignores an imp ortant phenom enon that co ntains a rich so urce of eas ily available info rmation.

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Seco nd, the imag e is a unique form of data. It is, on the one hand , tangibly objective . What you se e is what the camera go t and so, everythin g else being eq ua l, the im age is a physical record of something that either wa s, or happened , at some time or other. 1 On th e oth er hand , the im age is irreducibly subjecti ve . It invariably refl ect s the focu s of attentio n at a particular moment of the on e holding or di recting the came ra. Th e image quite often also capture s im portant aspects of the experience of the subj ec t of the image . This is e spe cially tru e with film and video. Put summarily and simply, images can represent complex su bje c tive processes in an extraordinari ly objective form. For a great many qu estions and arguments , then , images provide the most valid data po ssib le. Learning how to man age and inte rp ret im age s, therefore , is an ideal way to le arn about data in ge ne ral and to introduce stude nts to th e craft of socio lo gy. Third, thinking, writing and talking about and with , images not o nly can make arguments more v ivid, but also more luc id . Quantitative sociologist s have long known that the clearest way o f organi zin g material is to lay tables and charts ou t in a se quence and then write an acco un t that expla ins wh at is in ea ch o ne , beginning with the first and ending with the la st. The same applies to maps, photographs and film clips . Finally. documentary production - whether with still or mo ving images - is a means of communication that can be eas ily modifi ed to treat soc io log ica l subj ec ts in a sociological fa shi on. There is simply no re ason. therefore , why socio log ists sho uld n' t be producing path-breaking work in this genre. But if vi su al socio logy has so much to offer, then why hasn 't there been more of a ru sh to include the production and analysi s of visual materials into re search and teaching? Whi le there are many reasons for a reluctance to work with im ages, I beli eve that currently the mo st important ob st acle is a form of shyness. Sociologists who are in terested in incorporating vi sual materials into their work but have never used a camera or are unfamiliar w ith the conventions and se ns ibilities of art hi story and fi lm cr iticism are like wallflowers. The more they want to ge t out on the floor, the more they are paralyzed by, well, performance a nxiety. The purp o se o f this essay, therefore, is an insistent. and I hope irres is tible , invitation to join the dance. It is motivated by the beli ef tha t it is a lot ea sier to ge t on the floor than most people think and that, on ce there, it' s

1"Everything else being equal" is, of course, never the case. The image is always a representation that is mediated by the camera holder, the condition and capacity of the medium and equipment, conditions (natural, social and personal) at the time of the shooting, the response of the subject to those conditions, and how the image is made visible and prepared for display. There is also much room for mischief at each phase of the process. The distortions and misinterpretations that most concern social scientists usually involve taking a photograph out of context, or not bothering to understand the context of the photo opportunity in the first place. More technical distortions can often be identified "internally," by an informed critiqu e of the photograph itself. Most questions concerning the adequacy of a representation can be resolved with a little elbow grease in the form of scholarly attention and technical skill. It is important to note, however, that the reason there is such concern about distortion is because of the power of the image. This power is rooted in its capacity to represent something other than itself on something that is experienced as close to that other's own terms.

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just a matter 0 novice with a t in the clas sroo I have orgar the gap is betv materials. The ma terials is a importantly, in visual sociolog small steps. Fi for working wi divided into th ~ as a whole will 1. Images Mus Visual social the disciplined and purpo ses, i ~ human SignifiCl yesterday's Pola

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land, tangibly obj ective . ng equal, the image is a me time or other. I On retlects the focus of the camera. The image the subject of the ima ge. .imply, images can iective form . For a great ralid data possible. deal way to learn about ;y. lot only can make gists have long known halts out in a sequence nning with the fi rst and film clips. g images - is a means al subjec ts in a sociologists shouldn' t be gy has so much to roduction and analy sis mages, I believe that logists who are ve never used a camera w ry and film critici sm the more they are y, therefore, is an motivated by the belief ld that, once there, it' s

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j ust a matter of takin g one step at a time. The following guide lines should provide the novice with a mana geabl e itinerary to developing skill in the art of visual sociology both in the cla ssroom and in the conduct of research . I have organized this pap er into four major topi cs. Th e first emphas izes how narr ow the gap is betw een traditional modes of sociologi cal analysis and working with visual materia ls. The second points out that learning how to produ ce and evaluate visual material s is a form of cra ft knowl edge that the soc iologist can learn on the job and , most importantly, in the clas sroom. Th e third argue s that visual soc iology is only a "more visual soci ology" (C haplin 1994 ) and shows how existing co urses ca n be transformed in small steps . Finally, the fourth topi c explores ways of creating a more supportive mili eu for working with visua l materials in your department and institution. Ea ch topi c is divided into thre e separate sections that are numbered sequentially. Thu s, the argument as a whol e will be mad e in the form of twelve proposition s.

1. Images Must Be Treated as Data and not as an Instructional Aid. Visual soc iolog y integrates the anal ysis and produ ction of visual repre sent ation into the disciplined study of soc ial relations. At its core is the "i mage," wh ich , for all intent s and purposes, is no more than a picture, how ever manu factured , of some thing that has human significance. Gener ally mo st images - beginning with L ascaux throu gh yes terday's Polaroid snapsho t - represent some person, object, plac e or event in the image-maker's psychi c land scape. Thu s, wh atever else they may be - ideology, personal stateme nt, or even an accide nt - images ca n always constitute data for one set of purposes or another. All images have complex histori es. Som eb ody, some gro up, or social network produces them with a given technolo gy und er vary ing conditions for different purposes. In addition, all images are often co ns umed by other groups of people who may have a completely different set of intere sts and expect ations. As a rule, the mor e that we can learn about how specific images have been made and used , the mor e informe d will be our unde rstanding of the man y me anin gs that an image ca n sustain . What thi s me ans is that ima ges are forms of da ta that require the same kind of care in their produ ction and interpretation that sur veys , interview s, ethn ogr aph ic observations, and archival record s do. It is imp ort ant , therefore, for the novice vis ual sociologist to appreciat e that the skills and techniques used to produce and interpret the kind s of data that are more familiar to social scientists and hum an ists can, and must, be tran sferred to the study of images . On ce we know what they were made and used for , we have a handl e on defining what they could be data for. At that point, we ca n begin to do what we alw ays do with data : sample, count, and compare ; always being ready, of course, to modi fy our techniques to whatever ki nds of information we determine mi ght be abl e to be ex trac ted from the images them selves. Wh at makes pictures so valuable in hum an communicat ion is that they encode an enonuous amo unt of infor ma tion in a si ngle display or represe ntation. Thi s information

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Figure 1. Between 1968 and 1972, Bill Owens in Suburbia(1 973) photograph ed people and events in three suburban communities in the Livermore Amador Valley in northern California. The photographs and accompanying text is a remarkable portrait of an unremarkable, yet fasc inating, way of life: middle-cla ss Am erica.

is framed contextually in space and tim e on a flat surface and so all the bits of informati on produce, in combination with each other, a sy nergistic effec t that ge nerates eve n mor e in formation. It is, therefore , an inevitable by-product of the material properties of an image that makes it possible for any one picture to contain many meanings and sustain multiple interpretations. In a se nse, images cry out to us to imbu e them with meaning and it is thi s, above all, whi ch provides them with their uniqu e ca pac ity to engage us. Unfortunately, bec ause ima ges can so completely capture our attention, instructors often will only use them for illu str ative purposes: to make an argument co rne alive so that it will be firmly imprinted on stude nts' minds. Images used in this way fun ction as little more than a high lighter, vividly enhancin g tho se points in the text that the instructor wants to und erscore. But, like a highli ghter, using images in thi s way may push from co nscious ness tho se part s of the text tha t have not been illuminated. Illustratin g an argument, the refore, is ju st what an instructor should not do becau se it devalue s the very thin g that make s the ima ge important as dat a, which is the simultaneity of the relations that ex ist bet ween the variou s ele me nts represented in the

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2. Images Must Be Vit

Es tablishing a profes One of the legacies of t o ur classes expecting ei Their experience is that ins truc tion, So as soon stu de nts know that it w interpretation of events about the slave trade () o ften shown to j unior l m akes the students am In addi tio n, because th ey ha ve see n, they h(

Sociological Imagination sociability, the trained socio logis t should still notice all this. These eleme nts of the image might become, for exa mple, useful variables in a compariso n between suburban barbecues and urban hlock parties and festivals. Like an interviewer 's transcript or an ethnogra pher's field note s, the photograph is a record of that to which attentio n has been paid. But the photograph also includes extraneous material that, because it is an actual part of the fabric of its suhjec ts' lives at the mome nt of record , might tum out not to he so extraneous the more that world is studied. A dramat ic exam ple of how much more information is em bedded in the image than we might think is found by co ntrasti ng Fig ure 1 and Figure 2. When stude nts in the class room are asked to make an inventory of what they see in Figure I . they mostly make lists of the people and things that are visihle in the foreground of the photograp h. When they are requested to do the same for Figure 2, they fi rst ide ntify the horizon line and the shadows that are cast by various objec ts, which they never mention when viewing Figure 1. In other words, they notice what Gibson (1982) ca lls the eco logica l propertie s of the "a mbient arr ay," or the visually experienced world : mos tly shapes, texture s and different intensities of reflec ted light. This inform ation was in the image all along, of co urse, hut it is so taken for gra nted that it only hecome s evide nt when we display the inverted image . Used in the traditional manner of the audio-v isual aid, the displ ay of images in the classroom well deserves the disdain it often receives from serio us academics. Mere illustration simplifies complex subjects, trivializes events and iss ues, and may induce a cognitive passivity that preclud es the exercise of analytic reason. But used as a source of data - whic h must he assesse d j udicio usly, exami ned carefully, and interp reted thoroughly - images provide a kind of material that encourages analysis, espec ially in conj unction with data from other sources and, of course, texts that work through the data. So, the first, and most impo rtant, step to becomin g a visual socio logis t is to realize that images are. above all else, data and should only he used as such in the classroom.

2. Images Must Be Viewed Seriously Establi shing a professional tone in the viewing of images is easi er said than done . One of the legacies of the audio/visual tradition of illu stration is that students come into our classes expecting either to be amused or to he edified by the images we display. Their experience is that viewing is a hreak in the action that enlivens the pace of normal instruction. So as soon as the projector and scree n are set up or the monitor turned on, students kno w that it will be time eithe r to relax or to view something so serious that its interpretation of events and socie ty will be beyond question . Steven Speilberg's films about the slave trade (Amistad) and the Holocaust (Schindler's List), for exa mple, are often shown to j unior high and high school stude nts to elicit an emotional response that makes the stude nts amen able to a moral instruction they might otherwis e resist. In addition, hecause stude nts know that teac hers will expec t them to discuss what they have see n, they have developed very effective ways of deflectin g the kind of

