Course Syllabus

Destruction of Konigsberg in East Prussia (Creative Commons license)

 

Course Description

Full-scale war has returned to the European continent. Yet our understanding of it remains limited unless we find ourselves on the frontlines in Ukraine. What shapes our understanding instead is a long history of visual mediation — stills and moving images that have, for over a century and a half, stood between Europeans and the wars fought in their name.

Since the first conflict photographs of the Crimean War and the American Civil War, the camera has determined what war "looks like" to those who don't experience it directly. World War I newsreels, the censored and uncensored imagery of World War II, and the television coverage that brought Vietnam into living rooms each recalibrated public tolerance for depicting violence — and each generation of technology renegotiated what could, and should, be shown.

Today, we live in an era of mass media consumption — of image gluttony — that may produce a different result: compassion fatigue and apathy. The same visual literacy that once mobilised publics may now be exhausting it.

Thus, whether through photography, cinematography or social media as the universal pipeline to show whatever and whenever, the visual recording and presentation of war and conflict raises issues of political, ethical and aesthetic character. By drawing attention to an image, a photographer may end up perpetuating the very thing they sought to abate. As Susan Sontag put it, to photograph is to frame, and to frame is to exclude — what pictures, whose cruelties, whose deaths are not being shown?

Therefore, no matter the intention — to document events, collect evidence for trials, humanize the war experience, shape public opinion, preserve collective memory, or strengthen and undermine narratives and propaganda — our understanding of war remains inseparable from the history of how it has been visually presented to us.

Images of War traces that history: the evolution of war's mediation through photography and film, from the earliest battlefield photographs to today's social media feeds. Grounded in political, historical and cultural analysis, we examine the interaction between media, society and military trends, with particular emphasis on the European experience. Through historical and contemporary case studies, students gain analytical tools to deconstruct the visuals of war and critically assess how imagery, conflict and society have shaped one another over time.

Learning Objectives

This course will enable you to:

1. Understand the historical development and significance of war photography and more broadly the visual presentation of war.

2. Explore whether and to what extent it is the nature of war vs. merely the representation of war that has changed in modern time.

3. Analyze and evaluate the ethical considerations involved in photographing conflicts.

4. Determine the role of war photography in shaping public opinion and policy.

5. Discuss the impact of war photography on societies and cultures.

6. Critically analyse and interpret war photographs and films within their historical and cultural contexts.

7. Understand the role of media in combating or perpetuating representation bias, power dynamics and minority communities

Faculty

Miłosz J. Cordes

Ph.D. in Cultural Studies, M.A. in East-European Cultural Studies & International Relations, B.A. in History & International Relations. Research Fellow at the Danish Foreign Policy Society (2021-). Casimir Pulaski Foundation Non-Resident Fellow (2022-). External Consultant at the Danish Institute for International Studies (2023-24). Postdoctoral Researcher at Lund University (2022-23). Benjamin Franklin Transatlantic Fellow (2006).

Miłosz spent nine years in the Polish diplomatic service as, among others, Vice-Consul at Poland's Consulate General in Kaliningrad. Miłosz's research interests cover identity, politics of memory, nationalism & populism in Central and Eastern Europe, the Baltic Sea Region integration, as well as the West-Russia relations. He has published over 30 academic and public intellectual articles in international journals. In May 2024, he authored Denmark's first comprehensive report on Kaliningrad Oblast, commissioned and published by the Danish Institute of International Studies. In June 2025, his book Collective Memory in Post-Soviet Kaliningrad Oblast was published by Routledge.

Miłosz has been using analogue photography for twenty years. He is particuarly interested in East German cameras, such as Praktikca and Pentacon Six. His photographic focus are how memory shapes space and vice versa, as well as portraits.

Field Studies

This is an interactive and discussion-based course. It combines teacher lectures and classroom dialogue, with student-driven case studies and scenario building. To make abstract themes tangible and engaging, we will draw in visual and audio material: art, slogans, documentaries, campaign videos and clips from speeches and rallies.

