WP1 rough draft

My photo was taken in the year 1940 by Marion Wolcott. It depicts two boys fishing in a bayou in Shriever, Louisiana. When looked through a rhetorical lens, one can truly break down all the elements in the photograph. By using a Historical context, one will see the argument of peace, freedom, and hope in hard times. Once you apply the rhetorical techniques such as, cropping, vectors of attention, the photos arrangement and logos, and last but not least ethos, it will be clear the author’s overall theme of peace, hope, and freedom in a tough time historically.

The vectors of attention are depicted by Compose Design Advocate as a way to direct your attention to a certain spot by the way the people-or objects-are arranged in the photograph. In this particular photograph the two boys have their attention on the bayou. This arrangement directs the viewer’s attention to that of the bayou. This example of logos in the photograph inspires ethos and pathos in the viewer. The boys looking at the bayou brings up a mysterious even scary feeling to the bayou. Like the boys are not supposed to venture out into the bayou the arrangement of the bayou makes it almost overwhelming in this situation.

When you look at this picture with a historical context, the statement of hope, freedom, and peace become extremely apparent in this situation. During this time and age, Louisiana and the rest of the world was trying to cope with World War II. Many people left Louisiana to pursue jobs that were abundant in many other areas. Many Americans where fighting overseas in the Second World War. When you look at the photograph, the lighting in the picture inspires the feeling of hope. You look at where the lighting is most abundant, and it is over the children.

It is almost like they are being shown upon from a higher power. This inspires that feeling of hope, and peace. Given the darkness and unknown of the bayou it almost like the darkness and chaos that is going on during the war. The boys are representing the hope that America has back home. If you also look at the historical context of the picture, you will notice the boys are not necessarily dressed to impress.

This tells you a little bit about the boy’s financial situation at the time. During that time, overalls and sun hats would have been a very popular dress for young boys. This reminds of the story of Huckleberry Fin because of this style of dress. They are sitting on a tire for some sort of car, which makes me question if they can afford a nice chair to sit on at the bayou. The boys’ close do not look that well off and this brings up a contradictory point that this photograph can make. Instead of the Bayou being evil and something that boys should stay away from, it could be interpreted as the exact opposite. One could see this bayou being the vast unknown that the boys need to venture into. It might be scary and vast, but to change their current fortune, they need to take some chances and venture off into the unknown. There is also that element of the old tree that looks almost dead. This element can represent something that the boys are trying to run away from. They are looking forward into the unknown so that they can escape that which is behind them.

The style of this photograph brings up a sense of peace and tranquility emotionally. If you look at the picture overall and do some cropping you will see that there is nothing in the photograph that will make one believe anything bad is going to happen in the photograph. The process of cropping is to take each of the elements in the photograph and look at them individually. When I do this I notice the peace and the tranquility of every element. First of all take the boys who are sitting near the edge of the bayou. They both have their back turned and one is sitting down. The other has his hands on the fishing pole just relaxing and fishing. Looking at the boy’s clothes and posture there doesn’t seem to be any wind or negative weather that would ruin their fun.

Another element would have to be the bayou. When I crop the bayou and take under closer examination, I notice how calm it is. It actually looks like that of glass and barely has a ripple. The other element, the tree, this is tree is actually contradictory to my point of peace. It looks old and almost dead. It acts as almost an incentive to focus on the peace that is going on everywhere around them.

The brightness and hue of the photograph are other key elements of the photograph that solidifies my main theme. First of the all the brightness of the photograph really adds to the logos and the visual higharcy. Because of the light being in the position that it was in, it drew my attention to the two boys first as opposed to anything else. This also reiterates my statement of the boys looking like they are being shown upon. If you look at the photograph, everywhere is pretty much in the shadows except for the two boys. This brings me back to my point of peace in the war time. The light also plays into that mystery surrounding the bayou.

They bayou itself is in some extreme shadows. This brings me back to my point that it is the unknown that the boys must have to face some day. The brightness also plays a big part with the hue and the peacefulness of the photograph. If you look at the colors of the boys clothes, they are very vivid and bright. The sunhats that they are wearing really stand out in the light that is shone from the sun. If you also look up at the tree, there is also a lot of light and an abundance of color with the leaves in the tree. This adds to that calming effect that I get when I look at the video. It is almost like they want you to forget about what is going on here historically and to focus on more of a simpler time.

