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ABU GHRAIB and the COMMEMORATIVE VIOLENCE of WAR TROPHY PHOTOGRAPHY by Joey Brooke Jakob Master of Arts, University of Manitob

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ABU GHRAIB and the COMMEMORATIVE VIOLENCE of WAR TROPHY PHOTOGRAPHY by Joey Brooke Jakob Master of Arts, University of Manitob ABU GHRAIB AND THE COMMEMORATIVE VIOLENCE OF WAR TROPHY PHOTOGRAPHY by Joey Brooke Jakob Master of Arts, University of Manitoba, Manitoba, Canada, 2008 Bachelor of Arts, University of Winnipeg, Winnipeg, Canada, 2004 A Dissertation presented to Ryerson University and York University in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the joint program in Communication and Culture Toronto, Ontario, Canada, 2017 ©Joey Brooke Jakob 2017 AUTHOR’S DECLARATION AUTHOR'S DECLARATION FOR ELECTRONIC SUBMISSION OF A DISSERTATION I hereby declare that I am the sole author of this dissertation. This is a true copy of the dissertation, including any required final revisions, as accepted by my examiners. I authorize Ryerson University to lend this dissertation to other institutions or individuals for the purpose of scholarly research. I further authorize Ryerson University to reproduce this dissertation by photocopying or by other means, in total or in part, at the request of other institutions or individuals for the purpose of scholarly research. I understand that my dissertation may be made electronically available to the public. ii ABSTRACT ABU GHRAIB AND THE COMMEMORATIVE VIOLENCE OF WAR TROPHY PHOTOGRAPHY Joey Brooke Jakob Doctor of Philosophy Communication and Culture Ryerson University and York University, 2017 The photographs from the Abu Ghraib scandal are horrific, but they are also understandable. Simply put, the Abu Ghraib photos are purposeful compositions that highlight victory over the enemy Other in war. The photos illustrate sexual and racial violence, founded upon postcolonial narratives, but this is only a starting point for their significance. I address how meaning is made for the U.S. military personnel who took photographs of naked Iraqi detainees at Abu Ghraib, by looking backward to soldiers’ photography from WWI and II, and by considering soldiers’ online sharing of photographs in the present, examining roughly fifty photos total. The relationships between photographic materiality, emotional and gestural communication, and the production of cultural memory, disseminated via networked circulation, all shape how soldiers’ wartime photographs come to be regarded. Employing an interdisciplinary approach, this research draws upon war photography; visual culture and communication; sociology of groups and ritual; sociology of emotion; combat histories; memory studies; and online photo sharing practices. In so considering, the Abu Ghraib photos are not unique, and are instead grouped within the greater concept of the “war trophy.” I expand on this concept by defining “war trophy photography” as the entwined practices of war photography and trophy collection, rooted in ritual and group solidification. Staged to depict the violent conquering of the enemy, I argue that war trophy photography recognizes war efforts through the construction of a visual record, one that iii reproduces relations of dominance and submission. I call this representation “commemorative violence,” a central concept I develop to define the war trophy photograph. In addition to grounding the Abu Ghraib photos historically, I review their visual semiotic, cultural significance, such as with the “Doing a Lynndie” meme, which features civilians gesturing in thumbs-up toward a downtrodden individual, copying the same gesture as often used in the images from Abu Ghraib, and the now defunct site “Now That’s Fucked Up,” which briefly allowed soldiers in 2005 to trade gruesome war trophy pictures for pornography. The conclusion reflects on war trophy photography with the topical consideration of drones, ultimately suggesting that drone warfare photos are expressionless because of the overt absence of people. iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would first and foremost like to thank my advisor, Dr. Paul S. Moore, for his continued support. There were many times I found myself stuck and his guidance and direction enabled me to not only move forward, but also to do so with enthusiasm. Thank you to my other committee members, Dr. Kevin Dowler and Dr. Stéphanie Walsh Matthews, for the conversations that helped to shed light on some challenging ideas. Additional thanks go to Dr. Sarah Parsons and Dr. Karen Engle, for rounding out the committee, and shedding light on some things requiring further thought. The very early stages of this project emerged in a Postcolonial Affects course, taught by Dr. Nima Naghibi, who understood why I just could not stop thinking about Abu Ghraib. Thank you to Julie Tomiak, Patricia Mazepa, Carl Benn, and Daniel Kreiss, for helping me along the way. Thank you also to Jo Ann Mackie for being an administrative angel. My loved ones also need to be thanked, for all the weird hours I have kept, and all those phone calls and emails that went unreturned. Debbie and Kurt Jakob, Mum and Dad, thank you for understanding that I had to move away, and thanks to my extended family for helping to keep them well and entertained in my absence. I owe a great debt to my colleagues and friends: Joe Turcotte, Erin McCurdy, Steph Rogerson, Samantha Hogg, Zorianna Zurba, Natalya Androsova, Eryk Martin, Douglas Spielman, Chris Powell, and Jeremy Mathers. Thank you to my chosen family Robyn Webb, Maria Sword, Jon Benson, Patrick Skene, Cory Bellhouse, Mathew Gagne, and Ryann Giorgi. v DEDICATION To Barry Bernstein, a kind and encouraging person. I miss you all the time. And, to my Baba, Edith Yager, for sitting with me that morning of September 11, 2001, a day that opened my eyes like never before to war and enemy Otherness. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Author’s Declaration ................................................................................................................................ ii Abstract ....................................................................................................................................................... iii Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................................. v Dedication ................................................................................................................................................... vi Table of Contents .................................................................................................................................... vii List of Figures ............................................................................................................................................. ix Abu Ghraib and War Trophy Photography ....................................................................................... 1 Horror and Outrage Over the Photos ............................................................................................................ 2 Visual Semiotics as Methodological Approach ........................................................................................... 6 “Behind,” “in,” and “With” the War Trophy Photograph ...................................................................... 11 Chapter 1—The Camera at War—In, With, and Behind the Photograph: The Visual Semiotics of the War Trophy Photograph ......................................................................................................................................... 11 Chapter 2—“Behind” The War Trophy Photographs—Commemorative Violence in Historic Context: A Symbolic Genealogy for the War Trophy Photograph ................................................................. 13 Chapter 3—“In” The War Trophy Photograph—Gesture, Emotional Expression, and Camp Humour: The Case of “Doing a Lynndie” .................................................................................................................. 14 Chapter 4—“With” the War Trophy Photograph— Images, Narrative, and Cultural Memory: Circulation of the War Trophy Photograph ............................................................................................................ 15 Conclusions—Reflecting on “A Few Bad Apples” and Looking Forward: Are Drone War Photographs Objects of Commemorative Violence? ........................................................................................... 17 Chapter 1—The Camera at War ......................................................................................................... 18 In, With, and Behind the Photograph: The Visual Semiotics of the War Trophy Photograph . 18 Background to the Abu Ghraib Photos ...................................................................................................................... 18 Official U.S. Responses to the Abu Ghraib Photos ................................................................................................ 20 Historical Relation of War Photography and the War Trophy .......................................................... 21 The Commemorative Violence of War Trophy Photographs .............................................................. 28 Interpretation and “Like-Minded Community”: Contexts of Abu Ghraib Photographs ....................... 37 A Shared History and Practice: Photography Meets War in Example ............................................. 41 Chapter 2—“Behind” the War Trophy Photograph ..................................................................... 45 Commemorative Violence in Historic Context: A Symbolic Genealogy for the War Trophy Photograph .........................................................................................................................................................
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