The Politics of Staring

Categories: Photography

In the “Politics of Staring” by Rosemarie Garland Thompson, the belief that photography has essentially aided in staring is stressed. Staring is a sort of expression that evokes emotions from fascination to scorn, but the action itself portrays difference. People make a statement by staring, and this allows criticism to occur. Disabilities have always been “normal” because of its prevalence, but Thompson states that society has made the “familiar seem strange” via staring. (Critical Encounters With Texts, p.156)

Photography is described as a gateway to staring, as it authorizes it.

Visuals of the disabled allow people to elicit different emotions and act in certain ways. To prove this, Thompson writes about four primary visual rhetorics, which are wondrous, sentimental, exotic, and realistic. Though each are quite self explanatory, each of them contribute to different ideas and thoughts. The rhetoric of wonder for example, introduces not the ordinary, but the extraordinary. People are in essence intrigued or amazed by such pictures.

A sentimental rhetoric conjures up feelings of sympathy for the viewers, doing the opposite of a wondrous rhetoric.

Get quality help now
writer-Charlotte
writer-Charlotte
checked Verified writer

Proficient in: Photography

star star star star 4.7 (348)

“ Amazing as always, gave her a week to finish a big assignment and came through way ahead of time. ”

avatar avatar avatar
+84 relevant experts are online
Hire writer

In contrast, the exotic rhetoric displays the disabled as alien, incorrect, and amusing. It touches upon satire whilst emphasizing the impairment for commercial purposes. Lastly, the realistic rhetoric has the effect of evading distinction and looks at the normal aspects of disabilities. It embraces the disabilities in such a way that it moderates its unfamiliarity to the public.

Society ultimately has made progress with its views, though the views are still prurient majority of the time.

Get to Know The Price Estimate For Your Paper
Topic
Number of pages
Email Invalid email

By clicking “Check Writers’ Offers”, you agree to our terms of service and privacy policy. We’ll occasionally send you promo and account related email

"You must agree to out terms of services and privacy policy"
Write my paper

You won’t be charged yet!

Photographs of the disabled can be repellent yet amazing at the same time, and Thompson explores the logistics of why and how this occurs.

Updated: Feb 14, 2023
Cite this page

The Politics of Staring. (2017, Jan 25). Retrieved from https://studymoose.com/the-politics-of-staring-essay

The Politics of Staring essay
Live chat  with support 24/7

👋 Hi! I’m your smart assistant Amy!

Don’t know where to start? Type your requirements and I’ll connect you to an academic expert within 3 minutes.

get help with your assignment