Ground Zero By James Nachtwey

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In the photograph, Crushed Car and the short story, “Ground Zero”, James Nachtwey recalls his experiences as a 9/11 victim. The photograph, Crushed Car depicts the ash, debris and rubble resulting from the attack. The focal point of the photograph is the police car, which is damaged from the falling debris. Nachtwey’s framing of the picture indicates the destruction’s severity by emphasizing the fact that authority figures, like police officers, were not able to survive the attack. Moreover, Nachtwey’s photograph evokes various emotional responses by focusing on the disasters that result from certain events in history. The short story, “Ground Zero” focuses more on Nachtwey’s experiences and thoughts as a witness. As a witness, he states, "I …show more content…

For instance, when you visually see someone suffer, you immediately capture the visual image of someone suffering. You begin to feel their suffering and emotions, enabling you to understand the cause of their suffering. Additionally, visual suffering is more likely going to be etched in your memory as opposed to invisible suffering, especially if it evokes a strong emotional response. For example, photographs easily portray the strong emotional impact that visual suffering can have on a person. Nachtwey’s photograph, Crushed Car clearly captures the emotional impact of the 9/11 attack through using darker and monochromatic colors, emphasizing the debris, and depicting destruction of humanity. The usage of darker and monochromatic colors automatically sets a gloomy and depressing tone for the image, allowing the audience to visualize the sadness and grief that occurred during the attack. Following, Nachtwey draws attention to the debris and destruction to symbolize the loss of many lives. Overall, when we piece together the elements of the photograph, we conclude that 9/11 was a very tragic event that affected the lives of many people, allowing us to empathize with both the victims and secondhand witnesses of the attack.

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