Analysis Of The Vulture And The Little Girl By Philip White

Improved Essays
Over the years, media has been a strong element of entertainment. Whether photographs or videos, there is a strong expectation of an aesthetic or humorous appeal. However, in some rare occasions, they provide a powerful emotional appeal. Like Kevin Carter’s The Vulture and the Little Girl where a vulture was waiting to devour a starving five-year-old girl about to die of hunger, Charles Moore’s Life Magazine Birmingham 1963 Protest photo employs different photography elements such as focus, contrasts and shutter speed to capture a very pathetic moment and send a clear message to people around the world about events in a certain environment. As we progress in this analysis, I would refer to the image as “The Water Hose”.
Philip White, Michael
…show more content…
The reaction on the woman’s face which show absolute pain or the pain the man assaulted by the hose experiences show us the struggle they face to be free from the shackles of segregation that holds them down in their country. The photo does not only leave us with a visual understanding of the experience of the subjects but also a series of questions to think about. For most people, water is a peacefully existing multi-purpose object. However, in The Water Hose it is being used as a weapon of assault and oppression. Are the people being cleansed out of their own community? Do they appear to be a burden that needs to be washed off by their community? One would also ask what the role of the Fire Department was in addressing a protest situation? What is their role in ensuring the safety of people in a protest that did not involve any use of fire? Why is it only the man to the extreme right on the receiving end of the assault? Is he protecting the others or he just happened to be the unfortunate one there at the particular moment the photo was taken? As we struggle to answer these questions, the photograph puts us in a state of confusion that might not even be resolved by consulting historical …show more content…
Nowadays, we have a lot of Charles Moore’s with their smartphones since the development of technology and social media has allowed people to record videos that spread an equal if not exceeding amount of awareness about issues as people utilize auto-focus and Twitter on their mobile phones. Moore’s photo would always serve as a continuous reminder of the role we all have as documenters of situations of injustices around us. The Water Hose also reminds us of the importance of critically engaging and analyzing the media we see around us to effect positive change in our communities. You do not need to be a photo-journalist to whip out your phone and record an injustice because that single act can play a small role in an incredible act just like the Birmingham 1963 Protests photo did in ensuring the Civil Rights act was passed into Law. Likewise, you do not need to be a broadcaster or legislator to enact the change you want to see after critically analyzing the media brought to

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    In the article “Necessary Edges: Arts, Empathy, and Education by Yo-Yo Ma, he discusses how art is used in our everyday lives, such as music, which helps build culture. Ma’s main focus of his writing is to elaborate on the significant factor of art through two acronyms. The two acronyms are called S.T.E.M, which implies the education of (science, technology, engineering, math) and S.T.E.A.M, (science, technology, engineering, art, technology) which adds the importance of Art. On the other hand, in the article “We Are a Camera” by Nick Paumgarten, Nick digs into the meat and greedy of how cameras can negatively impact our lives and take away the actual experience of a iconic moment. In this writing, I will be explaining how Paumgarten…

    • 896 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Reaper in Development When Reading the Boston Photographs by Nora Ephron it cause many to question the theories of right versus wrong on what the media should and should not do when it reports what it considers to be news worthy. Should a picture in the act of death with the shadow of The Reaper clearly stained into the films emotion be shown to the masses or should the privacy of the human mind and dis-involved ignorance of humanity take hold over what is acceptable when viewing the realities of the world. There are key reasons why it is necessary to show photographs of this nature which are as follows to wake up the world to realities, to invoke the heart. Ephron’s essay is very well written in the way it goes to wake up the viewer to…

    • 767 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    1. Amber-Dawn Bear Robe reflects on how photography conducted by settlers and missionaries was historically used to “assimilate, objectify, and control,” and as such functioned as a “tool of colonial oppression.” Reflect on how photographic imagery can convey a political message (think about frame, arrangement, and use). Consider how the examples in Bear Robe’s article use the medium of photography to respond to this problem. Photographic imagery has the ability to strongly impact human perception of the political ideologies they contain or that are later attached to them by third parties.…

    • 1623 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Media, in the forms of photography, film, and writing are similar in that they often reveal a particular message, or comment on a societal aspect. For some, these messages may be underlying, while in others, they are evident and transparent. This idea helps distinguishes differences in media. Photography is widely open for interpretation. In the case of Errol Morris’ “Will the Real Hooded Man Please Stand Up?”…

    • 1913 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The three photographers took a radical approach to documentary photography that was unlike traditional documentary photography. Rather than use their camera to expose what was wrong in the world with the intent that it would evoke action be taken to fix it, they used their camera to take a look at a world that was interesting, a world that did need fixing, but rather understanding. In fact John Szarkowski, the director of photography at the Museum of Modern Art, who curated the exhibit said of the trio in a press release at the time: “In the past decade this new generation of photographers has redirected the technique and aesthetic of documentary photography to more personal ends. Their aim has been not to reform life but to know it, not to persuade but to understand. The world, in spite of its terrors, is approached as the ultimate source of wonder and fascination, no less precious for being irrational and incoherent.”…

