the curious incident of the train in the daytime
been a weird week. i haven't been on the net for about a week. it's actually been kinda nice. i like knowing that i can let something be for a while without getting withdrawal.
so i was on the L the other day and and bunch of SAIC undergrads with photo equipment walked in. As the train came up out of the tunnel, they began to unfolded and set up the flash umbrella and stood it up by the door. the next thing i knew, they were soliciting passengers to get their picture taken. Most people declined the invitation, but a few posed by the door. weird, i thought. so after a few stops, a man walked in. he was a burn survivor--probably from pretty recently because he still had bandages on his wrists. the flamboyant art students paused skipped a beat when he walked in to take his seat. the skin of his face was completely smooth, no pours, no character line, no eye brows or eye lashes. he was wearing a hat, so i was certain he had no hair either. his skin tone was pale yellow. the most profound feature i notice was the fact his ears had been completely burned away. red holes marked the spot the had been. i thought about how the students must have felt as the man walked in. they had been laughing and joking about how no one wanted their photo taken. "why is no one volunteering? it's just a photo!" this development shocked them into thinking about how people could be sensitive about their appearances. about personal space and privacy. they declined to ask him if he would like to pose.
i wondered about this. what is the eddicit for this situation? one would assume that the man would not want his picture taken due to his altered appearance. but what does that say? is he any less worthy of having a photo taken because of his experiences? would it be a normalizing experience for him to pose along with everyone else?
i thought about how he must have felt. denied the invitation because of his burns. denied access to an activity very much taken for granted. did a part of this man secretly with to be asked? to be included? or was he dreading the possibility of his privacy being invaded. like i was.
so i was on the L the other day and and bunch of SAIC undergrads with photo equipment walked in. As the train came up out of the tunnel, they began to unfolded and set up the flash umbrella and stood it up by the door. the next thing i knew, they were soliciting passengers to get their picture taken. Most people declined the invitation, but a few posed by the door. weird, i thought. so after a few stops, a man walked in. he was a burn survivor--probably from pretty recently because he still had bandages on his wrists. the flamboyant art students paused skipped a beat when he walked in to take his seat. the skin of his face was completely smooth, no pours, no character line, no eye brows or eye lashes. he was wearing a hat, so i was certain he had no hair either. his skin tone was pale yellow. the most profound feature i notice was the fact his ears had been completely burned away. red holes marked the spot the had been. i thought about how the students must have felt as the man walked in. they had been laughing and joking about how no one wanted their photo taken. "why is no one volunteering? it's just a photo!" this development shocked them into thinking about how people could be sensitive about their appearances. about personal space and privacy. they declined to ask him if he would like to pose.
i wondered about this. what is the eddicit for this situation? one would assume that the man would not want his picture taken due to his altered appearance. but what does that say? is he any less worthy of having a photo taken because of his experiences? would it be a normalizing experience for him to pose along with everyone else?
i thought about how he must have felt. denied the invitation because of his burns. denied access to an activity very much taken for granted. did a part of this man secretly with to be asked? to be included? or was he dreading the possibility of his privacy being invaded. like i was.