So successful has been the camera's role in beautifying the world that photographs, rather than the world, have become the standard of the beautiful.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Photography has become so effective at beautifying reality that photos now define beauty standards more than the actual world does.
- In plain terms
- Photos have replaced the real world as the standard for what is beautiful.
- What can you take from it?
- Visual media can distort our perception of reality by setting artificial beauty standards.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- How do images shape your sense of beauty?
- Is a filtered version of reality more appealing than the truth?
Another view
Not all photography aims to beautify; documentary and photojournalism exist.
More from Susan Sontag
The camera makes everyone a tourist in other people's reality, and eventually in one's own.
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