There are many images in this passage that portray foregrounding and back grounding but the one that exemplifies it the best is the frame where Harvey is sitting behind his dad, while his dad is asleep. In the foreground of the shot we see Harvey's father holding a Jewish scripture in his lap very much asleep. In the background of the shot, Harvey sits with his hands crossed, with a disappointed look on his face. The placement of these two characters in the frame portrays the way Harvey feels. He feels in the dark and pushed to the back. The lighting in this shot also helps deliver this point. Harvey's background is only darkness showing him "in the dark".
The next shot I found exemplified both foregrounding, back grounding and excellent lighting, is the shot where Harvey is preparing for battle royal with his classmates. There are three divisions of this frame. The first is closest to us and it shows a kid with a 2 by 4 in his left hand clenching it ready to strike Harvey. The second and middle division of this frame is a full shot of Harvey from his knee's up. He has an angry look on his face and both of his fists are clenched. His face is the only one shown out of seven people in this frame. The third division of the shot is in the background where 5 African American boys are waiting to pound Harvey. There faces are not shown to put more emphasis on Harvey's face. Lighting is also key in this shot because the boys in the background are completely black while Harvey is very clear and in the light. This lighting technique is very effective because it shifts the audiences’ focus toward Harvey.
The final frame I reviewed was the close-up of Harvey's mother looking down on Harvey. I liked this frame because with the position of Harvey's mother's face above Harvey, it is easier for the audience to see how much authority Harvey's mom has over him. I also liked this frame because it immediately follows a long frame of basically the same situation. When the close-up occurs it draws more attention to the situation.
this is great, Sam !
ReplyDeleteI hadn't thought about the foregrounding and backgrounding as much before I read your post. I completely agree with that shot of Harvey and his father and how the placement shows how Harvey feels. I also find it interesting how clear their facial similarities are.
but going along with the Images prompt, what did you think of the distances and angles in the shots ? how do you think the illustrator's choices helped or hindered what Pekar wanted to communicate ?
And can you say more about how the image of his mother as authority figure is constructed? What details make her seem like she's in power in this frame?
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