At first glance, this picture of the Greensboro sit-in
wouldn’t seem like a huge deal. To southerners of the 1960s, however, this
meant change was upon them. Most people of the time knew that blacks could not
be served at the Woolworth Co. counter seats; so when they saw a photo of four
black men siting at the counter they would immediately know something was off. When
looking for ethos in a photograph, the main source is the photographer. Jack
Moebes, a white southerner, captured the only picture of the first day of the
sit-in. Quite obviously, white people during this time were thought of as knowledgeable.
Smarts aside, a white man of the 60s would most likely be seen as a trustworthy
individual. In contrast, black people of the south were not respected in the
60s. So when the public saw this photo, rather than seeing the sit-in as a good
protest, they would see it through the “southern,
white man’s eyes” as that was who took the photo. This picture would be viewed as a wrongful, unjust protest.
-Christina Atchison
Very good point. It was good to include the importance of the person who took the photo and the effect he had on the message of the picture.
ReplyDeleteI really like the different view you took on this. It's amazing how different the effect of the photo would have had if it was taken by a black man or if the audience was African- Americans.
ReplyDeleteEmily Camardo
Are you using the article accompanying the image for your analysis? If so I don't really see what you're saying about it being cast in a negative light. The article is rather objective and even includes some positive things about the students. Maybe the photographer had other ideas, but the reporter seems to respect the students' actions.
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