In this photograph is my 15-year-old brother. He's shooting his beloved "air pistol" at a target that he drew himself. The first gift he was given before he was even born was a rifle from my grandfather. He has always been around guns. My father takes him shooting at shooting ranges and teaches him how to make bullets. He's received some type of gun, whether it be real or toy, for Christmas every year. This photo represents a couple of things. The obvious would be that my brother has an interest in guns, thanks to the men in my family. The second representation is the target that he drew for himself hanging on the wall. He isn't just shooting the gun around aimlessly. He is trying to improve his aiming skills, where he will put them to the test at the shooting range. The fact that the photo was taken off to the side and behind him represents the photographer as trying to step into his world of targeting and shooting. Besides the toy and real guns that my brother handles, he also adores and spends hours upon hours playing his Xbox 360. The games that he plays all involve him as being the shooter. Whenever he gets angry or upset (which happens a lot at his age) he goes down into his room and either shoots his air pistol at crickets or plays his Xbox 360. This to me seems kind of dangerous in a sense. He is blowing off steam by shooting things, and that demonstrates violence. Most violent crimes are committed by men. However, just because he is taking an interest in guns and shooting, does not mean he will grow up to be violent towards anyone or anything. It is simply an observation.
4 comments:
I think this a really good picture because it shows the pressure that guys have to be tough and masculine. Sometimes the media portrays masculinity with violence, and guns. In a way, its the way they feel like they are truly a man. Which makes you think....how exactly is it that we meassure a man?
I really like the angle of this photo. It shows how important the tough guy image is. Even this teenager feels the pressures of the outside world enough to try and fit in. Though this air soft gun could one day turn to a real gun, which is very scary since we all know that guns almost always end in violence.
I really liked this picture because it shows the brother with the "tough guy" characteristic. He has formed a love for guns and violence through his family, and this is how he will deal with his anger through out life. I have heard from many men that going to the shooting range is quite a stress reliever, but that is pretty scary to think about.
This picture is a good representation of how violence is becoming part of the norm for males. In movies and television shows violence is more predominant than it has ever been. However women are still shown as passive and "damsels in distress". This picture shows how this violence in the media is affecting young adults in our society.
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