Picturing Algeria

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