Katlynn Fuller
COMPSTD 1100
November 6, 2020
Context Research Presentation
Regarding the Pain of Others
Hello, my name is Katlynn Fuller (She/Her), and I have the pleasure of discussing the work of Susan Sontag. This text is titled Regarding the Pain of Others and was published in 2003. Precisely I will be analyzing a women’s role in war and how it has evolved over time to shape the women we have today. The theme One vs the Other can be seen throughout this book and as we look into women in the history of war.
At the beginning of the book Regarding the Pain of Others some ideas from the book Three Guineas are expressed. It must be noted that Three Guineas was published in 1938 by a woman author named Virginia Woolf. The ideas and theologies in 1938 were much different than today regarding the role of women in war and society. There was a deep divide between housewives and men of war. This book goes to say that “Men make war. Men (most men) like war.” Then the book goes on to say that “women (most women) do not feel or enjoy.” This is referring to war once again. There are many examples throughout the beginning of the book that point at the idea that men fight in the wars and women maintain the household. The book also quotes Virginia Woolf again by stating an excerpt from her book saying “war is a man’s game” and that “the killing machine has a gender, and it is male.” I would like to analyze how the act of women being involved in war and other multi gender roles has changed over the course of time. A timeline provided by the Task & Purpose website shows the evolution of women in war over time. There were a few key events that stuck out to me on this timeline. Dating back to 1775 women served in military camps as cooks, laundresses and nurses. Over the course of the century women became more heavily involved. In 1948 it is noted that congress passed an act allowing women to become permanent members of the military. Prior to this act women only served in times of active war. Finally, in 2016 a woman became the first female soldier to join the Army’s 75th Ranger Regiment.
Without the involvement of women in war our understanding of it may be entirely different. If women were not involved in photographs would they be depicted the same? Would there still be as strong of an emotional connection to war if women were not able to shine their light during war? Would women truly understand what their husbands go through when they go off to war? There is a tremendous amount of talk about photography in war and the connection that society can create between our emotions and war from the ability of viewing images of war and all of their wrath. Without a woman at home to care for the family there would be no family to continue. I feel as if it is so important to focus on the pain of women in war and women who stay home while their husbands fight the battle. The pain of the women who stay home is just as great as the men or women who fight in the physical war. This story takes a unique look at photography as it pertains to war and the ways in which it can help us understand the struggles and pain men and women go through without physically being there.
Purpose, Task &. “TIMELINE: A History Of Women In The US Military.” Task & Purpose, 8 Mar. 2017, taskandpurpose.com/history/timeline-history-women-us-military.
Sontag, Susan. Regarding the Pain of Others. Penguin Books, 2019.