Starving Hands
The picture chosen simply depicts two hands but it tells a story of starvation and poverty. In the picture the hand of a malnourished boy is held by a Catholic monk. The picture was taken in the Karamoja region of Uganda in 1980 by photographer Mike Wells. The photograph is a public controversy because calls for welfare and charity, especially spending for foreign countries, is a sometimes politically divisive topic.
The first point this image conveys is the reality of extreme poverty. This is not just some image of some shabby agricultural town without cars or electricity, it’s a picture of a real live human being’s undeveloped hand. This picture reminds its audience of the existence of extreme poverty and the horrors it causes. In the picture the monk’s hand is holding the boy’s, but it is also holding the hand outward. This image literally presents poverty and starvation as the center object, making the audience aware of the situation. To the audience, starvation might be thought of as an issue of the past, but this image proves that starvation is a real issue in parts of the world.
This image also reminds the audience how well off and fortunate they are. The monk’s hand, the Caucasian hand, is healthy and vibrant. The Ugandan boy’s wrinkled malnourished arm and wrist are highlighted by the healthy hand of the Caucasian man. When the audience views the image, whether it was published in a newspaper or magazine or displayed on television, they look down and recognize that they, like the monk, have healthy bodies. The idea of malnutrition is foreign to them. In addition the audience knows that the average child or toddler should be a healthy chubby. Since the image is of a malnourished boy, it furthers conveys an extreme difference in living conditions. The image makes the audience think that even the children are starving.
By depicting the reality of extreme poverty and reminding the audience of their blessed living standards, elicits the audience to help the child. Ultimately the photograph presents the situation of starvation to its audience and asks for help and aid. The fact that the two people are holding hands furthers the call for aid. The photo could’ve very well depicted the starving boy by himself but instead it shows the boy and the monk holding hands. This reminds us as the audience that they are all connected as the human race and that they must help each other. In conclusion, it asks the audience to reach out to the parts of humanity that are not as well off and give help.