    • 1041 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Combining a sad scenario with a positive and overused expression, CRS finds an effective way to persuade and encourage the audience to get out from behind the screen and become active and volunteer. CRS photography two main elements have been overdramatized; this accurate picture has a strong impact on the audience. Knowing the natural reaction of a human being, CRS appeals to its audience by portraying a young girl in danger as the main element of the picture. This action drags the viewer attention to the center of the picture, where the audience can see the girl…

    • 711 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Standing for the national anthem is merely an obligation for some while others symbolize and associate it with the sacrifices of the lives lost men and women in service, have put in creating the country we live in. As for Colin Kaepernick, the quarterback of the 49ers, standing for the national anthem represents the idea that the individual takes pride in their country. And, so, Kaepernick chose to “take a stand by kneeling” (Witts) to express his beliefs, create awareness, and protest (Fig. 1). However, his message was misinterpreted by many viewers and took it as him disrespecting veterans and their service to this country. This misinterpretation can be explained by Stuart Hall’s circuit model, a cycle that starts with production and continues to circulation, consumption, and reproduction.…

    • 1489 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Annotated Bibliography "Dakota Access Pipeline. " Congressional Digest, vol. 95, no. 10, Dec. 2016, p. 12. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.scottsdalecc.edu:2443/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=119547116&site=ehost-live. Congressional Digest, a Pro and Con scholarly independent publication, summaries Senator Bernie Sanders (VT-I) attempts to slow the development of the Dakota Access Pipeline; He attempted to slow the progress by adding an amendment to a water project bill.…

    • 1328 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    . While Hedges presents some great points in his essay, I feel that because of his over-generalization of America, he has completely neglected those individuals who are not in a trance. There are some individuals who are educated enough to detach themselves from what they are exposed to in the media.…

    • 327 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Trayvon Martin was a 17-year-old boy who was walking back to his father’s house when he was gunned down by George Zimmerman, who thought the Martin looked “suspicious.” Zimmerman wasn’t charged for his actions. This is said to be what sparked the movement, Black Lives Matter. Black Lives Matter is about fighting for the lives of African-Americans, and getting justice for those they have lost.…

    • 265 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Jim Crow Era

    • 1207 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The Jim Crow era was an approach that concerned formalism, racism, and critical race issues (Godsil 2006). Various aspects of court cases regarding the common law nuisance doctrine and reviews of state court rulings against Caucasian plaintiffs who were attempting to utilize the principle to obtain residential segregation (Godsil 2006). The diverse perspective into the historical assumption that during the Jim Crow era illustrates courts were, in fact, in favor of white supremacy and blacks were unworthy of legal protection due to their dispositions in society (Godsil 2006). The historical detail regarding the Jim Crow Laws is recounted providing an overview of southern judges in a battle of conscious between their allegiance to the law and…

    • 1207 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Media has been so rampantly incorporated into everyday life that it is difficult for one to escape its reaches. As the power of the media grows, so does its effects on daily life and social behavior. Although some of the effects do benefit society as a whole, many do the exact opposite. One such capability of media is its ability to flood the population with a constant flow of images. In his essay, Supersaturation, or, “The Media Torrent and Disposable Feeling”, Todd Gitlin addresses the issue of the alarming speed at which media is taking over the lives of the population.…

    • 1270 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The paradoxical role of photography in contemporary life is explored by Teju Cole in his essay “Memories of Things Unseen.” When a photograph is the last trace we have of a destroyed work of art, it becomes something more, or so it seems. Photography in its purest form is simply a method of storytelling without the need for words. Many factors go into taking a photo. You don't simply take a photo using just your eyes, but rather with your emotions, experience, and heart.…

    • 950 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Police Brutality Shootings

    • 1096 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The effect along with the creation of the photograph can transform while bearing witness”. Although I agree with this view, it is difficult to associate beauty to the horrific scenes of police shooting black people. Not only are the shootings depicting the blatant racism and discrimination in this country, there is the fact that less than one percent…

    • 1096 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Photography has always been very important in our world history,it has in the past and will be in the future. It is an important way of documentation of the human life. It documents our people, events, and feelings by capturing that moment in time forever for anyone else who may come across the photo. ”Looking back, documentary photography has made waves of impact as a method of truth-telling in difficult times, a way of exposing disturbing scenes to raise awareness of things like poverty and famine, to ultimately reshape the public’s opinion on government policies that were often the direct cause”(Markert 3).Photography has made a bigger impact on human life than many people may believe, the reason being that the change that it has made is over…

    • 1477 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays