The Photographer: Into War-Torn Afghanistan with Doctors Without Borders

AUTHOR: Lefèvre, Didier

ARTIST: Emmanuel Guibert (illustrator); Frédéric Lemercier (colorist); Didier Lefèvre (cover artist); Danica Novgorodoff (cover artist)

PUBLISHER: Dupuis (French); First Second (English)

FIRST BOOK PUBLICATION:Le Photographe, 2003, 2004, 2006 (English translation, 2009)

Publication History

The Photographer: Into War-Torn Afghanistan with Doctors Without Borders was initially printed to much acclaim by the French publisher Dupuis as part of a three-volume set of graphic novels in 2003, 2004, and 2006. Based on its positive reception, it was then published in the United States in 2009. The photographs, which form the core of the story, were taken in 1986 during Didier Lefèvre’s journey with a French branch of the international organization Doctors Without Borders, as they traveled the war-torn mountain regions of Afghanistan providing aid to the regional natives, many of whom found themselves caught in the crossfire between insurgents and their Soviet aggressors. It was not until nearly twenty years later that Lefèvre collaborated with his neighbor, friend, and comics artist Emmanuel Guibert to publish this story.

The Photographer is a unique graphic novel that combines both Lefèvre’s powerful black-and-white photos and Guibert’s earthy comics art, which continued to win academic, comics, and publisher awards well after its initial release in the United States. Unfortunately, Lefèvre died in 2007 and did not live to see the publication of his novel in the United States or the great acclaimed it received.

Plot

The book opens with an introduction by translator Alexis Siegel, who provides context for the journey, which includes background information about the mission of Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), the French branch of Doctors Without Borders, that further contextualizes the humanitarian mission in Afghanistan. Siegel astutely points out that most American readers did not even think about Afghanistan prior to September 11, 2001, let alone maintain any substantial knowledge of the country or its people.

The first part of The Photographer depicts the beginning of Lefèvre’s journey in July of 1986, in Paris, France, and then Peshawar, Pakistan. Lefèvre recounts his first days in Pakistan as he acclimates himself to the region, its people, and its customs as well as to the members of the MSF team that will travel to neighboring Afghanistan to assist Afghans in need. Part of this preparation includes the need to find armed escorts to accompany (and protect) the MSF team as it crosses the mountain passes from Pakistan into Afghanistan. As Lefèvre points out, Afghanistan’s borders were under Soviet surveillance, and convoys faced detainment or even helicopter and artillery fire. Furthermore, the threat of bandits, kidnappers, corrupt regional authorities, and other threats necessitated armed support in the convoy. By the end of August and within one month of arriving in Pakistan, the MSF team sets out on its journey over the mountainous passes into Afghanistan.

Early in the journey, Lefèvre relates the difficulties encountered, such as traveling for long periods at a time, hiking over rough and rocky terrain, making do with the lack of substantial food, and other hardships as simple as navigating the social taboos related to relieving oneself. He also documents the culture of Afghanistan prior to the fundamentalist Taliban’s rise to power, discussing gender roles and relations. In particular, he highlights the role of Dr. Juliette Fournot, the female chief of the caravan, in a patriarchal society.

The second part of The Photographer continues with the journey across the mountainous regions between Pakistan and Afghanistan and the MSF team’s arrival at its first destination, the valley of Teshkan. This part of the book covers the team’s humanitarian mission and constitutes the bulk of Lefèvre’s formal responsibilities as the MSF photographer. However, after spending one month in the country and running low on supplies and patience, he decides that his mission is complete and makes the decision against all guidance from Fournot and others on the team to return to Pakistan and then France on his own.

The final part of The Photographer documents Lefèvre’s journey back to Pakistan across the mountains. As Lefèvre soon discovers, this is even more lonely and difficult than the trip in the better-supplied and faster-moving caravan on his initial trip. He struggles to navigate the landscape and cultural barrier with uncooperative guides, who eventually abandon him along the way. Lefèvre nearly perishes in a snowstorm alone on a mountain prior to falling into company with his second set of profiteering guides, who lead him to safety, though at the expense of nearly all of his funds. Just as Lefèvre completes his journey out of Afghanistan and crosses the border into Pakistan, a local official temporarily holds him prisoner in his hostel for illegally crossing the border. Shortly thereafter, Lefèvre finally makes his way back to Peshawar, only one day before the MSF team arrives. Days later, Lefèvre flies back to France, reunites with his family, and begins the process of developing his film and his story.

Characters

•Didier Lefèvre, the protagonist, is a French twenty-something photographer for an MSF team traveling into Afghanistan to treat the numerous civilian casualties of the Afghan-Soviet conflict. The Photographer documents his personal journey from naïve Westerner to a more experienced and worldly messenger and voice for the victims of this conflict.

•Dr. Juliette Fournot is the leader of the MSF team in Afghanistan. She worked there for a total of eight years, overseeing and participating in the rotation of MSF teams in the region during five of them. She established and maintained relations with the Afghans until she left for the United States in 1988 with John (the team’s surgeon, whom she later married) and established the U.S. arm of MSF.

