The Use of Photography

“A must-read for lovers of words, images, and Ernaux herself. So. . . everyone?”—Jessie Gaynor, LitHub

“Annie Ernaux has long foregrounded physical and emotional sensations as the building blocks of her autobiographical writing. However, it is in The Use of Photography where the connection between the body and subjectivity most powerfully emerges.”—Lisa Connell in French Forum

“These photos, in which the bodies are absent, and the eroticism is only represented by the abandoned clothes, were a reminder of my possible, permanent absence.”—Annie Ernaux

Annie Ernaux and Marc Marie met in January 2003 and became lovers almost immediately. A short time later, he accompanied her to the Institut Curie, where she was having surgery for breast cancer. A deep bond formed between Annie and Marc precisely during this time of great uncertainty within Ernaux as to whether she would live or die from the cancer.

Early in their affair, Ernaux found herself entranced each morning by the sight of clothes strewn about, chairs out of place, and the remains of their last meal of the evening before still on the table. The two lovers began to take still life photographs, and to write. Their efforts to save the fleeting beauty of these moments were, as Ernaux would describe later in an interview, “material proof of what had happened there, of love.”

The Use of Photography is a defining work in Ernaux’s career, leading directly to the book that would come next, her masterpiece, The Years.