"Elderly Man and Baby, St Paul, MN"

by: Wing Young Huie on http://photos.wingyounghuie.com

     I chose the photograph "Elderly Man and Baby" for a multitude of reasons. First off, a denotative look at the contents of the photo: An adorable baby, and an adorable Older Man. Both of them are sitting in a chair with wheels attached, and both of them aren't looking at the camera. The background is a rural neighborhood with no real eye-catching points. 

     Through a connotative lens the photo has more to say.Wing Young Huie's is trying to ddemonstrate the generation gap through this photo. The older man is any where from 60-70 years older than the baby, who looks about less than a year old, and was probably raised in a much different fashion than the baby. He has, quite literally, a life time of experience over the baby. Despite these facts they appear to resemble one another in this photo, both relacing in a chair and looking away from the camera. This is a testament to how, despite the generation gap, have at least some things in common. They cannot walk yet, they may not know where they are, and they don't have an a appreciation for photos. 

    Margaret Atwood approaches "othering" in The Handmaid's Tale through language. She created Neologisms that are used by the Gilead government to approach othering. Everyone in society has some kind of label: Haidmands, Unwoman, Angels, Aunts, and Commanders all have a title to their person. A judgement can be made just by hearing someones title. A Commander is in a position of power, an Aunt or Angel are capable of getting someone arrested by the Eyes, and Handmaids are only valuable in the bed. The Gilead society is based upon othering in order to maintain structure.  

     Wing Young Huie takes a different approach to "othtering". He goes out into the world and takes photographs to present examples of othering. This photo, "Elderly Man and Baby", is a perfect demonstration of othering. The two subjects of the photo are complete opposites. A baby experiencing life, and an old man who has plenty of experience. The baby appears to be black and the older man white (even thought it is hard to tell given the photo is in black and white). This difference is emphasized by the direction they are staring. The baby is staring to the right, and the older man is staring to the left. This opposition shows a difference in mind as well as body.