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Sociological Imagination personal scru tiny by both their teachers and their peers (and especially the latter) to which a too ca ndid respo nse might expose them . The effect of these pract ices and conventions is that jokin g and the solemn expression of outrage are two of the co mmon responses that und ermine takin g images seriously as data. What is particula rly insidious about both humor and the ju dgment alism that usually flows from pious rage is that they tend to redu ce all discussion of the image to a familiar and unth reatening scri pt. Unc hecked these responses ca n easi ly "blinker" a class and dissipa te the kind of atte ntion that is necessary to analyze im ages fruitfully. One rule of thumb in dealing with inapprop riate hum or and knee-je rk outrage is to flu sh them out into the ope n and then, if necessary, neut rali ze their negative imp acts by a conscious attempt at sublimation. This ca n be acco mplished by delib erately eliciting personal respo nses with the understand ing that, within the bound s of propri ety, any res po nse will be acce ptable so long as the stude nt is prepared to expa nd on why they might feel the way that they do. If no response is forthcoming and yet the teach er believes that so mething is being suppressed you may find it useful to probe: "You see med to be smiling, wh at was it that struck you as funny or odd?" Write the responses down on the board . After a few minutes of this, tell the stude nts that it is time to move on and to understand in a more foc used way what else can be see n in the image . Adv ise the students that they should keep thei r responses in min d and sugges t others but that an adequ ate analysis requires a more dispassionate and reasoned inquiry. Tn fact, the ration ale for viewi ng and analyzi ng imag es in a profession al mann er should be made explicit and distributed to the class as a preliminary to the first round of view ing images. It should be possible to establish a pro fess ional tone for discu ssing images within the first several week s of the class although the class may need to be explicitly reminded of the import ance of looking at visual materi als more maturely durin g this period. One of the most effective ways of encourag ing students to take images se riously is to integra te their viewing into the class on a regul ar basis. It is not very difficult to insert bri ef peri ods of fifteen to twent y minutes in dur ation for view ing and discussion into a class. It is impor tant, however, that the images either docum ent or challenge arguments in the text or lecture . It is this dramati c cont ext that makes it possible to ide ntify them as data. Soci ology is often define d as a field that studies the deeper and wider significance of what, to the uninit iated , might appea r to be mund ane or banal. One way of help ing students develop a soc iological im aginat ion about everyday things that they might otherw ise take for gra nted is to sho w them how photograph s and video clips of these every day things are rich reposi tories of inform ation that can be used in theory and analysis. If Bill Wh yte can find much to talk about in photographs of buildin g ledges on a busy city stree t (Cf. Fig ure 3), ju st imagine what you and your stude nts could discover with different conce rns in yo ur ow n surro undings . Once a pattern is established of findin g extraordinary thin gs in the ordinary, it then is much easier to convince students that the really interesting thin g about viewing exotic images is to identify the more general social processes they represent.

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ers (and especially the latte r) to Ie effect of these prac tices an d ~ of outrage are two of the co m mo n i data. What is particul arly insid iou s y flows from piou s rage is that they iar and unthreatenin g scri pt. ass and dissip ate the kind of

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rumor and knee-jerk outrage is to leutralize their negat ive impac ts by mplished by deliberately elici ting in the bounds of pro priety, any prepared to expa nd o n why they :hcoming and yet the teach er find it useful to pro be : "You funny or odd?" Write the respon se s Ie students that it is tim e to mo ve e can be seen in the image. Advise nind and sugges t others but that an easoned inquiry. In fact, the sional manner should be made the first round of viewing images. r discussing im ages within the need to be explicitly reminded of urely during this period. ents to take imag es serio us ly is to . It is not very difficult to insert

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Figure 4. These three pairs of photograph s are taken from the 1937, 196 7, and 1997 yearbooks of a woma n's college that became co-e ducationa l in 1988. Can you tell . which pai rs are taken from which years? What continuities and cha nges can yo u notice in how young wome n are represente d in these images?

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Sociological Imagination Finally, the more that view ing images adequately and professionally is rewarded , the more that stude nts will come to value the exercise. It is very useful, therefo re, to integrate the careful analysis of images into the course 's grading syste m. Brief exercises where students analyze the socia l content of a few images can be conducted as in-class quizzes or as short take home essays. Four or five of these, if each were worth 5% of their ti nal grade, could easily be integrated into most courses. Creating a serious tone in the study of images is well worth the effort. First, possibilities for collabora tive learn ing arc significantly enhanced because displaying the image in a very publi c forum permits a co llective viewing that enco urages dialogue and debate. Second , it is also impo rta nt to realize that the more that visual materials are explored in the classroom, or as assig ned research topics, the more possible it will be to dev ise interesting assig nments and research projects as course requ irement s. Student s who are either mo re motivated or better prepared tend to thoroughl y enjoy working on these projects and can thus become enthusia stic research assis tants in more ambitious projects.

3. Always Think Sociologically There is much that we sociologists can learn about the uses of imager y from other disciplines. Art history, anth ropology, psychology, and marketin g studies have long analyzed images as sources of inform ation about hum an beh avior. In fact , one of the most exciting things about becomin g a visual sociologis t is that it gives you a reason to explore their findings and insights. Nevertheless , there are at leas t four ways in which socio logy is invaluable in visual inqu iry. These includ e defin ing questions, opera tionalizing variables, developin g methodology and providin g insight. A. Detinin g Questions. Imagine that you arc idly thumbing through a colle ge yea rboo k, lookin g at a compilation of images that are as banal as they are prolific. These include photographs of ea ch mem ber of the grad ua ting class, pictures of various categor ies of forma lly defined even ts, as well as a serie s of ostensibly "ca ndid" shots which usually focus on stude nts' leisure time activities and sometimes hint at mildly illicit purs uits. Co nsider what you might see displayed in many of these shots. How are the graduates represented: close-u ps or full-body shots ; with an indeterminately generic baekground or posed somewhe re aro und the cam pus; are they smiling or not ? Wh at kinds of even ts are displayed ? Who is in the shot and what are they doing? How are students' rooms decorated and with what? How are students shown using their rooms and so on? A co llege yea rbook is actually an idea lized representat ion of a co mplex, yet bound ed, socia l world that, when exa mined caref ully, reveals much about what those who put the book toge ther value. In addition, becau se only ju st so much can be contrived, yearbooks are also catalog ues of that world's mores. Students wear wristwa tches , have certain kinds of hair-dos, are clothed in certain styles, and either have or don't have members of

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Figure 5. The picture on tl' the one on the right is frOl~ . I more tIian men, It seems. a~ psychologically from the s presumably, therefore, depe come to be) present..." "Just as covering the m brought to the mouth can hi given that somehow a streai source of attention and is b 57-60). The photograph of the [ photograph of the woman s that: "This advertisement r performing a ritualization 0 is biting his thumb and hidi that his mind has wandered Either way, a male subject Gubitosi's fellow studei "The man in this ima&e is I women in similar poses... the moment. This advertis men and women are portra What would your stude

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and professionally is rewarded, the It is very useful, therefore, to rse's grading system. Brief exercises mages can be conducted as in-class )f these, if each were worth 5% of ;t courses. welf worth the effort. First, tly enhanced because displaying the ewing that encourages dialogue and e more that visual materials are ipics, the more possible it will be to as course requirements. Students id to thoroughly enjoy working on arch assistants in more ambitious

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t the uses of imagery from other d marketing studies have long an behavior. In fact, one of the ist is that it gives you a reason to :e are at least four ways in which e defining questions, nd providing insight.

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Figure 5. The picture on the left is taken from Er vin g Goffman 's Gender Adverstise me nts while the one on the right is from the October 1998 issue of Vanity Fair. Go ffma n tell s us that "Wome n more than men , it see ms, are pictured engaged in involv em ent s which rem ove them psychologically fro m the social situation at large , leav ing them uno rient ed in it and to it, and presumably, therefore, dependent on the protectiveness and goodw ill of others who are (or might corne to be) present. .." "Just as coveri ng the mouth with the hand can be attenu ation of covering the face , so a finger brought to the mouth can be an attenuation of sucking or bitin g the finger. The impression is given that somehow a strea m of an xiety, rumin ation or whatever, has been split off from the main source of attention and is bein g sustain ed in a dis sociated, unthinking fashion ." (Go ffrn an. 1979 : 57-60 ). The phot ograph of the male biting his thumb is sepa rated by at least twenty ye ars from the photograph of the woman se lected by Goffman and had lead Richard Gubitosi ( 1998) to con clud e that: "This adverti sem ent mod ifies Goffrnan's thesis becau se the subjec t here is a male performing a ritu alization of licen sed withdrawal commonly associated with women. The subject is biting his thumb and hidin g part of his face in the pro cess. His lowered eyes and ges ture impl y that his mind has wandered. Perhaps he is thinking, or, more accur atel y, d isappointed or an xious. Either way, a male subject has ado pted a more fem ale ritualization ." Gubit osi's fellow student, Jamie Gorn arlo, seriously questions his interpretation of the image. "The man in this image is bitin g his thumb, but he has a compl etely differ ent look on his face than women in similar poses... (T) he man in this adve rtisem ent is deep in thought and co mpletely in the mom ent. Thi s ad verti sem ent is in complete agreem ent with Go ffman 's rule s of the roles that men and wo men are portr ayed as havi ng in ad verti sem ents (Go rnarlo, 199 8)." What would yo ur stude nts think ?

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Sociological Imagination the opposite sex in their rooms . They may display some items on their walls and on their de sks , and not others. And mu ch of this can be detected in the photos with, or without, a magnifying glass . For sociologists who are interested in social and cultural patterns and change, therefore, the visual images in something as mundane as a college catalogue can provoke a myriad of questions (Cf. Figure 4) . Some of these may be comparative and historical. To this day colleges in America vary in their social composition - whether ethnic, racial, religious , class or region - and institutional identity. Furthermore, college yearbooks have been produced since the turn of the century if not before, so they document changes over time. Other questions may be suggested by anomalies visible in the images. Why do some students appear to decorate their rooms differently than other students? Is it because they are first year students and not upperclassmen? What about day students who often remain in the rooms they have occupied since early childhood and who live in the same household as their parents? We never see their rooms in the yearbooks. These questions can be explored differently, in the present and ethnographically, with camera in hand. But why should we bother? Because as sociologists we're interested in things like the life cycle and identity formation, occupational cultures, the quality of gender relationships, the lived significance of symbolic forms. and the like . With the kinds of questions we routinely entertain, we should be able to find fascinating, useful and important information even in seed catalogues. Imagine how much information can be extracted from , and produced by, visual representations of social worlds full of people and their products. In other words, just about any question for which an observation might provide an answer can be elicited from a visual image. B. Operationalizing Variables All questions entail either a hypothesis or suspicion about the nature of the relationship between one thing and another. All answers usually take the form of stories that purport to tell us what that relationship may be. As sociologists we are seldom surprised to find out that most human stories concern loss or gain and that certain factors affect how likely it is that. in any given situation, we will experience one outcome rather than another. Gender, race, class, age, size, strength, beauty, birth order, group cohesion and so on are all variables that we use both in interpreting behavior and in explaining how lives are organized the way they are. What's more, social distance can be measured, norms of deference identified, settings categorized, and all of these can be correlated with certain mores as opposed to others. Never be surprised at how much sociological knowledge can illuminate an image. The same is true of the images that you create with a camera. Experienced interviewers who begin to work with video, for example, will find themselves noticing layers of meaning in an interview that a journalist or filmmaker often will overlook. More

94

importantly, what i explored. One of the mos imagery is demonsi is probably the sins advertising. It is al gender expectation well as vernacular ~ it is unclear just ho they certainly woult that they are unrela we are trying to bell calls "the feminine hands in a way that noteworthy when \~ tendency for wome ~ consciously conned

"licen~1

this variable privilege that wom9 displayed far more i Advertisements at s good sociologist ca If anything chara attention to method At its simplest, socii . . I de fim mg a universe ( Perhaps you or yo Goffman has identifi 5) . Maybe, with con have changed in the were different in the to define the kinds c aimed at homemake magazines like Life illustrated books, ca defining an appropr markets these venue cross section of tho The second step selected magazines or ten images from

nation

me items on their wall s and on detected in the phot os with , or

ultural pattern s and chan ge, as a college catalogue ca n )f these may be comparat ive and ir social composition - whether tional identity. Furthermore, ~

of the century if not before, so they suggested by anomal ies visi ble in : their rooms differently than oth er not upperclassm en ? What about ~ occupied since early childhood We never see their room s in the y, in the present and i we're interested in thin gs like the . the quality of gender

and the like. With the kind s of find fascinating, useful and • how much information can be , of social worlds full of people 'on for which an observa tion mage.

