Reflection

In closing with the semester, I thought I would reflect on my favorite section of the class instead of talk about a reading from the textbooks. I think my favorite image of the class was Jacob Riis's Bandit's Roost, 1888. I liked how the image was composed in that it evokes a very shady, confrontational feeling because they figures are all staring at you. Even more so, the two men that are closest to the viewer, are both looking at the camera who are by extension looking at us, and one is holding a bat and the other is reaching in his pocket. In the background, the sky is hazy and the fence blocks the end which represents the lack of safety. 

I especially liked interpreting this image in reference to talking about Lange's, Tenant Farmers without Farms, Hardman County, TX from 1937. The linearity and flatness mimic the open and flat Texas plains. The men's hands positions also suggest they don't know what to do with their hands because they're not working. It is similar to a police suspect line however they give a sense of pride for what they have left rather than what they have lost, during the Great Depression. 

Despite the huge year gap, these images are quite similar. Both images are very confrontational, uncomfortable, and unsettling to the viewer, due to the fact that the figures are staring right at the camera. Most importantly, both have a heavy emphasis on masculinity because in both images, the men are not seen as working. A big part of masculinity for men is being able to provide for their families and while we don't see the families in the images, we do see the men and how their ability to provide for them is taken away. 

I thought these two images together posed some great perspectives, seeing that they are during two different time periods but still have similar meanings.