Featured Image from Library of Congress
Picture 1: Look at the living conditions of this home. It is quite possible that this person is living in poverty given the condition of his home.
Picture 2: The man looks hungry, and possibly sickly. It is possible that he cannot afford to eat given his circumstances.
Picture 3: Much of the inside of this man’s home is empty, implying that he is barely scraping by. Again, the man may be struggling for money.
Picture 1: This man is clearly dressed well – implying wealth. His clothes are clean, pressed, and are not tattered.
Picture 2: FDR – His face clearly showing concern for his country. This image quite possibly captures him shortly before he makes life changing decisions for many Americans.
Picture 3: The clean appearance of FDR likely conveyed to Americans that he was a leader. A beacon of hope for those who struggled so much during this time period.
Picture 1: The child’s hair is dirty, implying that he has no access to clean conditions. His head is pointed toward the ground in anguish, despite his young age.
Picture 2: A mother’s face. Full of concern and fear for what lies ahead for her children. This is quite possibly the most famous photo from this time period.
Picture 3: This child cries on his mother’s shoulder. Likely hungry, and scared. He is very thin, implying he’s hungry. Certainly something no child should ever have to go through.
Chris, somehow the “allow comments” tab under the “Discussion” setting was unchecked. I fixed that, and can now comment.
I think your featured image powerfully sets the tone. The Migrant Mother image is a familiar icon of the era. And I like how you use it and the first image to “bookend” the contrast with the FDR image. Your closeup captions really hone in on the disparity between poverty and wealth in the era.
Yet, while he was rich, FDR did represent a “hero” to millions of impoverished Americans. Your collection of images explores those tensions nicely.