I took that picture last week end during a horse race in West Virginia. I was sitting behind this father and his son and I suddenly realized that it was the picture I wanted for my work. Not only the boy was dressed exactly the same as his father was and they were looking in the same direction, but the kid was also imitating the posture of his father.They are from back first because I didn't really wanted to ask them to pose for me. And then, the picture was perfect at that moment. Thanks to the sun, the colors were good; I had the lines of the barrier and of the bank to give this idea of "continuity". I mean they symbolize the norm, the society. So, I just had to move a little bit from my place to be right behind them because I wanted them in the midle: the focusing point of the picture.Moreover, taking the picture from behind, I was keeping them anonymous. But it was also a way to make them just be "a father and his son". In other words, they represent a whole phenomenon: "the socialization of gender in children" that is, the way peers and society influenced children. Both are good examples of the way society has an impact on kids. The father dressed his son just like him -- with a pair of jeans, a skirt with lines, a leather belt and santiags -- to make his son being a "small man". But in the same time, the kid is imitating is father thanks to his gesture, trying to look like a man. Is it impossible just to be "a kid" ?
3 comments:
I like this picture a lot. Having the picture taken from behind and not staged is what does it for me. Its a real time picture. Its not fake. People aren't posing to look a certain way, they actually stand/sit like that. I like how the boy even has his arm strung over the back of the bench the same way his father does. It really does show how young boys and girls tend to portray characteristics of they fathers and mothers (respectively). Even appearances show gender socialization in children. Go to any sports event and most of the children will be wearing the same jersey that their dad has on. As far as lighting and background go, I don't think either help or hurt this picture. The location that the picture was shot from is a nice touch but the trees and light in the background I think are irrelavant. The only way I think background could have improved the photo is if it had been shot at something deemed as a more "masculine" event, such as a football game or a boxing match. But overall I think this is a great picture.
This is a true photo. How a son spends time with their father and how they will turn out alot like them because that is who they learn from mainly. Boys are mainly with dad just as girls are mainly with mom. They start learning their gender young and even younger.
I like this picture, and the title especially. It can also be used to show what fathers pass down to their sons as they get older. They pass on what they consider to be masculine,such as the way they sit, and what they are supposed to wear. I also like how this is at a sporting event because it seems like this is a common place where fathers take their sons to bond.
Post a Comment