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October 24, 2005
Bell Hooks' Intensity and Passion
I was struck by many aspects of Bell Hook's essay. Most notably was when she began to write about her father's image that her sister cherished above all else. She writes, "Standing before snapshot, I came closer to the cold, distant, dark man who is my father, closer than I can ever come in real life" and "although my sisters and I look at this snapshot and see the same man, we do not see him in the same way." I began to reflect on these two lines after Ellen's class last week where we were forced to ponder on the photography and if photography actually helps us to remember certain people or certain places, or if it hinders our memory. I said, in class, that many times, pictures give us this false sense of reality and of the truth, which is definitely addressed in Bell Hook's essay. She writes that the man in the picture is completely different from her own image of him; his personality, demeanor, and way of life. I analyzed the picture of her father and determined that this man was joyous and elated. He seems as though he is carefree and "suave". Bell Hooks has this same feeling, yet she knows the truth. And yet, even though her sisters know the truth as well, they all have differing views of him. Their experiences with this man have formed their own ideas about their father. I just found this intriguing that we had just been discussing this topic in class, and automatically, Bell Hooks describes it perfectly.
I was also amazed at how Bell Hooks describes her early disatisfaction with cameras. She voices her frustration in such a unique way. "I hated it. I hated posing. I hated cameras. I hated the images that cameras produced. When I stopped living at home, I refused to be captured by anyone's camera. I did not wish to document my life, the changes, the presence of different places, people, and so on. I wanted to leave no trace. I wanted there to be no walls in my life that would, like gigantic maps, chart my journey. I wanted to stand outside history." How powerful and ironic! Here, she discusses her hatred for photography, and then again, she writes this entire essay based around one photograph. It is absolutely fascinating to me that this intense dislike for photography (because of one person) developped into a career and a passion. -Christina
Posted by lcisgancarz at October 24, 2005 11:49 PM