Description
In Nature Exposed, Jennifer Tucker studies the intersecting trajectories of photography and modern science in late Victorian Britain. She examines the role of photograph as witness in scientific investigation and explores the interplay between photography and scientific authority.
Almost immediately after the invention of photography in 1839, photographs were characterized as offering objective access to reality—unmediated by human agency, political ties, or philosophy. This mechanical objectivity supposedly eliminated judgment and interpretation in reporting and picturing scientific results.
But photography is a labor-intensive process that allows for, and sometimes requires, manipulation. In the late nineteenth century, the nature of this new technology sparked a complex debate about scientific practices and the value of the photographic images in the production and dissemination of scientific knowledge.
Recovering the controversies and commentary surrounding the early creation of scientific photography and drawing on a wide range of new sources and critical theories, Tucker establishes a greater understanding of the rich visual culture of Victorian science and alternative forms of knowledge, including psychical research.Reviews
"The strength of the book lies in Tucker's analysis of the broad historical context in which scientific photography emerged in Victorian Britain."—Science"A challenging exploration."—Ian Burney, American Historical Review "A timely, interesting, and valuable book."—Frances Robertson, Technology and Culture "A useful book."—Daniel M. Fox, Nuncius "A pioneering study of the establishment of the photograph as an accurate representation of nature which is based on thorough scholarship combined with imaginative insight. Tucker ranges across a breathtaking array of scientific fields, including meteorology, microbiology, and astronomy, while throwing new light on the scientific amateur, spiritualism, gender, visual culture, imperialism, and Victorian popular culture."—Bernard Lightman, York University "This extraordinarily rich study constitutes a landmark in writing about the relations between photography, science, and ideas of truth. Its use of nineteenth-century journal sources, too often overlooked by historians, to extrapolate the complex and nuanced negotiation of truth values invested in photography, not only allows a clear nineteenth-century voice to emerge, but provides us with an invaluable model for further studies."—Elizabeth Edwards, University of the Arts London "Brilliant study."—Marta Braun, Victorian Studies "The premise and the methodology of the book are sound, and its conclusions important."—Kelley Wilder, History and Philosophy of the Life Sciences
Author Information
Jennifer Tucker is an assistant professor of history and women's studies at Wesleyan University.
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