Susan Sontag Friday paper

Ashley McLain
English Comp 2 Writing/ Photography
February 4, 2011
Week 3 Friday Paper         

   From analyzing why photographers take photos of realistic objects I came to realize that this is the same idea that Susan Sontag has placed within her essay  In Plato’s Cave. Sontag expresses her thoughts that taking photos is influenced by our world and which we live in. She uses expresses this belief with lots of passion. In my own opinion it seems as if Sontag has a point because anything anyone ever takes a photo has meaning to them so for something to have meaning to it, it must be realistic within their life.  Individuals can take photo’s for a variety of reasons as far as having a potential career to just enjoying taking photo’s as a hobby through life. Sontag however believes that individuals don’t take photo’s to enjoy as a hobby but more of giving themselves something to do that requires work. In America we are used to work so in the long run we enjoy working, sometimes we don’t even notice when we are working. With the thoughts of Sontag in mind I created my own photographic reality where I took a photo of my mother and I before one of my formal dance at school and a photo of the ocean in South Carolina from the entrance of a small walkway leading to the beach. Susan Sontag not only expressed her thoughts of photo’s portraying our lives and the reality of our environment but also fantasies in our minds. Now fantasies can be a variety of different ideas, mine is to live down South more than likely in South Carolina because I took a trip there this past summer and absolutely loved everything there and would love to move there sometime down the road in my future so it is considered one of my fantasies because I don’t actually know if it will happen. My photo of the Ocean from the small walk way to the beach also shows that I not only want to live in South Carolina but I would enjoy living near the beach because I love the ocean and the way it looks at night when the sun sets over it reflection off the ocean. Not only is this a fantasy but it also considered reality because it’s my thoughts of where I want to be in my life in this world I live in. The small walk way in the photo leading the beach is giving off the idea of picturing yourself there walking on the hot beach sand in-between your toes and walking to the water to enjoy a relaxing and cooling swim. My next photo is my mother and I before a dance; this is showing that in my life family is important to me and love. My mother and I are very close, so close that we may argue and scream at each other but in the end she is always there for me and this photo represents that. We are showing that we will always be there for each other because we are family. Through out photographing we have come across this hobby as becoming more and more common, almost as common as every day chores that we do through the week. Sontag states this simply because it’s become something more and more people are practicing with because it shapes our lives just like my two photo’s that are an influence on my life. Both photos represent my views in what I want in life and as well as Susan Sontag’s idea of taking photo’s  to create photographs that become part of the general building blocks of our lives within our environment. As well as our fantasies in life that we would like to see our lives become apart of.