The Violence of Looking: An Ethical Critique of Wartime ‘Comfort Women’ Photographs
This article argues for the removal of wartime ‘comfort women’ photographs and film footage from public circulation in academic, journalistic, museum, and digital contexts due to their potential to cause harm. It focuses specifically on imagery taken without consent during the Second World War, incl...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Korea University, Center for Korean History
2024-12-01
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| Series: | International Journal of Korean History |
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| Online Access: | http://ijkh.khistory.org/upload/pdf/ijkh-29-3-69.pdf |
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| author | Philip Charrier |
| author_facet | Philip Charrier |
| author_sort | Philip Charrier |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This article argues for the removal of wartime ‘comfort women’ photographs and film footage from public circulation in academic, journalistic, museum, and digital contexts due to their potential to cause harm. It focuses specifically on imagery taken without consent during the Second World War, including depictions of both the living and the deceased, which risk exposing or retraumatizing victims and their descendants. While such photographs hold historical significance as evidence of the forced sexual labor system operated by the Japanese military, their continued use as illustrative or evidentiary tools risks perpetuating the structures of violence and degradation that victimized the women. Instead, carefully considered verbal descriptions, combined with survivor testimonies and contextualized historical evidence, can fulfill evidentiary and educational needs without compromising human dignity. By prioritizing survivor narratives over exploitative imagery, this approach respects the agency of those who testified while honoring the intentional silence of those who chose not to disclose their pasts. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-e62b537f77e547fc90e2076465dcc4c5 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 1598-2041 2508-5921 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-12-01 |
| publisher | Korea University, Center for Korean History |
| record_format | Article |
| series | International Journal of Korean History |
| spelling | doaj-art-e62b537f77e547fc90e2076465dcc4c52025-08-20T03:07:44ZengKorea University, Center for Korean HistoryInternational Journal of Korean History1598-20412508-59212024-12-01293699810.22372/ijkh.2024.29.3.69603The Violence of Looking: An Ethical Critique of Wartime ‘Comfort Women’ PhotographsPhilip Charrier0Associate Professor, Head of the Department of History, and Acting Head of the Department of Philosophy and Classics at the University of Regina, CanadaThis article argues for the removal of wartime ‘comfort women’ photographs and film footage from public circulation in academic, journalistic, museum, and digital contexts due to their potential to cause harm. It focuses specifically on imagery taken without consent during the Second World War, including depictions of both the living and the deceased, which risk exposing or retraumatizing victims and their descendants. While such photographs hold historical significance as evidence of the forced sexual labor system operated by the Japanese military, their continued use as illustrative or evidentiary tools risks perpetuating the structures of violence and degradation that victimized the women. Instead, carefully considered verbal descriptions, combined with survivor testimonies and contextualized historical evidence, can fulfill evidentiary and educational needs without compromising human dignity. By prioritizing survivor narratives over exploitative imagery, this approach respects the agency of those who testified while honoring the intentional silence of those who chose not to disclose their pasts.http://ijkh.khistory.org/upload/pdf/ijkh-29-3-69.pdf‘comfort women’ photographic ethicsconsentgenderpatriarchy |
| spellingShingle | Philip Charrier The Violence of Looking: An Ethical Critique of Wartime ‘Comfort Women’ Photographs International Journal of Korean History ‘comfort women ’ photographic ethics consent gender patriarchy |
| title | The Violence of Looking: An Ethical Critique of Wartime ‘Comfort Women’ Photographs |
| title_full | The Violence of Looking: An Ethical Critique of Wartime ‘Comfort Women’ Photographs |
| title_fullStr | The Violence of Looking: An Ethical Critique of Wartime ‘Comfort Women’ Photographs |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Violence of Looking: An Ethical Critique of Wartime ‘Comfort Women’ Photographs |
| title_short | The Violence of Looking: An Ethical Critique of Wartime ‘Comfort Women’ Photographs |
| title_sort | violence of looking an ethical critique of wartime comfort women photographs |
| topic | ‘comfort women ’ photographic ethics consent gender patriarchy |
| url | http://ijkh.khistory.org/upload/pdf/ijkh-29-3-69.pdf |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT philipcharrier theviolenceoflookinganethicalcritiqueofwartimecomfortwomenphotographs AT philipcharrier violenceoflookinganethicalcritiqueofwartimecomfortwomenphotographs |