sbout the nature of the

usually take the form of stories

sociologists we are seldom

s or gain and that certain

we will experience one

e, strength, beauty, birth order,

th in interpretin g beha vior and

What's more, social distanc e can orized, and all of these ca n be ze can illumin ate an ima ge. era. Experienced inter viewers iselves noticing layers of en will overlook. Mor e

Sociological Imagination importantl y, what is noti ced often suggests other factor s or issues that sho uld be explored. One of the mo st insightful ex amples of what a goo d sociologis t ca n do with visual imagery is dem on strated in E rvi ng Goffman 's Gender Advertisements (1979). Thi s book is probably the si ngle most important soc iolog ica l contribution to the study of advertising. It is also one of the mo st pen etrating examinati ons of the ways in whi ch gender expectations shape how we live in our bodi es. Go ffrnan argu es that advertisin g as well as vem acul ar photogra ph y should best be see n as " idea liza tions" o f conduct. Wh ile it is unclear ju st how closely peopl e approx imate these idealizati on s in every day life, they certainly would like to . So , the fact that these poses are exaggera ted does not mean that they are unrelated to what we do. Rather, they se rve as mod els, protot ypes. for wh at we are tryin g to become. In this co ntext, Goffman points out the significance of what he calls "the feminine touch ," which refers to a tendency to depict wom en holding their hands in a way that accentuates an insuffi ciency for dec isive ac tion. Th is is parti cul arl y noteworth y when women are displayed with men . In add ition , Goffman noti ced a tendency for women to be displayed in a wa y that sugges ted that they are " away," or not consciously co nnec ted with the acti on in the sce ne wh ere they are depi cted. He nam ed this variable "licensed wi thdrawal" and sugges ted that it is an immensely cos tly privilege that wom en are afforded by protect ive males who are, of co urse, invariably display ed far more alertly, hands ready for action. I have talked about Gender Advertisements at some length becau se Goffman mod els in an exemplary fashi on wha t a good sociologis t can find in the vis ua l imag e. If anything characterizes the soc iolo gic al approac h to resea rch it has been its attention to methodology, to devi sin g way s of coll ectin g reliable and valid information . At its simples t, soc iologic al meth od should be envisioned as a three- stage process: definin g a universe of meaning, sa mpling that universe, and coding the data. Perh aps yo u or your stude nts wond er whether the rule s of ge nder representation that Goffma n has identified in Ge nde r Adve rtiseme nts are histori cally spec ific (Cf. Figure 5). Ma ybe, with cont inu ed cha nges in wom en 's roles and co nscious ness, these rules have changed in the 20 years since his book was publi shed. Perh aps men and wom en were different in the distant past? Ei the r is a testabl e propositi on. Th e first step would be to define the kind s of venu es to be examined. Magazine s? If so, wh at kind? T hos e aimed at homemakers? Youn g wom en ? H igh fashion? M ass circulation family magazines like Li fe or Look ? Variou s kind s of men 's magazines? Perh aps newspapers, illustrated book s, ca talog ues or posters might be more appropri ate ? T he crucial issue in definin g an app ropriate un iverse of me anin g, in this case, wo uld be to determine wha t markets these venues exploi ted. In the abse nce of a parti cul ar research imperative , a cross section of those magazin es with the wide st circulation wi ll usually do. T he second step is to extrac t a represent ative sa mple of the images contained in the selected magazine s. T he easies t way to do this is to establish param eters. Thirty, fifteen or ten ima ge s from on e, two or three specifi c issues a year, chosen at ten-year inter vals

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Sociological Imagination would provide a sample of 300 images covering one magazine over the course of a century. Random sampling of an issue's images can be restricted to images of a certain size - larger images provide more space for thematic embellishment - or other specifications required by your hypothesis. After counting the total number of acceptable images in any given issue ; it is merely a question of using an appropriate sampling technique to select the images for the sample. A table of random numbers like those that are included in most research methods textbooks (Cf. E.g . Babbie 1992: Appendix D; Bernard 1995: Appendix A) might prove useful. The number of images sampled, of course, depends upon the number of variables being tested. Sampling, of course, is also important in case studies as Howard Becker so ably establishes in Tricks of the Trade (1997: 85-88). Videographed interviews for a documentary about a certain event must encompass all of the major social roles that contributed to the event: not just union leaders and managers in a strike, but also rank and filers, non-union members, foremen , the wider community, and so on . The concept of a shooting script , first developed by Roy Striker in collaboration with Robert Lynd as a guide for the FSA photographers during the Great Depression, also constitutes a kind of sampling procedure. It served as an inventory of basic shots that a photographer needed to take in order to establish a context for whatever is chosen as a focus (Suchar 1997: 36). The third methodological step is coding the data. Usually, it is advi sable to develop a coding sheet in advance of the sampling process, but there is nothing to stop the investigator from adding or modifying categories during the process of research. Goffman provides the reader with some explicit advice on what should be considered in coding rules of gender repre sentation . Nevertheless, he tells us little about other things that might concern a student interested in gender issues like, for instance, variations in the kinds of activities men and women are depicted doing, or the settings they occupy, and whether they are "eroticized" or not. The key in coding images is to identify just what the presence or the absence of some element in an image may indicate. Length of hair and hem may be significant variables in one investigation, but not in another. The strength of any research project depends on the significance of what is coded and how well the actual coding can be replicated. If, for example, there is concern that the image of women is being increasingly eroticized as most contemporary feminist criticism suggests, then "nudity" should be a good indicator of the erotic. But what constitutes nudity? In contemporary Western culture we should begin with any unclothed display of primary and secondary sex characteristics. These would include genitals, buttocks and breasts. But what about a photograph of a woman taken from the waist up who is unclothed, yet facing away from the camera so that her breasts are not visible? I would argue that this is a "nude" shot because we can easily imagine what should be on the other side . It would follow, therefore, that my criteria for coding "nudity" should include no evidence of clothed primary or secondary sexual charact eristics. While others might argue with this coding

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instruction, they certa findings . D. Providing Insight Our sociological t Not only is the histo that quality of mind imagination, is, at its Hughes has said: The essence but not ham~ the unconsci can be called do, that it sH than whatev observation the old cone

Appropriately cno Sociological Eye. Hu interpretative momen "illuminate," "view," more than any of the environment. Sight, tf propositions. it shouh people close together, not? How are the peo has been photographe that might help expla It is also possible For example, it is we points of conflict bet' the se areas may accc civility, neighbo~linc: strategies could prav describe . One appros significant time inter people go about thci people. The photogr: the quality of the ex,

gination

ne magazine over the co urse of a In be restricted to images of a certa in iatic embellishment -- or o ther ounting the total number of 1 question of using an approp riate nple. A table of random numb ers like ~xtb~oks (Cf. E.g. Babbie 1992 : ave useful. The numb er of images ariables being tested. udies as Howard Bec ker so ably 'ideographed interviews for a : all of the major soc ial roles that managers in a strike, but also rank community, and so on. The conce pt in collaboration with Robert Lynd as Depression, also constitutes a kind basic shots that a photographer atever is chosen as a focus (Suchar Usually, it is advis able to develop a t there is nothing to stop the ring the process of research . ce on what should be considered in e tells us little about other things res like, for instance, variations in oing, or the settings they occ upy, oding images is to identify ju st an image may indica te. Length of tigation, but not in another. The -cance of what is coded and how omen is being increasingly gests, then "nudity" should be a ty? In contemporary Western

primary and secondary sex

and breasts. But what about a

s unclothed, yet facing away from

argue that this is a "nude" shot

theI' side. It would follow,

nelude no evidence of clothed

iers might argue with this coding

Sociological Imagination instruction, they certa inly should be able to replicate it and arri ve at co mpa rable findings. D. Providing Insight Our socio logica l train ing also provid es us with rich resourc es for interpr eting images . Not only is the history of socio logical theory a reposi tory of illuminating insights, but that quality of mind we prize and try and deve lop in our stude nts, the sociological imagination, is, at its simplest, an alert con sciousness poised for insight. As Everett Hughes has said : The esse nce of the soc iologi cal imagination is free association, guided but not hamp ered by a frame of refere nce internalized not qu ite into the uncon sciou s. It mu st work even in one's dr eam s but be where it can be called up at will. When people say of my work, as they of ten do, that it shows insig ht, I cannot think what they could mean other than whatever quality may have been produ ced by intens ity of observa tio n and a turning of the wheels to ti nd a new co mb ination of the old conc ept s, or even a new co ncept (Hughes 197 I : vi). Appropriately e nough, the volume in which Hu ghes made this remark is ent itled The Sociological Eye . Hu ghes is not alo ne in usin g visual imagery to stand for the interpretative mo men t in soc iological analysis. Sociologists co mmo nly "se e," "o bserve ," "illuminate," " view," "dis play," "uncover," pattern s, processes and struc tures . Sig ht, more than any of the other senses , puts the thin g perceived in the con tex t of its environment. Sight, therefore, situates its objects much as analysis seeks to do with propositions. It shouldn' t surprise us, then , that the image invites insight. Wh y are those people close togeth er, while those are apart ? Why are so me people smiling and others not? How are the peopl e in the frame related ? Wh at roles do they play in the eve nt that has been photographed ? Train ed sociologis ts will find them selves brimming with ideas that might help ex plain what is go ing on in an image. It is also possible to create, or search for, images with soc iolog ical co ncep ts in mind . For exa mple, it is we ll kno wn that areas of racial and ethnic transition are ofte n flash points of con flict betw een different gro ups. Yet, interviewers often find that people in these areas may acc entuate the positi ve aspec ts of relationships and stress instances of civility, neighborliness and the like in their responses. Variou s pho tographic research strategies co uld provide a richer and more co mplex picture of the situatio n they describe. On e app roach could be to take photographs of spe cific public places at significant time intervals. Pu blic streets, parks , or coffee shops are all places where people go about their business and as a matter of co urse do thin gs together with oth er people. The photographs should reveal ju st who those others may be and so mething of the quality of the excha nges. Anot her approach wo uld be to take pictures of various

97

Sociological Imagination kinds of thoroughfares and acces s points in the neighborhood, like sidewalks, yards , doorways , windows, and so on . Are they inv iting, or do they warn the stranger off. Fences, locks, "no loitering; police take notice" sig ns, "neighborhood crime watch" stickers and bars on windows are all measures of social control whose incidence can be compared with that in more stable or homogeneous neighborhoods. The photographs not only constitute data in themselves but can be used in conjunction with interviews to elicit testimony about the neighborhood that residents otherwise might not talk about easily. Hughes continues his aforementioned remarks by saying: I think I even do my reading by free association: 'Didn't Simrnel, or Durkheirn, Weber, Mead or Marshall, or someone say something on that point?' I do a great deal of my reading by starting with the index (Lbic!.). Th e visual sociologist does the same thing with images. Something in the picture, or something glanced at in passing that could be pictured, will suggest an idea or hint at a link to a theory. It is from such moments that insight is born and from such insights that full-blown interpretative and research stra tegies can be constructed. It is also important to note that other kinds of visual narratives can be similarly mined for insight. Theda Scokpol tells us that: .. . I learned a lot from the hundreds of political cartoons that I coll ected during the health reform debate .. . To make people laugh, cartoonists have to capture social truths - and pinpoint political ironies. So cartoons are an excellent source for a scholar trying to understand and write vividly about the deeper meanings of current events (1997: xiv) .

