The allegory for propaganda
There is a case study that gets offered by the essayist as an allegory for propaganda. She recalls a historical event: The Great Depression. By using photography to shape geopolitical ideas about America, and to reinforce wrongful ideas about the state of affairs, the government propagandized the masses very effectively, encouraging them to continue spending their money. The specific image was a farmer with a bountiful harvest, even though the year brought extreme drought and poverty.
Andy Warhol as a type
Sontag's argument is that photography works in a seriously volatile way, because of course a person can construct a photograph to suggest whatever they want, and Sontag feels the average human being will believe whatever that constructed intention is. She examines Warhol's use of photography, which was powerful and artistic, but in her opinion, unethical. In her opinion, Warhol represents the use of photography without respect for reality and truth.
The motif of honesty
The idea of ethical honesty comes up again and again in the essays, whether in philosophical arguments, or in detailed defenses of her arguments. She feels that since photography was almost instantly used as the tool of marketers and government propagandists, that there is now a drastic need for honesty. She feels that people should be meticulous about honesty, and also that photographers should be disciplined about telling true narratives in their work.
Walt Whitman as an analog
The essayist invokes another artist's legacy, that of Walt Whitman, to explore an analog for her argument. He is an analog for artists who use photography unethically, because in his poetry about America, he only celebrated the beauty and natural aspect of America, while ignoring and escaping from America's deeply troubled zeitgeist. She feels he missed an opportunity to share the truth with his reader, by preferring a beautiful substitution, which is how she feels photography is often used.
The crops as a symbol of the times
The essays mention the crop harvest in the years leading up to the Great Depression and in the early years of it. The crops weren't growing, because by happenstance or synchronicity, there was a drought in those years. She uses the government issued photography of plentiful, bountiful harvests as a symbol for photography's power to automatically reinforce an idea in the culture—even if it is intentionally misleading. It is also a vivid symbol for the risk of trusting every photograph.
