The Black And White Crowing Of An Old Man's Memories

On their journey to pay homage to their ancestral grave, a young girl took a picture of her grandfather walking up a wooded trail. She notes in her online journal that she is brought to tears every time she looks at this photograph; alternately, it is merely a photograph that brings about this sharp emotion. It is merely an inanimate object that provokes a granddaughter to tears. Yet, it is the same inanimate object that has the potential to elicit emotion when seen by complete strangers. An inherent frailty of humanity in comparison to nature is felt when an old man is juxtaposed black-and-white onto a wooded setting.

On his trip to visit his ancestors, an old man has his photograph taken. However, without this background knowledge, most viewers are left to examine the picture from a stranger's perspective. In Beauty (Re)discovers the Male Body, Susan Bordo talks about how the relaxed posture made by male models carries out the message of males wanting to be viewed as "Mr. Take Me":

"Ð'...these bodies are almost always reclining, leaning against, or propped up against something in the fashion typical of women's bodiesÐ'...A recent Calvin Klein "Escape" ad depicts a young, sensuous looking man leaning against a wall, arm raised, dark underarm hair exposed. His eyes seek out the imagined viewer, soberly but flirtatiously. "Take Me," the copy reads" (Bordo 343).

Likewise, the slouched posture of the old man gives out the message that he is weak and vulnerable. His posture is hunched and his hands are clasped together behind him, suggesting old age and frailty, and the way his body is leaning forwards and the position of his left feet show that he is walking uphill. Bordo also expresses that the modern viewer views the world with a bias based on the latest fashion trends. Based on this contemporary fashion bias, his loose, old-fashioned suit conveys an impression that he is very traditional. A more logical observation may occur for some viewers. Although he is the main subject of this photograph, the old man is placed near the lower right hand corner of the photograph. Rather than taking the center of the photograph, the old man seems to be given a secondary role when pertaining to content. This is implying that the wooded setting that the subject is placed in has a near equivocal value as the subject himself.

On his walk to visit his ancestors, an old man nears to a wooded grove. Yet, without the old man, a wooded setting would be the entirety of this photograph. The foreground of the photograph consists of wispy, light-colored tall grass. The background is made up of tall pine trees in a darker hue than the rest of the photograph. A pathway splits down the middle of the photograph, winding into the woods. The path consists of a mixture of dirt and trampled grass. Due to the photograph's color composition, there is a degree of contrast in any of these items The photograph is taken in black and white, which, according to George Schaub, is able to display "great tonal and textural play, a wide variety of available expressive renditions and an image