4. Becoming Visually Proficient Means Learning a Craft Many of the first visual sociologists were closet photographers. They loved the craft of producing pictures as much as what the pictures themselves represented . For sociologists who weren't photographers, however, the technical challenge of making good, or even adequate, images constituted the biggest obstacle to developing a visual sociology. In recent years the development of increasingly user-fri endly technologies has , for all intents and purposes, removed this obstacle. Nevertheless, it is extremely important to remember that, as idiot-proof as these new technologies may be, working with images is still a craft and that many of the rules of any system of apprenticeship, or good workmanship, apply in full force. The mo st important rules of thumb that should guide the novice are the following:

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I. Respect and car camcorders, scanners, printers, projectors (s doesn 't, and that usu used . Proper maintena concerns and require your mind .

One corollary of til

all and that it is in wo helpful and in some c\ Having enough batte . equipment you plan t more embarrassing th, then discovering that 2.Take one ~ ill ~ sequence of steps . On deliberately, most fru. you ask permission to while you fumble wit invitation for disaster, details rather than foc Equipment should al If there is some as inform your subject th' them go about their br and why . A discussion and can build rapport. properly belong to the your full attention to t I've described this: the few initial steps in anticipated and execu i corollary to this rule i thumb here is to makr complete a process ar The most importai not ju st a part of a rm important choices. 11 types of establishing product. You want to enough to give them

ination

hborhood, like sidewa lks, yards , do they warn the strange r off. s, "neighborhood crime watch" .ial control whose inc ide nce can be 1eighborhoods. The photograph s not conjunction with interviews to s otherwise might not talk about saying: tion: 'Didn' t Simmel, or leone say something on ly starting with the index

ages. Something in the picture, or I, will suggest an idea or hint at a born and from such insight s that : constructed. I narratives can be similarly

al cartoons that I make people laugh, pinpoint political a scholar trying to meanings of current

'raft

tographers. They loved the craft

selves represented . For

'chnical challenge of makin g

bstacle to developing a vis ual

ly user-friendly technol ogies

evertheless, it is extremely technologies may be, workin g any system of apprentices hip, or nt niles of thumb that should

Sociological Imagination I. Respect and ca re fo r your tools. In visual soc iology these ca n include ca me ras , camcorders, sca nners, computer software , developers, film and video stock, co mputers, printers, projectors (slide or digit al) and so on. Thi s equ ipment either wo rks well or it doesn' t, and that usuall y depend s on how well it is car ed for and how appropriately it is used. Proper maint enance, go od carrying cases and many other de tai ls are all necessary concerns and require space in eith er your offi ce or yo ur home and, ce rtainl y, always in your mind . One coro llary of this rule is alway s check your equipment to make sure yo u've go t it all and that it is in working order befo re yo u go out to use it. A chec klis t is always helpful and in some cases you need to ensure that yo u brin g rep laceme nt equipment. Having enoug h batteries and film is always a co nce rn. Th is rule als o applies to the equipment you plan to use in the class roo m to displ ay ima ges. Th ere are few situations more emb arrassin g tha n having plann ed a class aro und viewing slides or video clips and then discoverin g that the projec tor or monitor doe sn 't wor k. 2.Take one step ffi il tim e. Eve ry craft process has its logic and rhythm and involves a sequence of steps. Once yo u know wh at the major steps are and then exec ute them deliberately, most frus tra tio ns will be minimi zed . For example, load the camera before you ask perm ission to photograph . Your subjects wiII not ap prec iate sta ndi ng around while you fumble with the eq uipme nt. What's mor e, not havin g eq uipme nt ready is an invitation for disaste r, becau se the investigator's att enti on is preoccupied with techni cal details rath er than focu sin g on the analytic complexit ies of a photo opp ortunity, Equipment sho uld always be ready to use. If there is some aspect of techn ical p reparati on that is unavoidable, howe ver , then inform your subject that it may take a few minu tes to se t up the equipme nt and ei ther let them go abo ut their busine ss or engage them in co nvers atio n about what you are doin g and why. A discu ssion of the techn ology be ing used is an invitatio n to share yo ur world and can build rapport. It is imp ortant to avoid discu ssin g su bstantive iss ues that mor e properly belon g to the purpose of the int er view itse lf whil e yo u are unable to devote your full attention to those matters. I' ve described this situation at so me len gth to pr ovide a fla vor of wh at managin g even the few initial steps in a process might be like . T he more that the se steps can be anticipated and exec uted in seque nce , the eas ier the proce ss will be. If there is a corolla ry to this rule it is this : Al ways allow more than eno ug h tim e ! A usefu l rule of thumb here is to make a reaso nably co nserva tive es timate of the time need ed to complete a process and then do uble it. The most imp ortant reaso n, however, fo r takin g a ste p at a tim e is that eac h step is not ju st a part of a mech ani cal seq uence, but is also very often a point for making

important choices. The kind of film you usc, where yOtl set up the interview site, lhe types of establis hing sho t you make, ca n all have significa nt co nseque nces for the fin al product. You want to be abl e to be awa re of wh at your options are, and have time enough to give them a bit of thou gh t.

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Sociological Imagination

3. Everything simplest tasks. You sun that the y have shooting opportuni with new equipme that so me failure i mistakes so as 10 ITl ope ration may be, br and new super-d tested it is a recipe But , as sociolog than the one that h the results is an im di spl ayin g student content as a compo stude nt's work stro ways of having the 4 . Start simply. \l only do so if it doe is probably better I hundred hasty ones least several photo? cla ssroom. howeve of images . Properl with all the materia rai ses. Nevertheles focu s a discussion. rich encounter withl There is an addi I as yo u can ). It enaq im age and socializJ

working with so ci ~ im ages force Y9U te information.

5. Always Producl

Figure 6. Godfrey Frank el photograph ed scenes like this in Washin gton DC in 1943. In 1993 they were used to elicit testimony fro m peopl e who had lived there as children at the time . Frankel and his colla bora tor. Laur a Go lds tein. ca ptioned the photo as follows : "In that awful place where I lived there was so much love and affec tio n - not j ust in my hou se but in a ll of Southwe st. We had a rea l co mmunity (F rankel. 1995: 48-49).

100

Even if your int by othe rs, you shoi are three major rea ph oto graphi c expe med ia may be and

ation

Sociological Imagination 3. Everyt hing proc~e ds Qy trial and ~TO r. Be prepared to fail at eve n so me of the simplest tasks. You may not have not iced that yo ur subj ects were so backlit by a brig ht sun that they have becom e little more than silhouettes and so an entire role of film and a shooting opportunity is was ted . Th at happ ens ! That's wh y it is importan t to pract ice with new equipm ent and to allow plenty of time to se t up shots . Be reassur ed, however, that some failure is not only inevitable but also valuab le pre paration to learn fro m those mistakes so as to minimi ze their chances of recurring. The more imp ort ant a particul ar operation may be, the mo re that we make sure we 've cove red all our bases. Using a brand new super-duper camera, for exa mple, on an important shoo t without having tested it is a recipe for disaster. But, as socio log ists we should be fam iliar with th is rule of thumb. It' s no different than the one that has us pretest surveys . Practicing shooting and then ca refully viewing the results is an imp ortant way of ident ifyin g flaws. If work in the classroom entails displaying stude nt wor k, be sure to have a "critique " of how we ll techn ique is reali zing content as a com ponent of an y disc ussion. Ident ifying what it is that makes one student's work strong, and having them talk about w hat they did, is one of the very best ways of having the rest of the class imp rove their performan ce. 4. Start simply. Wh ile there is much to be said for shooting lots of film, you should only do so if it doesn' t distrac t you from the substantive goa l of your project. As a rule it is probably better to aim for ten goo d photograph s rather than one perfect one or a hundred hasty ones . Th e im porta nt thing is to allow yourse lf enough time to shoo t at least several photograph s for each item on your shoo ting script. For scree ning in the classroom, however, it is often bette r to displ ay a few goo d images rather than show lots of images. Properly chosen, one image or one video clip should be able to provide you with all the material you need for a thoughtful discu ssion of the image and the issues it raises. Neverth eless, a carefully chosen contrast with one other image or clip ca n rea lly focus a discussion . You don 't have to have a slide-tray overflowin g with slides to have a rich encounter with visual data in the classroom. There is an additio nal advantage to starting simply (and remaining there for as long as you can). It ena bles you to pay sufficie nt attention to the rich inform ation in the image and soci alizes your stude nts into develop ing the kind of patien t co nce ntra tion that working with social info rma tio n in ge neral, and images in particul ar, requires . Too many images force you to rush thr ough the materi al and inevitably triviali ze it as source of information.

shington DC in 1943. In 1993 nere as children at the time.

to as follows: "In that awful iust in my house but in all of

5. Always Produce Images. Even if your interest in visual socio logy is restricted to ana lyzing images produced by others, you should still produce images for yourself on a fairly regul ar basis . There are three maj or reaso ns why this kind of experien ce is important. First, you r photographi c experie nce will give you a basis for understandin g what the limi ts of the media may be and for apprec iating the accomplishm ent s of oth ers. The more that you

101

Sociological Imagination shoot in an intentional choices that go into th and refine your "eye." Third, yo u may find t~ be used to compleme n sociologist s and photo you live and work. In s photogr aphing a settin provide yo u with mat nutshell, the rule of tlnl The fo llowin g poin Fi rs t, start with sim good point and shoot has a wide-angle eapa of th e sce ne than regul shooting in that mode. to ex per imen t with di rul e of thumb for begi somewhere between 8 I Second, compose they and what they are immed iate environmcn

are usin g video, the mo! A s a ge neral rule, move' the ca me ra . Begin by a TV and , if possible, alw two most valuable piece kinds of microp hone: a hand held mike that car so und will be a reeurrir Third , evaluate your

Figure 7. Eugene Richards does not caption each of his pictures in Cocaine True, Cocaine Blue. Rather, he intersperses them with extended interviews and his own running commentary about what he experienced and saw the day he was photographing. The following comment appears to refer to this photograph: "Corinne, who's seven months pregnant with twins, takes vitamins and goes to McDonald's if she thinks she's not gelling enough food, but like the other women she doesn' t eat when there's crack to be smoked (Richards, 1994: 35, 39)." These photographs were shot during the early 1990s in Red Hook, a neighborhood in Brooklyn, New York.

102

is go od or not so good Kee ping notes about C2 extremely useful for ec in the future. Thi s is es alternate approach and co m e wi th manu als rei vi rt ua l library of guide quite ins truc tive and it Finall y, use !! film j unless you have aeces

ion

Cocaine True, Cocaine Blue. nning commentary about !lowing comment appears to h twins, takes vitamins and likethe other women she )." These photographs were -n, New York.

