Visual economies of disaster: The circulation of an image of the Van earthquake

Abstract

This thesis focuses on the production and circulation of an earthquake victim’s photograph in order to see the processes behind becoming a cultural icon, a symbol of a disaster and an object of pain. It follows the material trajectory of the image that belongs to a 13-year-old victim of the Van Earthquake (2011) in different spaces and temporalities; such as in mainstream print media, in award ceremonies, in political ceremonies and in outdoor campaigns. By following Yunus’ photograph, this thesis provides insights on the economy of visuality, dynamics of news production, and formation of news discourses through which, I problematize the formation of hegemonic visual regime of Turkey for disasters. Throughout the thesis, social aspects of disasters, objectivity claims of the photographic medium, the realist gaze, politics of affect, unity of nation via discursive formations, politics of pose, production of idealized victims, framing, politics of pity and humanitarian discourse are discussed to historicize the particular event. The thesis also includes a semi structured in-depth interview with the photojournalist who took the photograph of Yunus, to reveal the production processes in journalism field. In addition, based on the archival data from mainstream national newspapers, an elaborative discourse analysis is held to locate the image in the disasters news discourse. I argue that Yunus’s image as an object of pain is constructed as a product of deeply colonial gaze and as an ahistorical depoliticized victim category, and this in return had material effects on the victim’s family.