Analysis Of Frances Benjamin Johnston's Self-Portrait 'New Woman'

This photo was taken by Frances Benjamin Johnston as a Full Self-Portrait, “New Woman”, in 1896. She received her first camera from George Eastman, the inventor of the Eastman Kodak and a family friend. She became a noted advocate for women’s photography as well as a documenter of key historic events. When she opened her own studio in New York in 1894, She was the only woman photographer in the city. Johnston also photographed many famous photographs in Paris, but perhaps her most famous work, shown here, of the liberated "New Woman." The photograph shows a woman wearing a dress, shoes and a hat while sitting on a stool. She poses with her leg placed on the other leg, which shows her petticoat that she is wearing. In addition, she is holding …show more content…
Women’s movement was a feminist ideal that emerged in the late nineteenth century and had a profound influence on feminism well into the twentieth century. The “New Woman” is a representation of the struggle that the women were fighting for by advocating other women during that century to believe in the idea of women having their rights. The photo intentionally frames the men’s pictures on the shelf above her head, to state that during the nineteenth century, men had rights, and that is also what women wanted. The photo seems to portray the idea that women should be treated the same way that men are treated. The issue which was increasingly prominent, but these phrases “Equality the time is now” and “Vote for women” hardly hold weight anymore. In general, the photo resembling a men’s behavior on a woman’s body is a way of getting attention, however, the protests against equality might have a larger consequence for the …show more content…
However, the course expanded underlying dimensions of all races. Ibrahim states, “In the United States, women generally have a second-class statue” (Ibrahim 48). By stating the quote, it shows that economical class was centered around men. The framing of the “New Woman” allows the intersections of the class idea connect to the photo to show the economical privileges that men had but women were limited to. The tiny photos of the men positioned above her head shows the patriarchal organized society where people rely on masculine ideological structure for status. Women would have to depend on their men to be placed into the same economic status as their husband even if the women had the capabilities to be classified as other. The photo signifies that women were placed at the same status as the men were but this was not justified as they did not have the rights that men did, so placing them at the same level would be unjustified. This shows that women did not have economical privileges to buy a property or have the right to voice their opinion because the society left that responsibility upon men. The only source of finance was the husband hence the only chance for women to be protected was for them to marry men who were financially secure which made them more dependent on men.