Sociological Imagination shoot in an intentional and focused way, the more you will come to understand the choices that go into the production of images. Second, producing ima ges will help train and refine your "eye." You will start to see more in other's prints than you saw before. Third, you may find that even simple exercises will provide you with material that can be used to complement the work being shown in class. Man y studies by visual sociologists and photo or video documentarians can be replicated in the places where you live and work. In some cas es they provide models, or implicit shooting scripts, for photographing a setting or subj ect that you are studying non-visu ally and which will provide you with material you can use in your research or the cla ssroom. Reduced to a nutshell , the rule of thumb is: the more you shoot, the more you see . The following pointers should get you started. First, start with simple, easy to work technology , For most sociological purposes, a good point and shoo t camera will do just fine . Having a zoom lens is good , but only if it has a wide-angle capability. Wide-angle shots are very useful because they incl ude more of the scene than regular or zoom len s. You may end up, in fact, doing much of your shooting in that mode . If you buy a 35mm standard refl ex camera, you will find it useful to experiment with different len ses, filters and film sto ck . Generally speaki ng a good rule of thumb for beginning is to shoot wide angle (if you can), set the I-stop somewhere between 8 and II and use 400 ASA film. Second , ~ompo se your materials simply. Always frame your subj ects so that both they and what they are doing is visible. As a general rule , try and get as much of their immediate environment into the shot without losing your subjects in the frame . If you are using video, the most important thing for novices to learn is to hold the camera still. As a general rule, movement should happen within the frame, and not by you moving the camera. Begin by avoiding zoom shots, pan shot s and all the nift y things you see on TV and, if possibl e, alw ay s use a tripod for shots. In fact, after the camcorder itself the two most valu able pieces of equipment for video production are the tripod and two kinds of microphone: a lavaliere that can be attached to a speaker who is sitting and a hand held mike that can be used for street int erviews. Be aware that capturi ng good sound will be a recurring challenge. Third , evaluate your shots. Look at what you have produced carefully and note what is good or nor so good about them from both an analytic and aesth etic standpoint. Keeping note s about camera settings. lighting conditions and other pertinent issues is extremely useful for coming up with ide as about how to change your shooting strategy in the futur e. Thi s is espe cially true for that which mo st disappoints you. Figure out an alternate approach and see if it solves the problem. In this regard, new cameras often come with manu als replete with pointers that can be very helpful. In addition, there is a virtual library of guides to photography and home vid eo production that are generally quite instructive and inexpen sive . Finally, use Q film stock that sati sfie s as many need s as possible. Shoot slides ­ unless you have acc ess to digital editing and proj ection - for the simple rea son that

103

Sociological Imagination projecting a slide oi ot herw ise be overl d a class . You also sh prefer to use black legibility and perm inherited from doc of how we see the V.

6. Look at Other ~ Looking at, and can give you ideas f done with composi have done. Visual s choice of effects on consideration seco equal . the more arre to do that than by I done . Second. the wor

useful for your resej documentarians ha\-l experience and hav communities, and s taken for granted W culture. Much of the librarian , in the art c e xplor e the limits ar having one of these two im ages at a tirm identify tho se that a on a Zip disk using

Figure 8. This photograph of "Curt is Felton and his son Dominic, out for some early morning exercise" was taken by Jeffrey and is included in Roland Charles and Toyomi Igus' Life in a Day of Black LA. The photograph faces the following text: "Black Los Angeles refers less to a particular community than to the collective consciousness of the African-American people of Southern California. Black Angelenos reside everywhere: from Culver City to Compton, Westwood to Watts, Pasadena to Palms. Some of us live in extreme affluence, others in suffocating poverty. But all of us rise each and every day with a goal: a plan to make our mark upon the world - in one way or another. As the sun rises over East LA and heads towards the ocean, the day begins for most of us the way it does for folks anywhere else in the United States: with the newspaper, a hot cup of coffee, or an early morning jog . .. (Charles and Igus, 1992: 16-17)."

104

for classroom displ: and photojoumalisr But thi s d istance fn identify the frame ( im plic it sociology ; about this is to esta images of the same Recently I aske community. Godfr a series of images

tion

Sociological Imagination projecting a slide on a large screen make s it possihl e to view sma ll detail s that might otherwise he overlook ed. In addition, it is ea sier to share the material s so proj ected with a class. You also should feel co mfortable shoo ting co lor film . Man y visual sociolog ists prefer to use black and white film and, wh ile there is much that is valuable aho ut its legibility and perm anence, its status among visual sociolog ists is mostly an aes thetic inherited from documentary photogr aphy . In any eve nt, color is an impo rtant dim en sion of how we see the world.

6. Look at Other People's Work.

ut for some early morning d Toyomi lgus' Life in a Day ngeles refers less to a jean-American people of er City to Compton, affl uence, others in : a plan to make our mark A and heads towards the ere else in the United States: Charles and Igus, 1992:

Looking at, and working with , oth er's images is useful for several reason s. First, it can give you ideas for improving your own work . You can hegin to see what can he done with comp ositi on, lighting, cropping, and editing by noti cing wh at the masters have done. Visual soc iologists tend to he aesthetic min imalist s and discipline their choice of effects only to those that emphasize social meaning. But making aes thetic considerat ion secondary is not a license for poor craftsmanship. Everythi ng else hein g equal, the more arresting an ima ge the hetter, and ther e is no bette r way of learnin g how to do that than by lookin g at what reall y good photo graphers and moviemakers have done. Second . the work of others ca n stimulate your imagi nation in ways that are es pec ially useful for your research interests or in the classroom . Photoj ournalists and documentarians have heen particul arl y interes ted in exploring the diversity of human experience and have done remarkable studies of ethnic gro ups and institutions , deviant communities, and soci al issues. T hey have also been quite interes ted in exploring the taken for granted world as well as little known aspec ts of co ntemporary history and culture. Much of their wo rk can be found, with or with out the assistan ce of a reference librarian, in the art co llec tions of good researc h librari es, A plea sant way to begin to explore the limits and opportunities of the cra ft is to beco me accus tomed to always having one of these hook s out of the lihr ary. Th ey can he read in installment s - one or two images at a time, if need be . It is also useful to use post-its or scraps of pap er to identify those that are of particul ar inte rest and , whenever possible, sca n and save them on a Zip disk using Adohe PhotoSh op . That way they will always be readily accessihle for classroom di splay. It is true, of course, that the quality of docum entary photography and photojournalism is uneven and only rare ly is it informed by sociolog ical training. But this distance from sociology is, in fact, a grea t opp ortunity for the soc iolog ist to identify the fram e of reference evide nt in the work and to defin e the charac ter of its implicit sociolog y and evaluate its adequacy for social analysis. Th e best way of going about this is to es tahlish a framew ork hased on comparing and co ntras ting vario us images of the same subje ct matter. Recentl y I asked stude nts to co mpare thr ee dep iction s of the African-American communit y. Godfrey Frank el 's In the Alleys: Kids in the Shadow of the Capitol (19 95) is a series of images of the Negro co mmunities livin g in the alleys near the Capit al

105

Sociological Imagination

the sy lla bus . N building in Was hi ngto n, D.C. d uri ng the 1940s and 50s. Franke l wa nted to document the syllabus be poverty and need in the mid st of affl uence and power. T he photographs are quite arresting but , apart fro m some groups of sma ll chi ldren and on e inte rio r shot of a fami ly spontaneity thai what you wan t gro up who appear to be some w hat uncom fortabl e with his presen ce, all of the images " entra nce ," a " f are dista nce sho ts of ext eri or sce nes . Th ey very clearl y show one side of life in the l An entrance alleys , but they appear to be ph otographed by someo ne who is obvious ly an outside r and ab out to view. whose purpose was to document a wo rld co mposed of vic tims of di scrimin at ion and will take , whe marginal ization . the co urse, an E uge ne Ric hards' Cocaine True: Cocaine Blue (199 4 ) was not inte nded to be a study Th e plan c~ of the African Ameri ca n commun ity and , in fac t, one of the neigh borh oo ds he studied is the class free..J a white one in Phil ad elphia . Th e book , how ever, ex plores the wo rld of crack addic ts and viewi ng and u' mo st of the images are of Afric an Ame rica ns and Latin os. Wh ile Rich ard s clearl y sees cl ass to take n his subjec ts as victims of disc rimi nation and poverty, wha t co mes throu gh most strongly dan ger of ge tti in the images is a picture of chao tic soc ia l di sorgani zation . Rich ard s' shots are mostly contain eviden close-u ps of peopl e de stro yin g their ow n lives and those of their children. Cocaine True: . . , fI mall1tall1ll1g 0: Cocaine Blue is great photogr aph y, but it sti ll is a gallery of ima ges that represents the data . inner city as a sink of path olo gy. How rep resentative are his ima ges of the co mmunities Th e exit in he sho t in, or eve n of the peopl e wh ose lives he has docu ment ed ? Is his, pe rhaps, a issue bein g a~ " white view " o f the African American co mm unity as some of his critics claim? ways one of t~ Life in a Day in Black L.A (C ha rles and Igu s 1992 ) is an ex plici t atte mpt by a gro up It is always p of blaek pho tog ra phe rs to co rrect the white im age of the ghetto - and especially Los telling the clal Ange les - as a world of ga ngs, dru gs, and rioting. Mov ing comfort ably from distan ce Then , when y' shots to close-ups, but mostly staying in middl e distan ce , the y document a vali ed rev isit the issi co m munity co mposed of small busine sses, artis ts, co mmunity activists, blue collar Th ere are I workers, high ac hiev ing professional s, goo d stude nts, and the like. T he book has an and "banqueH ex plici t black flair and includes nation ali sts and Mu slims as co re members of the m ay span sev co m munity. Th e narrative that acco mpanies the phot ograph s is resolu tel y ideolo gical stim ulate a di and the pho tog ra phic style is not unli ke the Day ill the Life of]a Country] series it was as da ta, it is t modeled on . Bu t eve n thou gh the photograph y is not memor abl e, thi s co m munity At best they ! version of a yearbook makes a stro ng poin t. If yo u knew us, you would see and In my soci ph ot ograph us differently than you do! the class by 5 Es tablis hing that di fferent peopl e will ph otograph the sa me wo rld differentl y is an S yl ve ster Sta imp orta nt lesson fo r stude nts to learn . It is also very valuable to dem on strate that scene is base diffe rent types of peopl e may have q uite different interests in how the sa me wo rld of 1934 , whe sho uld be dep icted. Th e most exci ting and promisin g ch allenge , however, is to fig ure the co mpani, out wh at a se t of images reli abl y represents abo ut its subjec t ma tter and then tri angul ate aggrieved an this info rma tion with other sets of imag es . " FIST ! FISl Th e seCOI 7. Visually Transform Existing Courses by Constructing Discrete Modules. heroine in a Th e most eleg ant, satisfy ing and eas iest way to start doin g vis ual soc iology in the The clip op cl assroom is to crea te di scret e modules, or learning experience s, tha t have a clear role in

106

gination j

50s. Frankel wanted to document

ver, The photographs are quite

Idren and one interior shot of a family with his presence, all of the images arly show one side of life in the .one who is obviously an outsider and I of victims of discrimination and 1994) was not intended to be a study

ie of the neighborhoods he studied is

plores the world of crack addicts and atinos. While Richards clearly see s v. what comes through most strongly zation. Richards ' shots are mostly lose of their children. Cocain e True: Jlery of images that represents the are his images of the communities iocumented? Is his, perhaps, a some of his critic s claim?

~ is an explicit attempt by a group he ghetto - and especially Los oving comfortably from distance ce, they document a varied ~ mu n i ty activists , blue collar and the like. The book has an ms as core members of the raphs is resolutely ideological L({e of[a Country] series it was emorable, this community N us, you would see and , same world differently is an uable to demon strate that

ts in how the same world

allenge, however, is to figure

[ecr matter and then tliangulate

ng Discrete Modules.

