Blog Post #1
http://www.wingyounghuie.com/p970478690/e67517793
Denotative Examination: After the primary examination, I observed the surfacing factors than Wing Young Huie projected. Firstly, I noticed the facial expressions of the two men in the center of the photograph. The man on the left has an angered facial expression, while the man on the right has a disappointing look. I also noticed that the two people are holding chalk boards with writing on it. The chalk board that the first man is holding has the name "Dave" underlined and a sentence that reads, "I never saw my parents happy." The second man's chalk board has the name "Shevan" underlined and text that reads, "People see how you look but they don't see or know how much talent you have". Lastly, I noted that the image is in black and white.
Connotative examination: After analyzing these aspects, I decided to further discuss what the elements in the picture could depict about its background message. I first interpreted the names on the chalk boards as the people who were holding the signs. This depiction would support the hypothesis that their expressions were based on their feelings towards the subject that they wrote about on the boards. I suspect that the two men were indirectly treated harshly growing, and gained strong feelings towards those people as a child or teenager. I also noticed that the two men were in put together clothing and in a nice building, which would suggest that they may have had rough backgrounds, but they learned to support themselves, and made a good life for themselves that would better their future. Lastly, I believe that Huie made the image black and white so that the reader would pay attention to the words they wrote on the chalk board and the facial expressions, instead of the color of their clothes or any other distractions. I think that this source has a diverse audiences because the people who view this most likely come from situations alike to the two men and it is a common conflict to have divorced and unhappy parents (shown on Dave's chalk board), and it is common for people to have trouble expressing themselves to other people. This shows that a wide audience would identify with this post.
Wing Young Huie's photograph and Margaret Atwood's book The Handmaid's Tale present the concept of "othering" comparatively because of their use in depiction of feelings, the overall message, and in approach. The message is similar because in Huie's photograph Shevan's chalk board sign reads, "People see how you look but they don't see or know how much talent you have". This connects to Atwood's message because in the Republic of Gilead, Wives, Handmaids, and all the other classes are required to wear the same clothing. In not being able to express themselves in any way possible, everyone is able to see how you look, but not understand your personality, talents, and hobbies, just like Huie's photograph expresses. Depiction of feelings is similar because the two people in the image have a defined expression of anger and sadness. This shows that the comments that the men wrote on their boards affect them deeply. These emotions compare to Offred's feelings in her new life as a Handmaid because she will forever remember these memories, even if the Republic of Gilead is eventually defeated. The approach of the two are also similar because, in The Handmaid's Tale, Atwood directly states the feelings that Offred has when she has them, and in the picture it is obvious that the two men are disheartened by the subjects they wrote on the boards. These three concepts represent "othering" because they make the people unique and have different values than someone who hasn't been through hardships. An example of this value is that if someone is deprived of expression for a long time, such as expression of clothing, once the barrier is lifted, the person will appreciate that form of expression an exponentially amount more than before.
Yours truly,
K-dog (Kate)
- This is a link to a publication by Wing Young Huie. The picture was taken in 2012 of Dave and Shevan at the Kurdish Community of America, Moorhead, Minnesota. Citation for the picture is below.
- Huie, Wing Young. “Dave and Shevan, Kurdish Community of America, Moorhead, Minnesota.” 2012, www.wingyounghuie.com/p970478690/h67517793#h67517793.
Denotative Examination: After the primary examination, I observed the surfacing factors than Wing Young Huie projected. Firstly, I noticed the facial expressions of the two men in the center of the photograph. The man on the left has an angered facial expression, while the man on the right has a disappointing look. I also noticed that the two people are holding chalk boards with writing on it. The chalk board that the first man is holding has the name "Dave" underlined and a sentence that reads, "I never saw my parents happy." The second man's chalk board has the name "Shevan" underlined and text that reads, "People see how you look but they don't see or know how much talent you have". Lastly, I noted that the image is in black and white.
Connotative examination: After analyzing these aspects, I decided to further discuss what the elements in the picture could depict about its background message. I first interpreted the names on the chalk boards as the people who were holding the signs. This depiction would support the hypothesis that their expressions were based on their feelings towards the subject that they wrote about on the boards. I suspect that the two men were indirectly treated harshly growing, and gained strong feelings towards those people as a child or teenager. I also noticed that the two men were in put together clothing and in a nice building, which would suggest that they may have had rough backgrounds, but they learned to support themselves, and made a good life for themselves that would better their future. Lastly, I believe that Huie made the image black and white so that the reader would pay attention to the words they wrote on the chalk board and the facial expressions, instead of the color of their clothes or any other distractions. I think that this source has a diverse audiences because the people who view this most likely come from situations alike to the two men and it is a common conflict to have divorced and unhappy parents (shown on Dave's chalk board), and it is common for people to have trouble expressing themselves to other people. This shows that a wide audience would identify with this post.
Wing Young Huie's photograph and Margaret Atwood's book The Handmaid's Tale present the concept of "othering" comparatively because of their use in depiction of feelings, the overall message, and in approach. The message is similar because in Huie's photograph Shevan's chalk board sign reads, "People see how you look but they don't see or know how much talent you have". This connects to Atwood's message because in the Republic of Gilead, Wives, Handmaids, and all the other classes are required to wear the same clothing. In not being able to express themselves in any way possible, everyone is able to see how you look, but not understand your personality, talents, and hobbies, just like Huie's photograph expresses. Depiction of feelings is similar because the two people in the image have a defined expression of anger and sadness. This shows that the comments that the men wrote on their boards affect them deeply. These emotions compare to Offred's feelings in her new life as a Handmaid because she will forever remember these memories, even if the Republic of Gilead is eventually defeated. The approach of the two are also similar because, in The Handmaid's Tale, Atwood directly states the feelings that Offred has when she has them, and in the picture it is obvious that the two men are disheartened by the subjects they wrote on the boards. These three concepts represent "othering" because they make the people unique and have different values than someone who hasn't been through hardships. An example of this value is that if someone is deprived of expression for a long time, such as expression of clothing, once the barrier is lifted, the person will appreciate that form of expression an exponentially amount more than before.
Yours truly,
K-dog (Kate)
I really liked how you picked up on the parallels between The Handmaid's Tale and your photo. In the book everyone wears the same clothing according to what their role in society is and others judge them based off that. A reader might think this sounds crazy, but something very similar happen in our society today. Like the boy on the right expressed with his sign, people are very quick to jump to conclusions about you simply based off of how you look. I think that Huie's photo, like Margaret Atwood's book, can serve as a warning to anyone viewing it. The warning could possibly be to strive to be a positive role model to your kids, and to take a moment to get to know someone before you make a judgement about them.
ReplyDeleteI liked what you said about Shevan's chalkboard sign, because I feel like we don't get to know all of the Handmaids as well as we get to know Offred, and even her we don't get to know that well. Every Handmaid is thought to have the same personality and the same traits, and I feel like that relates well to this picture because sometimes we put labels on other people too without getting to know who they are.
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