In the end it is clear that this photograph embodies the purpose of peace, hope, and freedom during a tough time. It uses the unique arrangement in inspire a great sense of pathos. It also uses many different rhetoric terms to solidly its argument and states its purpose. It usage of brightness and hue also play a huge part in the overall ethos and logos of the photograph. Its key elements solidify its argument, and it is argument of peace, hope, and freedom during a tough time in history is stated flawlessly.

WP1: Statement of Purpose

As a writer there are a lot of things I must do to achieve a solid statement of purpose. There are a lot of responsibilities one has to their audience. I also must consider the context and state of mind someone might be reading my piece. There are a lot of situations I need to take into consideration, such as what good and what bad can come out of my statement of purpose. After I have taken all this into consideration, I have to decide to make my statement of purpose as following. I think the picture is trying to depict one of happiness in and otherwise troubling time and I want my audience to feel the same way.
As a writer I have many responsibilities I must fulfill. I need to leave some things up for debate. I can’t treat the audiences like inferior beings. I think I can do a good job with this considering my statement of purpose. I think that my statement is highly debatable and I will make sure to state that there are multiple angles one can view this from. When thinking of my audience I want to make sure that they can relate to what I am talking about. Since my photo has people fishing, it will also appeal to people who like to fish.
That’s why am talking about war and chaos, and separating one’s self from such situations. I think we can all relate to this. War is a troubling time and takes a toll on all that who is involved. I want to state that the boys are separating themselves from all the chaos that is going on in the U.S. and overseas. They want to get away from all the hustle and bustle and just relax. There are many times in our own life that we all want to do the same. I think in this case I can defiantly relate to my audience not matter who they are.
In terms of context, I think that most people will be reading this in the comfort of their own living quarters or in a computer lab. I think this definitely works to my advantage. They are already in a comfortable spot and in a relaxed area. I think at that point in time they can think about how they are getting away from their own troubles and turmoil’s, while they are reading my writing.
There are many good things that can come from this statement of purpose and my final draft of my project. Besides the fact that I can get an A on the project, I can also enrich the rest of my pieces of writing throughout college. I can learn a lot about the writing process and rhetoric process. I can also make someone think and enjoy my writing. I can also get some satisfaction from creating a solid piece of writing.
I have also taken into consideration all the things that could possible go wrong with my statement of purpose. If I do a bad job then I could get an F on the project. Also because my photo deals with war, it can bring up a painful time in someone’s life. There are a lot of people who have family who have fought in wars so bringing up something such as war can be very painful.
In the end I think I have a solid grasp on my statement of purpose. I fully understand all the responsibilities that I have to have for my audience. I understand what can go wrong, and also all the things that can go right with my statement of purpose. In the end I think I have formulated a solid statement of purpose that will aid me with my project.

Pre-writing Assingment 3

After I did some actual research on my photo, I have noticed many things that are wrong with my first preconceived notions. I learned a lot about the economy at that time, and a lot about the way people lived. My notions of Louisiana being a mostly poor state with fewer advantages than other places couldn’t have been more far off. I glad I did this research because it has definitely has shed new light on my photo and given me more background information about what agreement my photo is really trying to make.
When I first thought of Louisiana, I thought it was mostly a poor state especially during war times. I couldn’t have been more wrong. According to the Journal of Southern History, Louisiana was flooded with new people into the states with job opportunities. These job opportunities where open to all walks of life and that was really surprising to me. I had originally thought that most of the jobs would have gone to other places, and that a lot of people at that time would have went overseas and found in the war. I also learned that a lot of workers decided to work in California. Even though a lot of people left, I can see how this would open up jobs for people after The Great Depression.
I also learned a lot about the state during the great depression. Governor Huey Long created a lot of job opportunities and increased white suffrage and education in the state of Louisiana. This puts to rest another one of my misconceptions. I thought that a lot of people in the south did not have the recourses to have a solid education. I thought that the boys because of how they dressed would not have a solid education.
After all my research, I have now been educated about the time and have new considerations to my photograph. I have learned that the boys are not uneducated. I had learned that the boys in my photo where fishing near a school. So this leads me to believe that they were actually enrolled in school, rather that they were relaxing after a long day of school by fishing in the bayou across the way. I also learned a lot about the economy from that time period. The people there where filled with multiple job opportunities because of the current war. So I think that the reason the boys where clothed so poorly was their choice. I think that since they were participating in an activity such as fishing, they were wearing some dingy clothing so they don’t get their nice cloths dirty.
I no longer think that the photographer was trying to depict this scene as one of poverty and people who are not well off. I think that she wanted to shine a light on hope in America where there was war and suffering across seas. I think that she wanted people to see a quiet relaxed scene, and add peace to a horrific time. In the end, I have learned a lot through my research to help me come up with many new notions about my photograph.