Ding visual sociology in the

icnces, that have a clear role in

Sociological Imagination the syllabus. Nevertheless, small exercises and interventions shouldn't be announced in the syllabus because the element of surprise might help to introduce a note of spontaneity that will keep the class fre sh. You should be quite clear, however, about what you want to accomplish. What this mean s practically is that you should have an "entrance," a "plan," and an "exit" for each module. An entrance is a brief introduction that provides a framework for what the class is about to view. You sho uld tell them what type of material will be viewed, how long it will take, where and for what purposes it was originally produced, why it is relevant to the course , and what questions they should keep in mind as they view the images. The plan covers what you do once the images are shown. It is often useful to have the class freewrite their impressions for two or three minutes immediately after the viewinz e> and use these as a basis for discussion. If it is a long piece you might advise the class to take notes. Viewing images tends to spark freewheeling discussions, so there is a danger of getting distracted by tangential issues. Reminding students that the images contain evidence, which will provide answers for assigned que stions, is a good way of maintaining focus as well as developing students' profi ciency in analyzing images as data. The exit involves summarizing the discussion, linking it to the readings, topic or issue being addressed and then announcing what is next on the agenda. This is in many ways one of the hardest things to do in teaching, although it's one of the most exciting. It is always possible, however, to establish a preliminary clo sure for an encounter by telling the class that, while it is time to move on, you will return to these issues later on. Then, when you figure out what surfaced in the discussion and what to do about it, you revisit the issue. There are three major kinds of modules, which 1 have termed "appetizers", "entrees", and "banquets" . Appetizers and entrees only require one class period while a banquet may span several. An JUmetizer is intended to whet the appetite and to use the images to stimulate a discussion about other materials. The images are entered into the discourse as data, it is true. but they are intended to playa subsidiary function to the topic at hand. At best they should involve no more than a few images or a video clip or two. In my sociology of work course when I discuss trade unionism, for example, I begin the class by showing two short video clips. The first is a scene from F.l.S. T with Sylvester Stallone, which is a fictionalized account of the life of Jimmy Hoffa . The scene is based on an actual event that took place during the Minneapolis general strike of 1934, when the Teamster's Union fought a pitched battle with the deputies hired by the companies, and won . Stallone is marvelous in a stunning oration as he transforms an aggrieved and demoralized body of union men into a mob of avenging angels. Chanting "FIST! FIST! FIST!" they storm out into the night to do battle. The second clip is a scene from Norma Rae with Sally Field playing a working class heroine in a southem mill town who becomes the leader of a union organizing drive. The clip opens with her being kicked out of the factory for her organizing activities by

107

Sociological Imagination management and the local sheriff. She eludes their grasp as they conduct her through the factory floor and, amidst the din of the weaving machines, she leaps on to a table, hastily scribbles a message on a piece of cardboard, and then stands up and displays a sign that says just one word : "Union!" Slowly, worker after worker shut down their machines and the factory finally becomes silent. Finally, and in triumph, our heroine cons ents to being escorted from the factory . Each clip represents a distinct perspective on the constituting myth of the labor movement: the ethos of solidarity. The powerless can become a force to be reckoned with, but only when they act in close concert. El.S.T expresses the bestial possibilities of this kind of mobilization. Stallone is transmogrified into a demagogue and his union into a mob. Norma Rae's vision is more idealistic and angelic. Field's spring on to the table is an act of exemplary daring that quickly freezes into a tableau reminiscent of the crucified Christ. She has suffered on behalf of others. Witnessing her passion, her fellow workers each choose to support her rather than pursue their narrow self-interests and so begin to create the beginnings of a better moral order. The pedagogic purpose of the clips is to help the class focus on an assessment of the accomplishments and failures of the labor movement as well as its organizational and cultural significance in capitalist and industrial societies generally. In addition, these films , which were released in the late 1970 s, are important cultural and historic documents . They attest to an emerging ambivalence in American society about the labor movement in particular and the ethic of solidarity in general. The preoccupations of these films suggest that the ethic of solidarity - which had played such an important role in American culture and politics since the Great Depression, World War II and through the rise of the Civil Rights movement in the late 1950s - was increasingly seen as problematic. The clips , therefore, are provided to the students as new data that functions to dramatically frame what they have been , and will be, reading and discussing. Visual materials serve as more of an entree when they become the focu s of a class . Nevertheless, as a rule of thumb their display should never consume more than one half of the class period. Any more than that makes it difficult to have a thorough discussion of the information the images provide and the issues they raise. Whereas an appetizer whets the appetite for the other materials in the syllabus, an entree provides students with a venue for bringing all the other information together and to come to some sort of conclusion. My sociology of work course is planned as a sustained comparison of Japan and the United States. The idea is to see to what extent cultural variation plays a role in the ways that work is institutionalized and experi enced in late capitalist societies. I have found that The Faces of Japan television documentary serie s hosted by Dick Cavett is a wonderful resource for this cour se. Each of the thirteen 26 minute films focuses on the problems and concerns of a particular person who is invariably defined by the kind of

108

work they do. Tb subjects' lives, b handles all the c Japanese as peop maneuver throug One of the fil a middle-aged w competition, the he might be in t where he has to ~ policy of lifetim hundred miles aV: garden . This short tiln workers to econ retraining, the tri cultural differen all the issues thai series are an im to use them as a their writing assi A banquet is as the centerpie~ primary material lectures, a foeLIS research project; woven into the f My introducti work into the sy protocols of soc foster a sustaine begin the coursi traditional, pre­ have become. P Girl of Hunan' The story cc small boy. The of an individua patriarchy. Nol that they come

'ion I as they co nduct her throu gh the :s, she leaps On to a table

,then stands up and d ispl ~y S a tel' worker shut down their and in triumph, our heroin e

.ituting myth of the labor ome a force to be recko ned Iresses the bestial possibilities o a demagogue and his union ;elic. Field 's spri ng on to the a a tableau remi nisce nt of the essing her passion , her fellow

r narrow self-interests and so

'ocus on an assess ment of the ~ Il as its organ izatio nal and nerally. In addition, these cultural and historic erican society about the labor I. The preoccup ations of played such an important sion, World War II and 50s - was increas ingly see n lents as new data that ill be, reading and Come the focus of a class. onsume more than one half ave a thorough discu ssion se. Where as an appetizer tntree provid es students d to Come to some sort of parison of Japan and the ion plays a role in the italist societies . I have hosted by Dick Cavett is a hute films focu ses on the y defined by the kind of

Sociological Imagination work they do . Th e producers are en ormou sly se nsitive to the cultural co ntex t of the ir subjec ts' lives, but the y are ju st as co nce rne d to portray how eac h of these indivi duals handles all the co mp eting dem and s o n their person al situatio n. T hus, we see the Japanese as people who face man y of the sa me probl em s that A mericans do as they maneuver through a different institutional fra me wor k with their ow n cult ura l scri pt. One of the film s in the series , Leaving the Shipyard, foc use s on the choices face d by a middle- aged weld er in one of Japan 's tro ubled shipyards. Faced by stiff Korean competiti on , the co m pany has been forced to retren ch . Mr. Naki muru is not laid off, as he might be in the U .S., but ra the r is sent to another branch of the pa re nt co mpany where he ha s to be retrain ed to manu factur e auto parts. T he co mpa ny is honoring its policy of lifetime em ploy me nt but for Mr. Naki m uru it means spending a year five hundred mil es away fro m his fami ly, a co mfortable seasi de hom e, and his beloved garden . Thi s short film brin gs togeth er a number of themes: the vulnera bility of blu e co lla r workers to eco no mic and technol ogical cha nge , the importa nce and di fficulty of retraining, the trad e-offs between differe nt ki nds of job security arra nge me nts, as well as cultural differenc es in family decision-makin g . The film becom es a kind of lynchpin for all the issues that the sylla bus raise s in that par t of the co urse . It and other films in the series are an import ant part of my sylla bus. I ex pec t stude nts to take the film s ser io usly, to use them as a way of frami ng the iss ues of the co urse, and to account for them in their writ ing assig nments. A banquet is a module of one or two week' s duration . Here vis ual materials are used as the ce nter piec e of o ne of the maj or components of the co urse and con stitute the primary materi al s for the subjec t at hand . Thi s might involve a film fes tiva l, sli de lecture s, a focu s on publish ed ph otoessays, or perhaps stude nt present ation s of visua l research project s the y have co mpleted . In so me cas es , the se materials may be so tightly wove n into the fa bric of the co urse that it is hard to separate them as a distinct module. My introduction to sociology class contai ns as many materials about Chi na as I can work int o the sy lla bus . My goal is not only to show how the basic concepts and research protocols of sociology ca n be applied to a very diffe rent society and culture, but al so to foster a s ustai ned enco unter with an "o ther" of und en iab le power and sig nifica nce . I begin the co urse by co nside ring the "g rea t tra nsfor ma tio n" that took place fro m a traditional, pre-indu strial, ag ric ultura l worl d to w hat we in the mod em industrial world have becom e. Along wi th thei r rea di ngs , I requ ire that the students view a fea ture film Girl of Hunan by one of C hi na's new wave of great directors, Fie Xie . Th e story co ncerns a yo ung wo ma n's troubled life after an arranged marri age to a sma ll boy. The film is powerfully evocative and cl earl y shows how the needs and wa nts of an indiv idua l are subordi nated to the ves ted male interests in a sys te m o f cl an patriar ch y. Not only do I require that the stude nts view the film outside of cl ass, but also that they co me to class prep ared to discu ss the film. In addition, thei r first writing

109

Sociological Imag ination assignment for the cl ass is a sociological auto biog ra phy ("my life in gro up s") that as ks them to explicitly com pare and co ntr ast their life and world to that of the prot agon ist and her village . Near the end of the co urse, when we are discussi ng social cha nge, mo de rniza tion and level s of development , I requ ire the vie wing of another first- rate Chi nese fea ture film, To Live by Zha ng Ximo u, wh ich reco unts one fami ly's ex perience of the last fif ty yea rs of Chi nes e history. The final assign men t in this co urse is an essay co mpa ring the culture, social structure and soc ia l and eco nomic devel opm ent of China and the United States . In addition to the assigned writte n materials, they are required to wri te a fin al essay whi ch must inco rpo rate Girl of Hunan, To Live, and one of the hour long documentaries in the splen did twelv e pali B riti sh series, The Heart of the Dragon, that treat s various aspects of C hinese culture and dail y life. Th e rati onal e for choosing these thre e films is that Girl of Hunan is a dep icti on of traditional village life, while To Live is a panorama of the soc ial cha nges that have taken place over the last half ce nt ury, and the Hearl of the Dragon documentaries focus on co nte mpo rary cultura l patterns.

8. Construct an Entire Course As yo ur inter es t in vis ua l information , profi ciency with man agin g the produ ction and display of im ages, and succes s with intro duci ng modules into yo ur co urses all incre ase , yo u m ight find that it is time to co nstruct an entire co urse o n vis ua l soci ology . Man y of yo ur co lleagues have done th is and some of the results of their efforts are to be found in Diana Papademas' Visual Soc iology and Using Film/Video in Sociology Courses ( 1993) whic h is availab le from the ASA. You may find that the ir sylla bi pro vide a useful model for building a co urse . T he keyword in all of this is to use your imagi nation to co nstruc t a course to your own sa tisfaction. You may have particul ar researc h and teach ing inte res ts that no one has yet ex plored visu all y, and yo ur crea tivity in thi s regard co uld be an important co ntri butio n to an evol vin g fiel d. T he fo llowi ng types of co urses, how ever, are the mo st likel y to becom e part of an emergi ng visua l sociology ca no n ove r the next decade or so . Th ey include the study of soc ial issu es and prob lem s, de viance , mo st soc ial ins titutio ns (es pecially wor k, urban , health and illness), soc ial inequality (es pecially race and ge nder), ethnog rap hic fie ld meth od s, soc ial research method s, mass communication s, and film and society. Ge nerally speaki ng, mos t of these co urses are curre ntly an integral part of many depart mental offerings but are tau ght more or less traditionally with hardl y any visua l co mpo nent. Th e first step, therefore, might be to visually enr ich an existing course or co urses in a sustained way. For so me co urses th is might be easier than for others . Co urses on ge nder, rac e and ethnic ity, inequal ity, wo rk and occupation s, health and med icine, urb an communitie s and so on are ones th at are not only easi ly suscepti ble to vis ual treatment , but also are topical areas where lot s o f relevant vis ual materi al has alrea dy been compiled .

