Step 4: Perspective and Context (What view does it model for me?)
In addition to questions about how a text composes its subject are questions about the perspective it models and the context it provides. Considering these questions allows you to see more directly the particular response this text wants from you. To get this work underway, here are some questions you might consider:
- Why is the figure of the man depicted in the foreground?
- How does this compare to the ways the subway passengers are presented in the background?
- Why do you think the photographer chooses to include details of the larger setting?
- How does this affect the way you view and think about this figure?
- What does the angle of the camera tell you about the photographer’s relationship to the man
- What might the man be thinking
Here’s what I think about the perspective this photo models:
Here’s what I think about the context in which the photo places its subject:
