Poetry Reading Response: Photography

Panchita Lopez-Li                                                                                  Class 808

                                  

                              Reading Response: Photography by Nikki Giovanni

     “Photography” by Nikki Giovanni shows that everyone has their own passion and will describe/express their passions in a different way. In the poem “Photography,” Nikki Giovanni shows her passion of photography and what photography means to her in life. In the poem, he compares parts of the camera to the human body, and describes what poetry is.  The poet uses imagery, symbolism, and metaphors as a literary device in the poem to show readers what photography means to her in life, and why she is passionate about photography.

      Imagery is vivid descriptions of the five senses. In Nikki Giovanni’s poem “Photography,” there is use of imagery. Two examples of imagery are “Watching the red sun bleed/ into the ocean” and “to forget the ice and ravages/of winter yet.” I think these are examples of imagery because I can see vivid, detailed pictures of them in my mind, when I read those lines from the poem. When I read the lines “watching the red sun bleed/ into the ocean,” I picture a sunset at the beach, the rays of the sun sinking behind the water. I also see a woman standing knee-deep in ocean water, taking pictures of the sunset. When I read the lines “to forget the ice and ravages/ of winter yet,” I have a picture in my mind of a blizzard with hail raining down from every direction. There is a man attempting to climb up a hill full of snow. The poet uses imagery to make her readers see what she is writing. I think the poet it showing us that photography is a necessity in her life, and that regardless of conditions rain or shine; she will take photographs for as long as she lives.

      Symbolism is an object/action/person that represents a greater importance in a text, often emphasized in some way. The poem “Photography” has many examples of photography. The poet compares parts of the human body to a camera. Some examples are “the eye we are told/ is a camera”, “but the film is the heart,” and “then the photo assistant is god.” I think since she is comparing parts of the body to a camera that you all need these parts to make a good “photo.” In order to take a good photo, you need the basic parts of the camera, like film and the camera itself. Another thing I observed is the line “then the photo assistant is god.” My inference for this line is the photo assistant helps take photos and maybe edits/prints them, for the whole world to see and spreads the photo throughout the world.

      A metaphor is a comparison of unlike things; stating that something is something else. In the poem “Photography,” there are many metaphors. Some examples of metaphors are “the eye we are told/ is a camera,” “but the film is the heart”, and “then the photo assistant is god.” The poet is comparing parts of the human body to the camera. I think what the poet means by “the eye we are told/ is a camera” is that we take everything in using our eyes, so our eyes are like a camera. For “but the film is the heart,” I think the poet means that our heart keeps us alive, like how you need film in order for the camera to take pictures. And lastly, when the poet writes; “then the photo assistant is god” I think she means that the photo assistant develops the product.

     This text connects to the world because everyone has their own passion and will show/describe it in their own and different way. Nikki Giovanni showed her passion for photography with imagery, symbolism, and metaphors in her poem “Photography.” She also shows deep detail in describing photography.