During World War II most photographers were "engaged"—they fervently believed in America and in the American cause. Many of the photographers of the war came out of the 1930s tradition of social documentary photography. Documenting soldiers in war was an expansion of the photographers' prewar project of documenting the people of the United States. It was a continuing attempt to reaffirm the nation's democratic ideals and cultural values. During the succeeding wars in Korea and Vietnam, photography was used to challenge American policies and question the nation's values. During World War II, the photography of Americans at war was still an affirmation of the United States as the land of the free, the shining city on a hill, the last best hope for civilization.

Military Photography

As a war on five continents, seven seas, and a dozen fronts, World War II...