The genera First, cull libn pertain to yoin Second, imagi teaching and r of producing, Most tradit An alternative raise d by tradi excl usively on co nstructed an wellness and il The feature watching videc several hours tl aro und them 0 1 as it is experiei movie watchin practice played have not been 1 There is mu marketed and ( in conternporar int1uential indu their content re (Powers et aI. J that a society fi strains that onI! A careful . I recumng conce name " by moreI un ique reposit ge nder roles an significan t nu fea ture films ( mores and preq It is ad visa ~ themati c struct as a sys tem of that focuses 0

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110

Sociological Imagination ~ ro u ps")

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the production and urses all increase , ocio logy. Many of i are to be found in

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T he ge neral rul e of thumb for vis ua lly transformi ng a co urse is to begin in two ways . First, cull libraries and arc hives for any co llec tions of photograph s and movies that per tain to yo ur subjec t. Sca n and inve ntory them for possi ble use in the classroo m. Seco nd, imagine the ways in whi ch any kind of vis ua l inform ation might enric h the teaching and researching of yo ur subject. The n searc h for collec tions of, or devise ways of produ ci ng, suc h images . Mos t trad ition al co urses on institution s and issue s ca n be "visua lize d" in this fas hion. An alternative or compl ementary app roach is to imagi ne a treatment of the visual issues raised by traditi on al sociological co ncerns . In this instance a course woul d focu s exc lus ively on the social meanin gs of var io us kind s of im age s. Entire cour ses co uld be co nstruc ted arou nd how a soc iety or different societies represent race, gender, ineq uality, well ness and illness, age, and so on. The fea ture film is the signal art form of this ce ntury. Going to the movies or watch ing videos is a regu lar routine fo r the vast m ajority of the popula tion who, for the several hou rs that it takes to watch a movie, put their engageme nt in the worka day world arou nd them on hold , and imm erse them sel ves comple tely in an "i mag inary wo rld" that, as it is experience d , often fee ls mor e real than the one they occup y. In man y ways, movie watching appea rs to have claimed ma ny of the functions that religi ou s belief and practice played in more trad ition al soc ieties . Unfo rtunately and surprisi ng ly, movies have not been give n the kind of tho rough scruti ny by social sc ientists that they deser ve . T here is much that wo uld repay soc iolog ica l interest. How movies are produ ced , markete d and consumed ; how cel ebriti es are made and how they function symbolically in co ntemporary socie ty are all interesting aspects of a very important and eno rm ously influ enti al indu stry. Perh aps of great sig nifica nce are the film s themselves and wha t thei r conte nt reveals abo ut the nature of a society's preoccupa tions and co nce rns (Powe rs et al. 1996 ). Box offic e hit s are a particul arl y sensitive indica tor of wha t it is that a societ y finds probl ematic abo ut the mo ral order and ofte n reveal the ten sion s and strai ns that only late r sur face in open instituti on al con flict. A careful look at the dep iction of ge nder ro les in post-WWTI films dem on strates a recurri ng co nce rn that ant icipates Bett y Frieda n's identification of the "problem with no nam e" by more than a decad e. Feature film s, in ge nera l, provi de us with a rich and uniqu e repositor y of primary so urce materi als abo ut the realignment and rea dj ustme nt of gender roles and expec tatio ns that have taken place over this ce ntury. In additi on, a significa nt number of nation s in the world today have tlui ving film indu stries, and the ir fea ture films (eve n if they are not bo x-office hits) are invalu abl e sources fo r study ing the mores and preoccupations of other soc ieties . It is advisable to foc us a course on film and soci ety on the analys is of the co ntent and them atic struc ture of the mo vies that the indus try produ ces. Other aspec ts of the industry as a sys tem of produ cti on , distribution an d co nsump tion should be subs umed in a co urse that focuses on mass co mmunica tio ns . Wh eth er such a co urse conside rs the proce ss of comm unic ation ge nera lly or specifically focuses on the visual medi a (movies, televi sion ,

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Sociological Imagination the Internet), this is a venue for exploring an ext remely important part of contemporary life . Two oth er courses that dese rve con sideration are methodolo gical. Wh ile ethnographic methods should be covered in any meth odology co urse, a course on visual ethnography really requires its own co urse. The best way to teach the course is to embed technique into a discovery process where stude nts are required to produce a final report either in the form of a photo essay or a video documentary. While some attention need s to be paid to show stud ent s how to use the equipment , much of the course time should focus on a collective c ritique of their material and the quality of the theory they are generating . The most important point in such a course is that students learn to work in a methodical manner, keep careful and abundant field note s and other data, and routinely log the result of their shooting schedule. Above all, the biggest challenge will be to get students to realize that , while there is great latitude for inspiration in handlin g a camera, the old saw that all genius is the result of 99 % persp iration is only too true. It is, in thi s co urse, especially nece ssary for the teacher to pro vide regular required assignments (scheduled shoots, field notes, brief essa ys, etc .) whi ch are strictly and toughl y grad ed , to ensure that they learn that les son from the very first day of the course. A very useful course for any department could be entitled "visual research methods." Its fun ction would be to expose students to the variety of ways in which visu al images can be used for research purposes. Such a course should be con structed around a set of exerci ses that require the application of a particular technique. These techniques should minimally include: photo-elicitation in interviewin g; content analysis of found materi als ; photography of discrete behavior and artifac ts for explicit research purposes; thematic and content analy sis of cultural narratives like movi es, TV shows and comics; and visuali zati on in the social sciences. It is probably best for the tea cher to select the exerci ses and provide the neces sary databases. To the extent that these dovetail with the instructor' s interests, then it is possible to create the conditions and climate of a genuine research community with a vested interes t in the quality of their findings.

9. Produce a Visual Essay There are three majo r different kind s of visual es say that a sociologist might be likely to produce : a photo-essay, a video documentary, or an analy sis of visual data. The se ca n be produced in a variety of expositional styles and in accord with different schol arl y conventions. Many social scientific journals are increasingly interested in publishing analysis of visual data although they are only slowly beginning to publish actu al imag es. Nevertheless new technolo gical developments in printing make it increasingly cost effective to produce black and white images as well as text. Currently among peer review ed social science journals, howev er, only Visual Sociology enthusiastic ally welcomes articl es that contain visuals. Th e Internet and variou s web site s, including your own, are a promising new media for disseminating your work. The next seve ral years will surely witness the formation of

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peer reviewed pr documentary vid too early to begi: boon for sociolo workable peer re will enable socio have had in deter acclaimed movie have it shown on Sociol ogical rna, adequ ately in ten more useful in th Again, the wa: event or setting, ( produce a though that should be in documentary filrr story about an im loss and self-este be used to discus: self-esteem in COl inequality. Above dis cussing what ~ understanding SOl shouldn't be able professional gatln But as rewardi producing essays; efforts may still g an over paid aud discipline; and st way that visual s· mobilizing stude j coalitions.

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Sociological Imagination peer reviewed processes for " publishing" various kinds of visual work, including documentary video. These new venues will initially be looking for material, so it is not too early to begin producing work that could be put on the web. The web will provide a boon for sociologists in two ways. First, the web provides an opportunity to construct a workable peer reviewed process for disseminating sociological movies. Second, the web will enable sociological moviemakers to break the hold that commercial TV standards have had in determining how long a movie should be . It is only the exceptional and acclaimed moviemaker, like Frederick Wiseman, who is able to do a six-hour film and have it shown on television, and few have been able to distribute very sho rt pieces. Sociological moviemakers will find that many of their subj ect matters can be treated adequately in ten to twenty minutes and that their colleagues will find these products more useful in the fifty minute cla ss format. Again, the watchword is to begin small. A well conceived photo-essay of a process, event or setting, or a carefully edited video interview can provide all that is needed to produce a thought provoking argument. Betty Tells Her Story (1972) is a short video that should be in every sociology instructor's kit bag . It is quite possibly the simplest documentary film ever made. It is no more than two takes of a woman telling the same story about an important event in her life. It is a poignant story - or is it stories? - of loss and self-es teem that should be required viewing in many sociology courses . It can be used to discuss the sociological imagination in introductory level courses; beauty and self-esteem in courses that consider gender; status loss in courses on stratification and inequality. Above all , it can be shown several times to the same class as a way of discussing what go es on in an interview and refining students' theoretical sensitivity to understanding soc ial process. There is simply no reason why a novice visual sociologist shouldn't be able to display professionally significant work in the classroom and at professional gatherings within months of having first picked up a camera. But as rewarding as putting energy into classwork, constructing new courses, and producing essays of one kind or another may be , it is important to realize that your efforts may still be marginalized. Administrators may think that you are little more than an over paid audio visual instructor; your colleagues may wonder where you fit in the discipline; and students may worry about where all this might lead. There is simply no way that visual sociology will ever be fully accepted in higher education without mobilizing students, organizing colleagues, and building effective professional coalitions.

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10. Empower Your Students One of the nice things about introducing visual materials into the classroom is that it sparks interaction with your students. Everything else being equal, students will spontaneously have a lot to say about a publicly displayed or collectively viewed video. But also, without direction and focus, this discourse in relatively short order tends to the ban al. It is important to provide stude nts with incentives that encourage an increasingly

omising new media tness the fonmation of

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Sociological Imagination professional attitude to working with them. Visual work makes it possible to empower your students intellectually, but empowering strategies are an essential ingredient to reach that goal. Five such strategies are particularly useful: effective classroom roles, writing assignments, visual research exercises, discovery opportunities, and subsidizing skill development. Whenever you display and discuss visual images in the classroom it is extremely valuable to use the blackboard to focus and record student discussion . The more open ended the discussion and the more that it culminates in an assessment of what has been seen in guiding hypotheses for future work in the classroom, the better. Students will see that their good ideas are taken seriously and that these ideas will have a role to play in the course as it unfolds . Copying down what is put on the board - always a good job for one of the students - can provide you with notes that you may want to refine for the next or other subsequent meetings. Of course, being able to refer favorably to good student ideas makes this process all the more effective. But even relatively pedestrian ideas can at least be used as a foil of sorts to lead into other discussions. The more seriously you take students' good work, the more seriously will they take the entire enterprise. It is important to integrate the display and discussion of images into requirements and grade-producing assignments for the course. This can be done in tests where writing an answer to a question posed as an image is displayed on a screen or monitor. Take­ home essay assignments that require that students integrate the analysis of specific images into the paper are especially valuable. It is very useful to prepare term paper topics based on the analysis of visual data. This requires a bit of work but the results can be quite rewarding. A useful way of going about it is to articulate a hypothesis based on traditional sociological concerns and suggest that it can be tested by analyzing a certain body of material or by actual field research using a camera. You should assemble the bulk of the materials you want them to analyze and put them on reserve in the library or provide them with a rough shooting script for their topic. fnvestigations of new materials with old ideas, if done in a disciplined and competent fashion, almost invariably turn up interesting twists that provide students with a genuine sense of accomplishment while deepening your own understanding of an issue or a field. In a very real sense the directed research topic can be a form of faculty development. For some topics and assignments you can challenge students to come up with new sources of data that speak to the topic . Often, a direct challenge to try and disprove a hypothesis will motivate students to use their imaginations in quite creative ways . The excitement generated by a search for new information often improves the morale of the class and encourages students to work harder. ft can also provide you with interesting material that can be used in subsequent classes or your own research. Finally, many students are appreciably more advanced than we are when it comes to using technology. They often know how to use new technologies we are barely literate

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Sociological I magillatioll in and are not afraid of muddling through. It is usually easy to identify the class "hackers" and provide them with a role helping other students learn how to use cameras, software programs and the like . In fact , even the slightest incentive to master a new technology will yield results . Announcing that I would give extra credit to thos e who submitted their visual work digitally resulted in a flood of PageMaker documents with accompanying diskettes. When you provide the will, students often discover the way. The most important thing is to make sure that the learning curve takes place outside of class time . Mastering new techniques always proceeds by a process of trial and error and invariably will use up class time that should be devoted to more focused analytic activity.

