The Poacher - A Hare in View, (Suffolk) c. 1883 - 1888

Peter Henry Emerson created this photogravure, "The Poacher - A Hare in View, (Suffolk)", without a specified date. It reflects the complex social landscape of rural England. Emerson, who advocated for photography as an art form, often captured the lives of the working class. In this image, we see a man, presumably a poacher, with his dog, set against a vast, open landscape. The act of poaching itself was a form of resistance. It was a means of survival for those denied access to land and resources, challenging the rigid class structures and land ownership laws of the time. The poacher's identity is ambiguous, his face obscured, yet his presence speaks volumes about the tensions between social classes and the struggle for survival. The stark landscape further emphasizes the isolation and hardship faced by many rural workers. "The Poacher" invites us to reflect on the historical and social contexts that shape individual lives and the ways in which acts of transgression can be seen as forms of resistance.