Power and Resistance Through Photography

For my close reading inquiry, I decided to use 2 photographs. The first photo that I used is one that I am very fond of. I loved that this picture told a story, but it was simultaneously realistic and compelling. The photo was taken in Hong Kong, and is titled “Hard Work in Hong Kong.” The picture shows 4 businessmen getting their shoes shined by some poor- looking men who are wearing dirty, ratted clothing. The reading inquiry I was guided by in my close reading of the photographs was: “How do photographs display power and resistance realistically?”

            “Hard Work in Hong Kong” clearly displays the ides of superior power for people of middle and upper class over those in the lower class. I don’t think that the businessmen in the photo are meaning to look so superior to the shoe-shiners, but with one foot on a stool and a poor man leaning over their shiny black loafers, the photo has a natural depiction of dominance. This shows the power in the situation, but there is no resistance in the picture.

            My second picture is by a photographer named Mads Nissen. Nissen captures photos that tell the stories of world issues right now. In one set of 12 photos that all tell the story of homophobia in Russia right now. The photo that I picked is of a man in his 20s or 30s who is being roughly escorted by Russian soldiers. The man grips a rainbow flag tightly and wears a shirt with a large pink triangle on it that most likely demonstrate that he is resisting the homophobia of many religious and neo-nazi groups that strike violence on the LGBTQ community. I couldn’t help but notice one soldier wears a special patch that says “HOMO” as if there is a special branch of soldiers who need to contain protesters. The fact that there are so many protesters and that they are being contained by soldiers, makes me wonder which side really has more power? I think that when the State Duma established a law banning “propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations, they thought they had more power, but this picture makes me realize that there is so much resistance, the resistors are getting more power!

            These are both real photos, so I can say for sure that these are real-life situations. However, I think that photography in this style is formatted so that the issue is exaggerated , because that is generally the best way to realistically display the problem. In both these pictures and the world, it can be difficult to tell who has more power in a fight or war. Sometimes, too much resistance drains you of you power, but in other situations, it can give you more power than the enemy. By closely reading these photos, I was able to learn not only about capturing power and resistance through photography, but also how it can be done without words. After all, a picture tell 1,000 words!

Photo #1

Photo #2