Works citied:

"History of Louisiana".Sept 30 2009<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Louisiana>

Boles, John.Journal of Southern History.Pennslyvania:Sheridan Press, August 1989

Pre writting assignment 2

My photograph has a good amount of technical aspects to it. First of all I would like to talk about the placement of the two boys. They are not necessary like the middle of the photo. The boys are without a doubt the vocal point of the photograph. They are placed in the right corner. This makes me believe that the photographer wants you to not only notice the two boys fishing, but she also wants you to take in the beauty of the Louisiana Bayou. This arrangement differently inflicts pathos upon me. When I see the scenery, it makes me feel calm and relaxed. The vectors of attention are unique in this photograph. Both of the boys that are in the photograph are looking at the lake and focusing on fishing. It is like they have no clue that they are even being photographed.
I like the style of pictures where the people do not know that they are being photographed. I think then you can really get the true emotion and feeling of the person at that moment. I like that style and ethos and think my photo does a good job of embodying it. I also get some sort of felling of mystery with the arrangement. Since the photographer decides not to include the faces of the people being photographed, I can’t see what they look like or what kind of emotion they have at the time. This adds some sort of mystery and curiosity to the photograph in my opinion.
I and curious to what these boys look like and what kind of emotion if any they have at that certain time. This also gets me a little angry. It is frustrating that she would leave the boys actual faces out of the picture all together. My photographer does a very good job with the lighting in the picture. I like how she has the main light on the boys who are fishing. This adds to the logos of the photo with the visual higharcy. It draws my attention to the boys first because of the lighting situation. It also evokes an emotion of relaxation for me.
I like how she has the bayou and the whole picture not to incorporate that much light. The most light is on the boys themselves, and then it is relatively dark and shadowed. This makes the picture look very calm and relaxing. When I look closer at the photo, using the cropping technique I really get more attached to the people in the photo. By looking closer you can tell these boys aren’t exactly well off. They both don’t have shoes and are using what looks like a homemade fishing pole. Their close look old and worn especially their sunhats. This establishes more pathos in the photograph. You get a great deal of sympathy for the boys and wish that they could be better off. I think in the end it is clear through techniques used to analyze photographs, you find a lot of other rhetorical elements.

For my photograph I decided to choose one that was taken by Marion Post Walcott. The image depicts two boys fishing down on the bank of a bayou. It was take in Schriever Louisiana in 1940. The two boys are facing the bayou and not looking at the person taking the picture. I would have to guess that these boys are friends, maybe even brothers. The boys are probably in elementary school, and the title says that they are near a school. This makes me think that they boys have probably just got out of school and have started to have fun for the day.
The banks of the bayou are slopped and there are a lot of trees in the area. I think this place is probably a pretty quiet place. I think that this is a spot that these boys would regularly go there after their class to relax and fish. The boys do not have shoes on and are wearing old overalls, shirts and sun hats. This makes me think that they are probably not that well off. I think they live very simple lives. I think that they are probably not the well educated and are fairly simple. The boys probably live everyday without a care in the world. The dress attire reminds of Huck Fin, so I’d like to imagine that they are somewhat mischievous and like to have fun.
They are also fishing under a tree in the shade. This and the sun hat makes me think that it is hot outside and they are fishing in the shade to get away from the heat. I think the people who live there are a simple people. I think they live their lives day to day without a lot of worry. I also think they do a lot of fishing and use that to make a living. Whenever I think of the Deep South and Louisiana I think of swampland and wooden houses in the swamp. I also think of banjos and folk music. So I’d like to think that the people in this area like to listen to folk music and live in wooden cabin like houses.
I think the people spend a lot of time not only hunting and fishing for food, but also for recreation. I think the people of this are pretty relaxed. I’d have to think that they have strong values and daily routines and do not like to trail away from them. The scenery and lighting make me feel relaxed. The low lighting and calm water are settling. I also find fishing to be really relaxing. I like to fish myself so can relate to the kids in the picture.