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11. Organize Your Colleagues If there is anything about teaching today, it is that it is being transformed by technology. More and more of our traditional tasks - like lecturing, talking to students, helping them with library searches, and so on - can now be done more easily with the aid of one kind of technology or another. In addition, we increasingly have the capability to do thing s in our teaching that not so long ago were either impossible or prohibitively expensive. These include various ways of displaying information as well as the possibilities for interactive learning provided by a myriad of new software programs. Finally, the new technologies are increasingly digitally integrated, which has the long range promise that a teacher will be able to not only teach clas s but create a range of learning experiences on the fly. Put most starkly, the more technologized the academy and the classroom; the more opportunities will there be for working with images. There are, of course, many complex technical, economic and political choices about which new technologies should be brought into the teaching enterprise and how they should be implemented. These are issues with which you should concern your self and you should become active in whatever faculty committees your institution has created to either advise or oversee the construction of a new technological environment. If your college doesn't have such a conunittee then this would be a marvelous opportunity for you to take the lead in establishing such a group. What should your program be ? First, there are a number of specific new technologies that are invaluable to teaching and doing research in visual sociology. These include powerful desktop computers with enough memory to store visual images; scanners, for importing hard copy visual images into digital form where they can be modified, assembled for display or incorporated into a database ; and software programs designed for visual work . I have access to Adobe PhotoS hop for scanning, l-Movie and Final Cut Pro for video editing and File Maker Pro for constructing visual databases. On the more costly end of the scale are initiatives to hard wire the campus so that conununication through the Internet becomes possible. Your own web site can be used for interactive displays of visual materials. With passwords that restrict access to your database, you can have virtually unlimited access

ges into requirements ne in tests where writing rcen or monitor. Take­ analysis of specific alysis of visual data . . A useful way of going gical concerns and rial or by actual field atcrials you want them with a rough shooting eas, if done in a

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Sociological Imagination to fo und images and still operate wit hin the bo unds of curre nt interpre tations of copyright laws. Fina lly, more and more co lleges are begi nning to ex perime nt with pilot classrooms " loaded" with high technolo gy equipment. Ca meras and editing faci lities for video producti on and editing are also a rea l plu s and can start simp ly as an adjunct to yo ur ca mpus aca demic co mputer cent er. It is not necessary to kn ow mu ch abo ut techn ology or even wha t equipme nt yo u need . T hat know ledge is a staff functio n for information services. What mak es yo u invalu abl e is that yo u can defin e real needs: what a tec hno logy should be used for. Staff mem bers in academ ic computing or info rma tion services are a medi um loo kin g for a message. You are inva lua ble to them beca use you have messages to se nd. Secon d, agitate for vis ua l resources. A good co llege library sho uld develop a permanent video co llec tion that can be used for classroom showings as well as for view ing in the libr ary itse lf. As a rul e of thumb, video is more flexible than film (e .g. yo u ca n easi ly rewind , if necessary), is chea per, less cos tly to store. Th e DVD forma t has all of these adva ntages and more. As yo u start to use vis ual im ages for data analysis purposes rather than the traditi on al audio-visual illustratio n approa ch, you will discov er multiple uses for the sa me video or port ion s of it. It is cost effective to always have it, or its equivalent, available. Another imp ortant reso urce includes a growi ng number of digiti zed photo archives . Third , it is impo rtant to build coaliti on s with other departmen ts in agi tati ng for visual resources of one kind or ano ther. T hese incl ude yo ur co lleag ues in art history and grap hic design ; photo graph y and video pro duction; history and a1l of the natural sciences who have lon g used vis ua liza tion in their curric ulum and who now have access to simp ly incredible visu al resources for mod elin g phen om ena ; film studie s and, o f course, academic computing . All of these are discipl ines that have been in one way or another ei ther under fund ed or overburde ned by managing vis ual work on heavy, un wield y and inflexi ble equ ipm ent and who have a ves ted interes t in new technological inves tme nt. Th e basis for an allia nce is a natural one . Ac ademic co mputing center s want to expa nd. T hey kn ow what the new tech nologies can do and want to interest fac ulties in usin g them , but don 't rea lly have a cl ue abo ut specific applica tio ns facult y wo uld find usefu l. Visual socio logis ts, anthropologists and the discip lines me ntio ned abo ve not only have ideas abo ut wh at they wou ld like to do, but also have solid track rec ords implem ent ing these ideas. Fou rth , it is imp ort ant to pu t pressu re on yo ur institution to support facult y developm ent in the new vis ual and digital techn ologies. Summer work shop stipends, release time for new co urse preparation and the like, subsidizi ng the acquisition of new hardw are and software, are all initiatives that wo uld m ake it easie r to explore vis ual soc iology in yo ur class roo m and department. It sho uld go wi tho ut sayi ng that conce rns with vis ualizi ng soc iology in tande m with imp rovin g init iatives to imp rove statistica l

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12. Become Active with Other Visual Social Scientists All know ledge is crea ted in intellectual co mmunities . It is hard to cont inue in any end eavor without interac ting with co- thinkers and co lleagues . Finding peopl e in your own institution who work with images, wheth er sociologis ts or not , is one step in this direction . Ano ther step is becoming ac tive in profession al assoc iations devo ted to the soc ial scientific study of images. Th ese include the Int em ational Visual Literacy Association (IVL A), we bsite: http://www.ivla.org; the Enviro nmenta l Design Research Association, e- mai l: [email protected]; and the Soc iety for Visual Anthro pology, website: hllR://www .xe nsei .co m.doc ued.sva. All of these organizations have annual meetings, publish newsletters and, in some cases, journ als. Especiall y importa nt for sociologis ts, of co urse , is the Int ern ation al Visual Sociology Association (IV SA). The IVS A has heen in co ntinuous exis tence since 1983, publi shes the j ournal Visual Sociology bi-annu ally, has a we b site (htt p://www.visualsociolo gy.org) and a listserve. The listserve provi des instant access to a co mm unity of ove r 200 active vis ual socio logis ts. Instru ction s for how to subscri be ca n be found on the TVSA website. Th e IVSA's annual co nfe rence is scheduled either for the end of Jun e or the heginnin g of Jul y. Curre ntly, the orga niz atio n meets in Europe every third year. Conferences includ e work shops on teac hing and techni que and sessions that reflec t the varie ty of work that is done in the field . Th e orga nization prides itself on its colleg iali ty and has no co ncurrent sessions. Special sessions for stude nt wor k are integr ated into the program , and all confe rence registr ant s atte nd eac h session. Ample time is allowed for the critical analysis of paper s, the vast majority of whic h are acco mpanied by vis ual slide presentations or documentary footage . Membership in the IV SA is quite inexpensive. Memhersh ip fees are $55 a yea r for regul ar members whose inco me exce eds $50 ,000 and $45 for those whose inco me is under that figure. Student s and the unemployed are charge d $25. Memb ership ent itles yo u to votin g privileges at the an nual meetin g, a subscri ption to the j oumal Visual Sociology (soo n to be re named Visual Studies and pub lished by Taylor and Francis), and other benefits. Most of all, however, it we lcomes you into a su pportive community of scholars who are strugg ling with all of the iss ues asso ciated with view ing imag es as data.

CONCLUSION The interests of visual socio log ists are as wid e as the field of soc iology itself. Th e only thin g that distin guishes them from their colleag ues is their sus tained co mmitmen t to usin g images as a form of soc ial dat a and as a medium for reporting research find ings. Like their colleag ues , visual soc iolog ists helieve that a well-trained sociologist sho uld be a perce ptive obse rver and sensitive interpreter of the hum an sce ne and its

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Sociological Imagination environs . Their specific contribution has been to argue that sociologists need to expand their intellectual tool chests to includ e images as well as word s and numbers. There is no way of avoiding the fact that proficiency in visual sociology requires developing an extensive knowledge in the craft of image making. Technological trends , however, have made the equipment needed to produce and display the kinds of images of most use to sociologists more acces sible and affordable. Th ere is thus no longer any seriou s material obstacle to creating a more visual sociology. This paper has argued that classroom instruction provides a venue for removing the major subjective obstacle to making sociology more visual : inexperience in the craft of displaying and analyzing image s. The classroom is the primary work site for most sociologists and is remarkably suited to a step by step introduction of visual materials into the curriculum. Properly managed this step by step process can also function as an exhilarating apprenticeship in learning how to make images competently, interpret them responsibly, and display them effectively. The result can only be a stronger and more sophisticated sociology.

REFERENCES Babbie, Earl. 1992. The Practice of Social Research (6 th Edition) . Belmont, CA :Wadsworth. Becker, Howard. 1998. Tricks of the Trade. Chicago: University of Chicago Pres s. Bernard, H. Russell. 1995. Research Methods in Anthropology (2nd Edition) . Walnut Creek, CA : Alta Mira . Chaplin, Elizabeth. 1994. Sociology and Visual Representation . London: Routledge. Charles, Roland and Toyomi Igus. 1992. Life in a Day of Bla ck LA: The Way We See It. Los Angeles : Center for Afro-American Studies (UCLA). Collier, John and Malcolm Collier. 1986. Visual Anthropology: Photography as a Research Method. Albuquerque, NM : University of New Mexico Press . Frankel, Godfrey. 1995. In the Alleys: Kids in the Shadow of the Capitol. Washington , DC: Smithsonian Institution Pre ss. Gibson, James. 1979. The Ecological Approach to Visual Perception . Hillsdal e, NJ :Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Goffman, Erving. 1979. Gender Advertisements . London : Macmillan. Gomarlo, Jamie. 1998. "Course Paper," Wheaton College (Norton, MA) Sociology Department. Gubitosi, Richard. 1998. "Course Paper," Wheaton College (Norton, MA) Sociology Department. Harper, Doug . 1987. Working Knowledge: Skill and Community in a Small Shop Chicago: University of Chicago Pre ss. Harper, Doug. 1994, (2000). "On the Authority of the Image: Visual Sociology at the Crossroads," in Denzin , Norman K and Yvonna Lincoln, eds, Handbook of Qualitative Research. Newbury Park, CA : Sage.

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Hughes, theSll Lofland, Territ Owens, ] Papadem Cours Powers, ~ Social Prosser, J ReseQ! Richard, ] Skocpol, . Goven , Suchar, CI Scripts, Wagner, J( Beverly Whyte, Wi

Sociological Imagination

I to expand s. requires ~ ical trends. ; of images I longer any

moving the the craft of or most 11materials mction as an nterpret them . and more

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Hughes, Everett. 197 1. The Socio logical Eye: Selected Papers on Work, Self, and theStudy of Society. Chicago: Aldine-Atherton. Lofland, Lyn. 1998. The Public Realm: Exploring the City's Quintessential Social Territory. New York : AJdine de Gruyter. Owens, Bil l. 1973. Subur bia. San Francisco: Straight Arrow Books. Papademas. Diana, ed. 1993. Visual Sociology and Using Film/Video in Sociology Courses (4 th Edition) . Washington, DC: American Sociological Association. Powers, Stephen, David Rothm an and Stanley Rothman. 1996. Hollywood 's Ame rica: Social and Political Themes in Motion Pictures. Bould er, CO: Westview. Prosser, Jon, ed. 1998. Image-based Research: A Sourcebook fo r Qualitati ve Researchers. London: Falmer Press. Richard, Eugene. 1994 . Cocaine True, Cocaine Blue. New York: Aperture. Skocpol, Theda. 1997. Boomerang: Health Care Ref orm and the Turn Aga inst Government. New York: Norton. Suchar, Charles. 1997. "Grounding Visual Sociology Research in Shooting Scripts," Qualitative Socio logy, 20 (1) : 33-56. Wagner, Jon, ed. 1979. Images of Informa tion: Still Photograph y in the Social Sciences. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage. Whyte, William H. 1988. The City: Rediscovering the Center. New York: Doubl eday.

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