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Ben Miller Visual Rhetoric 2/29/12

Rhetorical Analysis

For this assignment, I chose to analyze some photographs by photographer John Loengard. Loengard was born in 1934 in New York City, and had always enjoyed photography. He said that he’d, “wanted to make flat pictures that had depth; to find a picture by chance, yet have some control over it. (Loengard) ” He attended college at Harvard University and towards the end of his career there, he got his first big break. LIFE magazine had asked him to capture some images of a boat that had run up on the beach and he readily agreed. Since then Loengard has been heavily associated with LIFE; working as their photo editor for many years, and then moving on to work for Time magazine for a short period. Loengard was known for taking intimate photos of celebrities and other important people. In this paper I will be analyzing some of those pictures, because I feel that he took a very interesting approach to some of them. I found these photos on Loengard’s website, http://johnloengard. com/. The first photo I chose was a picture taken of Bill Cosby in 1969. This image is very interesting because of the way Cosby, the focus of the photo, is shrouded in darkness. This could very easily represent the prejudice Cosby may suffer as a result of



his race. Instead of being in the spotlight as he should be, the viewer can barely make out his face. At the time this photo was taken, Cosby’s career would have been taking off and he would have been well recognized by many people. It is interesting then that the photographer chose to shoot Cosby in shadow. Barthes would have us look at this photo to examine the signifieds; to examine the message this picture is attempting to impart to us. This can be dangerous when examining a photo not used for advertisement, because as Barthes says, “If the image contains signs, we can be sure that in advertising these signs are full, formed with a view to the optimum reading. (Barthes)” This says that if the image is not used for advertising, then any signs or signifieds we pick up on could be incidental. The first message would be the linguistic message, or the message communicated through accompanying text. The text that came along with this photo merely said “Bill Cosby, Beverly Hills, California. ” This gives us little to work from, although we can note that Beverly Hills is a very nice community which might give some indication as to Cosby’s current socioeconomic status. The second message is the iconic message, derived from the contents of the photo itself. In this photo we see Cosby, smoking a cigar in front of a well lit wall. Cosby himself seems very at ease, and even stylish. His hair is well kept and he appears to be nicely dressed. The third message consists of the interplay between the different parts of the photo. Cosby seems very comfortable in this environment. He seems almost at home in the shadows. This could be some indication that even though he is a star, he feels a connection to his roots. In his youth, Cosby was forced to work multiple jobs because his family didn’t have much money. This photo could be an interesting dichotomy between his Beverly Hills life and his home life; an acknowledgement of his past.

The second photo I chose to analyze is of Allen Ginsberg. The linguistic and iconic messages in this photo are a bit lacking. The only accompanying text is the name of the subject and in the photo itself we can only see a bit of Ginsberg’s left eye and much of the top of his head, the rest of him is hidden by smoke. We can’t actually see what has produced this smoke, so it could be anything from tobacco to marijuana. The third message is made more interesting by knowing a bit about Ginsberg’s past. Ginsberg’s mother went insane when he was still fairly young, and this had a profound impact on him. “Many people deal with insanity in the family by becoming exaggeratedly normal, but Ginsberg went in the opposite direction. Knowing himself to be basically sane, he embraced bizarreness as a style of life, as if seeking to find the edge his mother had fallen over. (Asher)” After his mother was lobotomized, Ginsberg began throwing himself into the hippy movement in the 60’s. He was a very vocal and prominent proponent of the anti-war movement, speaking out at many events. The fact that he is hidden in this picture is a curious counterpoint to the life he led. It may also be a look inside his head at how he really feels about his fame. His jump into the social scene was largely catalyzed by his mother’s mental illness. It could be that he really just wanted to lead a quiet life, not so much in the spotlight. The third photo I chose to analyze is of the French photographer, Brassai. Brassai was born in Hungary, and initially took a liking to art and sculpting. He later moved to Paris and began taking pictures. His work very quickly became world-renowned and to this day his photographs are still very sought after. The text that came along with this

photo said only, “Brassai’s Eye. ” In the photo itself we see a very close up shot of Brassai, with his index finger and thumb wrapped in a circle around his eye. Again, in this picture we find someone who is very famous being obscured in some way. These three photos, when looked at together, tell a story. Each of these pictures takes a famous person, and then removes their recognizability. When we look at a celebrity, we often assume that they must enjoy the limelight and that they are where they want to be. These pictures could be a look into what these people really want. This might be a metaphor for the two lives they must lead. In one life they appeal to their fans and their audience, playing the role expected of them. In the second, they might actually want to be left alone, or be able to leave the house without being mobbed by fans. These pictures could be a great window into the minds of the subjects. __Works Cited__

Asher, L. (n . d . ). Allen Ginsberg - bio and links. //AMERICAN MUSEUM OF BEAT ART//. Retrieved February 29, 2012, from http://www. beatmuseum. org/ginsberg/AllenGinsberg. html

Barthes, R. (1977) . Rhetoric of the Image .. //Image, Music, Text//, //1//, 32-51.

Loengard, J. (1987) . //Pictures under discussion//. New York: Amphoto .