Field studies, site visits, documentaries and guest speakers will form an integral part of the course. We will visit organisations dealing with election observation missions, as well as attend a workshop on disinformation. Since our field trips involve other institutions with their own agendas and timetables, we might have to introduce changes in our plans. I will be communicated in advance.

Grading

Assignment	Percentage
Class attendance	15%
Active class participation	15%
Semester-long exploration project, including:	50%
submission of your initial idea;	10%
mid-term presentation;	10%
final product;	20%
in-class discussion on your presentation.	10%
Short movie presentation	10%
Short photographer / photographic phenomenon presentation	10%

Expectations of the Students

All students are expected to abide by the Code of Student Responsibility.

We will discuss mutual expectations and define active participation in detail during the first class.

The students are expected to actively participate in the classes not only by following the syllabus and do the readings, but also by employing their own interests and skills. This course seeks to unleash the students' potential in the way that they would feel most comfortable with.

By active participation, I mean intellectual engagement, openness to new ideas and seeking out more information in the way that is interesting to the students themselves. This can mean making use of the course in their future professional career. My role is to help create links between the two.

To facilitate communication between me and the group, we will elect two class representatives in the beginning of the semester. We will discuss their role during our first meeting.

Other Policies

Late arrival to class: less than 5 minutes - marked as 'present'; more than 5 and less than 15 minutes - marked as 'late'; more than 15 minutes - marked as 'absent'. All students are expected to come to class on time. Repeated late arrivals will result in a meeting with the lecturer.

Refer to DIS guidelines on prolonged absences.

Papers, presentations and other files handed in late will not be accepted. Make sure to check deadlines in Canvas.

The use of laptops is allowed only for taking notes except for when having guest speakers in class. The use of mobile phones in class is not allowed unless specified otherwise.

Readings

Kennedy & Patrick. (2014). The Violence of the Image - Photography and International Conflict.

Lamrová, B. (2016). Zlom epochy Praha 1989 / The End of an Era Prague 1989. Praha: KANT.

Linfield, S. (2010): The Cruel Radiance - Photography and Political Violence.

Sontag, S. (2003): Regarding the Pain of Others. ch. 1

Struk, J. (2004). Photographing the Holocaust - Interpretations of the Evidence. 

Grynbaum & Robertson, NY Times. (2023). Harsh Visuals of War Leave Newsrooms Facing Tough Choices. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/14/business/media/israel-hamas-media-photography.html 

Lauren Walsh. (2019). Conversations on Conflict Photography.

Daniel Foliard. (2022). The Violence of Colonial Photography.

Paul Lowe. (2022). Photography and Bearing Witness in the Balkan Conflicts 1988-2015.

Meryl Alper. (2014). War on Instagram: Framing Conflict Journalism with Mobile Photography Apps. New Media & Society.

Frank Möller: Peace Photography. Palgrave.

Moorehead, Nachtwey, ICRC (2009): Humanity in War: Frontline Photography Since 1860

Harris & Williams (2018): Reporting War.

Judith Butler: Frames of War (2016)

Ritchin (2009): After Photography

DIS Accommodations Statement 

Your learning experience in this class is important to me.  If you have approved academic accommodations with DIS, please make sure I receive your DIS accommodations letter within two weeks from the start of classes. If you can think of other ways I can support your learning, please don't hesitate to talk to me. If you have any further questions about your academic accommodations, contact Academic Support acadsupp@dis.dk. 

Policies

Late arrival to class: less than 5 minutes - marked as 'present'; more than 5 and less than 15 minutes - marked as 'late'; more than 15 minutes - marked as 'absent'. All students are expected to come to class on time. Repeated late arrivals will result in a meeting with the lecturer.

Refer to DIS guidelines on prolonged absences.

Papers, presentations and other files handed in late will not be accepted. Make sure to check deadlines in Canvas.

The use of laptops is allowed only for taking notes except for when having guest speakers in class. The use of mobile phones in class is not allowed unless specified otherwise.