Woman With Folded Arms Rhetorical Analysis Essay

Picasso’s “Femme aux Bras Croisés” (1902), meaning “Woman with Folded Arms”, depicts a seemingly depressed middle-aged woman crouching on the ground, with folded arms and a solemn stare. The entire piece is painted in blue tones with darker shades of blue in the background to allow more emphasis on its focal point, the woman, who is painted in lighter shades. A limited amount of color is displayed throughout the portrait, but the same blotchy painting pattern encompasses everything except the woman’s face. The sharper details of her face catch the viewers’ eye while everything else looks out of focus. Perhaps the most significant aspect of the portrait is how it closes up on the woman, showing mostly her upper body with only a dark blue shadowy wall behind her. With an up-close focus on the woman, each detail that evokes sadness is clearly shown. Along with the shadows in the background, the woman’s face and body are outlined with thick black indistinct lines, adding even more to the darkness. The closeness of the portrait clearly shows her heavy eyes, short brown messy hair, and the dull white evening gown she wears. She …show more content…
She crouches down, making herself small, suggesting her desire to be alone and hidden away from her problems. She also slouches and sits without any proper posture whatsoever, which makes it seem as though she genuinely does not care about anything anymore and just wants to linger in sadness. She folds her arms making herself even smaller and closed off from whatever is causing her to suffer dejection. Her negative body language perfectly expresses how much she’s been through. She may want to stay there and linger but her body language also suggests a longing to escape. As she faces away, she ignores us in a careless and despondent, yet miserable way. She hides and closes herself off but never escapes her own haunting and overpowering