Image Detective: Contextual Analysis

Assignment Prompt

170 Contextual Analysis Prompt

First Draft

Contextual Analysis of  “Military Appraisal at Moscow Trolley Stop” in LIFE magazine

Aryssa Hernandez

20 October 2019

 

During the Red Scare in the 1950s, the Cold War escalated and Americans were hysterical due to the sense of danger they felt from the rise of communism in the Soviet Union. In January 1955, Life published an issue that included a two-part photo essay displaying Henry Cartier-Bresson’s photographs with captions surrounding the “Military Appraisal at Moscow Trolley Stop” as the front cover. The publication of Cartier-Bresson’s photographs of the Russians is essential to that certain point in time because it was the first time the Russians were given any kind of neutral publicity.  Within this illustrated essay, the article about the people of Russia satisfied American curiosity by presenting the Russians as normal people with few differences. However, the article disguised the Americans’ nationalism in the informality of the photographs used to illustrate the Russians’ communist lifestyle, the colorful American advertisement contrasting the black and white photographs, and the subtle criticisms framing the photographs that glorify democracy. A clear anti-communist rhetoric was used in the article as a way to efficiently get the idea that democracy is superior for Americans that were feeling threatened by the Russian advancements. The photographs, including “Military Appraisal at Moscow Trolley Stop,” and the captions were organized strategically in order to appeal to U.S nationals. 

In this essay, I first considered the conflicts of each time period and its influence on the minds of Life editors and photographers such as Cartier-Bresson to pinpoint their motivation to study the Russians and publish an article about them in the 1950s. Next, I will identify the goal that Life had in mind and how it could feed into American nationalism and curiosity. Finally,  I will identify the editors’ organization, framing, and diction in order to determine how the goal of Life magazine was achieved.

In 1945, when World War II had finally ended, the world expected all conflict to conclude after long years of battle. However, the alliance that had been established between the United States, the Soviet Union, and Great Britain had disintegrated along with any trust and agreement among the three powerful nations (Snead 267). The United States and the Soviet Union had more tensions because of the United States’ distaste for the rise of communism and eventually the U.S’s several attempts to contain it. The U.S and the Soviet Union differ in their types of government; the U.S felt the need to spread democracy because it seemed to maintain a stable country and allowed a rule by majority whereas the Soviet Union has developed into a communist nation under Joseph Stalin who believed that the government owns all property and life in the nation. The U.S maintained a mindset common in the nation which included the need for containment to avoid the rise of communism in weak nations, and the need to avoid letting a nation fall to communism because of the Domino theory. This theory states that if one nation fell to communism, then the rest of the nations will follow along one after the other. 

The Domino Theory frightened American citizens to the point where the U.S. involved itself in the Korean War in order to prevent Korea from falling to communism in the 1950s which launched the U.S into a decade filled with the increasing tensions of the Cold War. At that point, the U.S and Soviet Union were in competition and because of the arms race, where both nations introduced new weapons and nuclear systems, “both countries were capable of obliterating each other” (Snead 269). For years, the lives of the Russians were a mystery to Americans which sparked curiosity across the nation. Americans wondered how the malevolent and communist Russians lived in comparison to themselves but acknowledged their inability to find out due to the inability to travel to the Soviet Union with ease. Cartier-Bresson finally saw an opportunity to travel to the Soviet Union and photograph the Russians during their daily routines and seized it. His study of the Russians allowed Life to publish the article in order to show Americans exactly who they were dealing with. That same year, the U.S government released a pamphlet dubbed “ How To Spot A Communist” as a form of propaganda to turn U.S citizens completely against communism because it was detested. While Cartier-Bresson sought proof that the Russians live just like Americans, the U.S government was simultaneously releasing propaganda against any form of communism or support of the Soviet Union in the United States. This further conveys that at the time, the main goal all around was to convince all U.S nationals that communism was a wrong way of running a nation and the Soviet Union was indeed the enemy. 

Life plays an essential role in convincing U.S citizens because of their platform as a media outlet and because of its power with photographs. Since its founding, Life’s objective has been to provide its audience with an inside look at current events and to discover a vast amount of subjects. As said in their mission statement, their purpose is to allow their audience to see life, great events, people of all sides of the spectrum and all their work. With this in mind, Life uses its platform to publish photographs that are relevant to controversial issues in a certain time period and shine a light on issues that are dismissed by other forms of media. The editors have always been able to hook readers by appealing to the public’s fascination with images. Accompanying these images, Life also had a purpose to influence American citizens to side with the publications that Life conveyed. Life is always publishing editions with relevance to current day issues in order to appeal to their audience. For instance, this January 1955 is “A Penetrating Look at the People of Russia” because of the prevalence of blind-sided critiques against the people of Russia during the Cold War. Life primes the audience for a study of the Russians by featuring “Military Appraisal at Moscow Trolley Stop” as the front cover. Despite seeming like an ordinary image of pedestrians waiting at a trolley stop, the image sends a message that the soldiers are indeed threatening to the women they are approaching. Alone, the photograph displays two women whose body language reveals that they are almost shielding themselves from the approaching soldiers because they acknowledge that they are intimidated by them which may reflect a lot about Russians in the 1950s.  In this setting, the photograph further illustrates the message that Russians live in fear due to their communist lifestyle and it is the first step in convincing the masses that democracy is superior. Something worth noting is that out of the several images that Cartier-Bresson took, Life chose an informal image as the front cover that demonstrates fear and intimidation. Their use of this image as the front cover gives Americans the mentality to pity the Russians but to never feel sorry for them to avoid inferiorizing them. The editors of Life could have chosen an image that is as glamorous as any other picture you would expect of Americans on the front cover of a magazine. In other photographs, it makes the Russians seem just as normal as Americans however not as advanced nor organized. For instance, the streets are crowded and people are dressed in more bland outfits in comparison to the United States (16-17). Ultimately, Life feeds into the public’s eyes and seeks images that portray a sense of curiosity among Americans.  

