Blog #1
Wing Young Huie, Still Life 2014, http://goo.gl/z4bkpH
This photograph has the setting of a store as the subject(s) for this picture is syrup, and its many different brands. We have Aunt Jemima's and its many sub brands/flavor, Karo dark and light corn syrup, Hungry Jack, Country Rich, Swedish Pancake mix, and different brands of molasses slightly cut off by the picture. The black and white of the photograph adds an aging affect to the picture and more of a familiar feeling to the viewer as though they have seen this before.When looking at the main focus of the picture, syrup, a craving inside arises to eat and enjoy delicious pancakes with warm syrup on top of it.
However when really looking at the photo the life and deliciousness of the photo begins to drain out like the color, as the purpose of this photo begins to sink in. The purpose being to show different classes and groups and othering created in a society in this case represented by syrup bottles and their brands. The syrup bottles are categorized by their labels, and as others come to buy/view these bottles of syrup they are categorizing each brand by its supremacy and hierarchy in the syrup world. Most people will buy the most popular brand, and others the less expensive type of syrup. Without realizing people use othering and alienate different groups of syrup based on societal understandings of their taste and type, people also do this and real life along with The Handmaid's Tale.
In The Handmaid's Tale, Atwood uses othering to alienate different groups of people and uses social classes to define a persons role in society along with their power. In the Gilead your job/social class is who you are and referred to as, an example being the Commander, or the Commander's Wife. The Gilead society shuns all "sterile" women, who can't have children and are put into a group labeled as the unwomen. This is one example of othering that Atwood uses in her text along with her placement of social classes in the Gilead that associate with power. This idea corresponds and relates to Wing Young Huie;s photograph of syrup analyzed previously. Both texts relate labels to power, as Aunt Jemima's is ranked high in the syrup world as the most popular brand, and that label holds weight and there is power to it because more people will buy that brand of syrup, due to its name brand. This has a clear resemblance to The Handmaid's Tale, as the role/label of Commander holds great power in society and he who wears that position controls those inferior to his title.
Another connection from Huie's photograph to the book, would be that the more popular brands of syrup, or you could even say the syrup that is higher up in society holds more weight so it is more expensive. So because the Aunt Jemima syrup is the most popular brand it gets rewarded with being the most expensive one. Just like in the book the Commander is the highest role/social class in Gilead so he gets rewarded in a plethora of ways. As you can see Huie's photpgraph of syrup had a much deeper significance than you would first think, but digging into it you bring out themes of othering and definition by social classes that correlate to The Handmaid's Tale.
Some really deep connections that require a lot of thought were made here, many that I probably would not have made myself. I really like association discussed in this blog post of power with money, or reward. The syrup brands that are more popular, have more "power" in the syrup-world in a sense. Therefore, they make more money than syrup brands that might have delicious syrup, but that simply are not well-known. This is very similar to the Commander in The Handmaid's Tale for he has a lot of power in Gilead and as a result, he is rewarded much more than Offred, for example. Great connections, Cameron :)
ReplyDeleteHey Cameron-
ReplyDeleteGreat response/analysis- it was well organized and "reader friendly".
What other ideas might Huie be presenting in this photograph? It's interesting that you thought it was a reflection of power; Anna Claire looked at it in terms of race.
I really enjoyed reading your response to this photograph, especially as I gained some perspective on the it that I would not have had before. I liked your idea of categorizing classes kind of like we categorize syrup brands. There are some syrup brands that are more expensive or desirable than others - possibly a connection to the upper class in societies. I also liked your connection to the Commander and how he was the highest status, similar to Aunt Jemima. :)
ReplyDeleteI really like how you related the types of syrup to class and power, as that is not the perspective that I first took when looking at the picture. You reflected back to the Handmaid's Tale well with great examples, especially when you related back to how some brands hold more power than others. This blog is really easy to understand and follow along with, good job Cam (:
ReplyDeleteCameron, I enjoyed how you made a comparison between the othering of syrup brands that were not Aunt Jemima's, and the othering of the sterile women in The Handmaid's Tale. I think this comparison was very effective in exemplifying the societal practices of categorizing individuals in The Handmaid's Tale. Furthermore, the analysis you provided connecting the lack of color in the photograph to the viewers personal emotions provides a different perspective on how power plays into "syrup hierarchy," and the social hierarchy in The Handmaid's Tale. Great job!
ReplyDelete