•Regis is a nurse anesthesiologist who accompanies the MSF team on multiple missions out of a desire to help those who have no assistance from their government or other domestic groups.

•Robert is a doctor on the MSF team who also participates in multiple missions. He stays behind when the team returned from its rotation. Like Regis, he amicably helps acclimate Lefèvre to the Afghan culture and environment.

•Mahmed, the translator for the MSF team, helps Lefèvre adjust to the Afghan culture and environment and teaches him the rudimentary basics of Dari, the Persian dialect spoken there.

•Najmudin, a lieutenant of Bassir Khan, leads the security detail for the MSF team and the rest of the caravan as it travels across the mountains. Lefèvre grows to admire and respect him.

•Aider Shah, the leader of the Nuristan region, protects and supports the members of the MSF team. Lefèvre initially distrusts him but grows to respect him, especially after Shah rescues him from the profiteering guide “Wolf” and his men.

•Bassir Khan, the leader of the Yaftal Valley, helps support the MSF team in its mission to provide aid to the wounded Afghans.

Artistic Style

The Photographer is presented in an oversized format that stands out from most traditional graphic novels because of its unique artistic style: It combines the black-and-white photographs of Lefèvre, the color comics art of Guibert, and the design layouts of colorist Frédéric Lemercier. Guibert eschews a mainstream comic book approach to his art; instead, he embraces a more minimalist, comic-oriented style in his work. This generalized representation of the Afghans allows for a more universal application of the art to real life and enables the reader to make the reasonable assumption that many Afghans endure similar experiences. The black-and-white photographs are particularly poignant, as these experiences demonstrate many of the “gray areas” in this world seemingly bereft of color. Despite Lefèvre’s use of black and white, Guibert incorporates color in his drawings, depending heavily on an earth-toned palette, which reflects the environment where the story takes place. Guibert and Lefèvre also used the photographs as their outline and the art to fill in the gaps; this is clearly seen in such instances as the trip across the mountains. The art is blackened out to reflect the pitch of night. Furthermore, the photographs are displayed as if one were looking directly at the developed film itself; some are viewed as close-ups and others as the actual strips of film. This style gives a less polished and more visceral feel to the overall layout of the book, underscoring the realism of this narrative.

Finally, one cannot overlook the effect of the size of The Photographer. The size allows for large, sweeping landscapes and provides the creators with the space necessary to convey a small portion of the epic characteristics of this journey.

Themes

The primary themes present in The Photographer involve the two interrelated ideas of the journey from ignorance to knowledge and the need of witnesses to tell the stories of the marginalized groups they come to know. At its most basic level, The Photographer recounts the three-month journey that Lefèvre undertakes with the MSF team. This journey results in his departure from the comfort and safety of France to the grueling hardships and dangers of Pakistan and Afghanistan. The reader follows Lefèvre as he grows out of a state of naïveté and a sometimes narrow viewpoint. His personal journey out of ignorance is perhaps best represented in his harrowing snowstorm survival—an isolated and near-fatal experience but one that is not uncommon for the indigenous people. He realizes that this experience is simply part of the way of life for the Afghans.

Lefèvre’s desire to return to Afghanistan indicates he recognizes the significance of his broadening understanding of the world. It also underscores the second theme of The Photographer: his acceptance of the role of witness to the burden the Afghans bore under the conflict among themselves and with the Soviets. Even the publication of The Photographer highlights Lefèvre’s desire to be that witness. This message is one that Siegel points out in the introduction and is one that most Western readers would not have otherwise noted.

Impact

When it was published in the United States in 2009, The Photographer garnered significant critical acclaim from both comics and mainstream audiences alike. This book is one representative of an emerging hybrid of comics and journalism. Unlike many journalistic comics publications, however, The Photographer relies upon the power of both comics and photography in conjunction with traditional prose and comics text boxes and word bubbles. This mixed-media approach conveys the plight of the Afghans and the hardships endured by Lefèvre and the MSF team through multiple lenses. Furthermore, The Photographer informs Western audiences of Doctors Without Borders’ mission to provide medical aid to those who do not have access to this basic necessity.

Additionally, the many awards the work received from academic institutions within the first couple of years following its publication serve as an indication that The Photographer had an immediate impact in secondary and postsecondary institutions. It further demonstrates the literary credibility of comics and graphic novels and the power of the comics medium to communicate relevant, current, and powerful messages.

Further Reading

Folman, Ari, and David Polonsky. Waltz with Bashir: A Lebanon War Story (2009).

Sacco, Joe. Footnotes in Gaza (2009).

Stassen, Jean-Philippe. Deogratias: A Tale of Rwanda (2006).

Bibliography

Goldsmith, Francisca. The Readers’ Advisory Guide to Graphic Novels. Chicago: American Library Association, 2010.

Hedges, Chris. “What War Looks Like.” Review of The Photographer: Into War-Torn Afghanistan with Doctors Without Borders, by Didier Lefèvre and Emmanuel Guibert. The New York Times, May 24, 2009, BR5.

McKinney, Mark. History and Politics in French-Language Comics and Graphic Novels. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 2008.