In order to communicate a message and achieve a goal to convince their audience, the editors of Life used several strategies that included both subtle tactics and blatant diction. American nationalism shines through the edition with colorful American advertisements of businesses that are known to be founded by Americans. For instance, Life includes advertisements for Chevrolet and Pontiac, both American name brands, and the advertisements illustrate the American lifestyle as a glamorous and advanced lifestyle (54-55). In contrast to the photographs of Russians walking in the streets, Americans are seemingly having a better time in their cars and have an energetic lifestyle. Furthermore, the American advertisements filled with bright colors abruptly interrupt the photo essay that contains solely black and white photographs. The article also subtly critiques the Russian lifestyle by creating a parallel to the emerging trends in the United States. In the 1950s, women advanced in fashion and also earned their place in society as more than just housewives because they stepped in during World War II for the war effort. On page 21, the article describes Russian fashion and displays women dressed up eating ice cream. Although the caption describes the women dressed in “pure silk” or “sheer cotton,’’ establishing a neutral perspective, the photograph contradicts the classiness that is described. In the photograph, the women are in the middle of eating ice cream and are not given the chance to pose for the camera as American women would pose for a picture with a fashionable purpose. In addition, the same photograph is underneath a subheading that states “New Fashions But Little Choice For Shoppers” indicating that the Russians do not have the luxury of shopping from a large array of boutiques and stores. Another instance of publicly shown disapproval is when the editors make presumptions that would otherwise be taken negatively by American citizens. The editor uses photographs of the Russians looking at an object and makes insidious claims without any proof since he or she was not even there to witness it. An example is displayed in the caption of a photograph of “roughly dresses peasants” looking at an “exhibition of cartoons sharply attacking American capitalists and ‘imperialists’”(19). Words such as “roughly” and “peasants” convey a sense of bitterness that the Russians have towards Americans. Additionally, the use of diction within the caption victimizes the American citizens because it portrays Americans as innocent victims being “attacked.”  The absurdity is evident because the editor has zero evidence to prove that Russians are looking at anti-American cartoons. Thus, the rhetoric used by the editor of Life plays a key role in setting the stage to convince readers that the Soviet Union is the adversary.

Cartier-Bresson’s image “Military Appraisal at Moscow Trolley Stop” as the front cover is one of Life’s strategies to sway Americans to further believe communism is inferior. However, since this particular issue of Life featuring “The People of Russia” was supposed to give Americans an unbiased look into the Russians’ life from a witness standpoint, it was accompanied by a series of photographs that did not leave readers with anxiety. Even though it is inevitable to sense intimidation and uneasiness in the front cover, the article itself had to provide an explanation of the photographs Americans would now be exposed to. The editors use ordinary everyday pictures of Russians that Cartier-Bresson took as a way of bringing the Russians into the spotlight and reminding Americans that they should be pitied. Even with a lack of organization in large cities, technology advancements, and aspiring, glamorous trends prevalent in the U.S, the purpose is indeed to avoid feeling sorry for the Russians because Americans would forget about the Cold War. The article used advertisements between the article of famous brands like American Pie and General Motors to remind them of the purpose of this issue. If American nationalism did not shine through enough for some audience members, then Americans would read the captions that frame the pictures that subtly criticize the communistic way of life and implied that it led to a bland life. Regardless of the absence of any insults, Americans still read the article and were convinced that they are superior to the Russians. 

Works Cited

 

Cherne, Leo. “How to Spot a Communist.” Look, March 4, 1947, 23.

Niu. Edu, 2019, 

https://www.niu.edu/~rfeurer/labor/PDF%20Files/How%20to%20Spot%20a%20Commu

nist.pdf. Accessed 16 Oct 2019. 

Snead, David L. “Cold War.” Dictionary of American History, edited by Stanley I. Kutler, 3rd 

ed., vol. 2, Charles Scribner’s Sons, 2003, pp. 266-270. Gale Ebooks, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3401800903/GVRL?u=newpaltz&sid=GVRL&xid=b8566a73. Accessed 18 Oct. 2019.

 

Reflection

After conducting a contextual analysis, I learned the process of research is not a straight line towards a distinct destination. The process of research is a process where you’re constantly learning new things that should be researched. In other words, you go into a researching hole until you establish what exactly you should be researching based on everything you have learned on your own. The contextual analysis changed the way I saw my original photo because it automatically became a form of propaganda. The photograph alone revealed the tensions among the Russians during their everyday routines however in Life’s issue, it revealed that the United States created a biased inside look into their lives as a form of propaganda during the Cold War. The most difficult aspect of writing the contextual analysis is that rather than only one object or photograph being analyzed, the entire article was analyzed at once. It was difficult to maintain organized while writing the contextual analysis because it was in a different format than I was used to since it was a layered analysis. I originally had doubts that I was organized and analytical but after completing revision I realized that the only reason I felt off about the paper was that it felt a bit awkward. This assignment challenged my writing process because prior to this assignment, I had become used to writing a typical five-paragraph essay with a rigid analysis. I enjoyed comparing the difference between the image alone and the image in its new environment because it demonstrates that while an image can say a lot, an image’s context brings about meaning to it. I will take the element of open-minded research to my next writing project because it is important to keep expanding knowledge on a topic as you go.

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