Using Dorothea Lange's Photography To Portray The Great Depression

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Sarah Wieckhorst Eng 110- Professor Origer October 25, 2012 Dorothea Lange was well known for her photographs that portray the Great Depression era. Lange’s photographs lead to her employment with FSA or Farm Security Administration, which was a program to help defeat poverty in the rural areas. The photo I chose is called “Migrant Mother,” one of her most known photographs. It was taken in Nipomo, California during the year 1930. The reasoning behind Lange’s photographs was to show people of the United States how other people were suffering and what they were going through just to survive. The photograph is a black and white photo that shows a mother and her two children sitting together. Although you cannot see what is going on…show more content…
The lack of color in the picture is one way to portray a feeling of sadness. When someone thinks of sadness it is usually paired with the color of greys, blacks and whites. The gloomy colors in the picture help depict the depression that the mother could be feeling by not being able to provide necessities for her children. There is a silence portrayed by the mother and her two children in this photograph that also help to show the emotions that they might be feeling at this time. Even though the mother and the children are the main focus of this picture, you notice the sadness and worry on the mothers face first while her children’s heads are turned away from the camera. The silence created by the children’s bodies and faces help with the feeling of despair and worry in the picture. During the Great Depression many people suffered from poverty. Although we do not hear about poverty issues to this extent anymore, it still continues to happen around us. Many people suffer from loss of a job or traumatic experiences in their life. If Dorothea Lange were still alive, I’m sure she would use her photography to remind us of the poverty and suffering that continues around the

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