Cartes de Visite in Civil War: Photography, Unity, and Division

This essay explores the influence of cartes de visite during the American Civil War, focusing on their role in both unifying and dividing the nation. It examines how these photographic cards captured daily life and social dynamics, impacting average Americans. The essay analyzes images of President Lincoln, highlighting how they shaped public perception by portraying him as both a leader and an ordinary man. Furthermore, it discusses the "Scourged Back" series, illustrating the transformation of an escaped slave into a Union soldier, fostering a sense of national belonging and underscoring the motivations behind the Union cause. The essay references specific images and their historical context to support its analysis of photography's impact during this pivotal period.

Running head: PHOTOGRAPHY
Photography
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1PHOTOGRAPHY
Q1-The author states that cartes de visite both unified and contested wartime visions of
America during the Civil War. Choose one example of how it brought unity, and
another in which it brought division. What about the carte de visite format made it such
a powerful force of influence on the average American?
The Cartes de visite format served as an early example of pictographic story that was
able to capture the essence of the day to day life of the Americans during that time as well as
the social situation that existed. The simplistic format of Cartes de visite in the form of small
pictures depicting people, their culture and their attire, provided us a window in time to
understand the lives of people in the civil war era which played a significant influence on the
average Americans (Rudd, 2016).
-Consider the images of President Lincoln sold as cartes de visite during the war. How
were these images composed, and how did that influence the public's perception of him?
The images of Lincoln with his Son Tad that was sold during the civil war era
depicted Lincoln as an ordinary person, living ordinary lives, which helped people to relate to
him and rally behind his cause. The picture was composed with the attempt to capture both
the greatness as well as the simplicity of Lincoln, by depicting him with his son, possible
helping him with his studies. The pictures helped to impress upon the humanity of Lincoln
which could be related to the cause he was fighting for and thus gain more support from
peace loving people (Finnegan, 2015).
-Discuss the series (three images total) known as the "Scourged Back." Briefly describe
each one of the three images. Do you need to see all three images for the full meaning to
be conveyed? Who is the subject of this series, and how does it portray a sense of
national belonging?

2PHOTOGRAPHY
The three images collectively known as the ‘Scourged Back’ shows the life of an
escaped slave whose name was Gordon and his transformation from being a bondsman to a
free person to a soldier (Finnegan, 2015). The first image shows Gordon in a tattered dressed
in tattered rags after his escape. The image shows the hardship that had to be faced by
Gordon after escaping slavery and working as a bondsman that was not even sufficient to pay
for proper clothing. The second image shows Gordon in a medical examination where he
shows the scars on his back, a reminiscence of the beating and torture he endured when he
was a slave, showing the harsh life of slaves. The third image is of Gordon in military
uniform, fighting for the Union against slavery. The three images convey a clear image of
how the Union soldiers were driven and motivated for the civil war to end a historic cruelty
to the slaves in America, portraying them as American citizens and fostering a sense of
national belonging (McKittrick, 2014)

3PHOTOGRAPHY
References:
Finnegan, C. A. (2015). Slave Photographs in Lincoln. Rhetoric & Public Affairs, 18(1), 129-
134.
McKittrick, K. (2014). Mathematics black life. The Black Scholar, 44(2), 16-28.
Rudd, A. (2016). Victorians Living in Public: Cartes de Visite as 19th-Century Social Media.
Photography and Culture, 9(3), 195-217.
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