A Youngster Clutching
His Soldier Father
By: Madison Manion
Background information
This photo was taken in
December 1944.
It was produced by The Office
of War Information.
The purpose of this picture
and many others like it was to
convey positive messages of
the war to everyone.
Audience
Who do you think the
desired audience was
for this picture?
I believe the audience was
intended to be all Americans.
The Office of War Information
was trying to convey positive
messages about the war to
people and showing that men
are able to come home for the
holidays could be uplifting to a
lot of them.
Point of View
I think this picture was
created to gain support for
the war. This picture makes
it appear that all men
come home for Christmas,
it shows the good things
that are happening not the
bad.
What do you think the
intent was for this
photo?
Focus
What appears to be the main focus of this picture?
I believe the focus is the child. In the
picture he is the only thing that you
can see all of. Also the picture seems
to be taken from a low angle which
helps draw your eyes to him.
Detail
Why is it significant
that the
photographer
omitted the soldier
and his wife from
the photo?
I think the soldier and his wife
are omitted because it helps
show that the war affected
everyone of all ages, even
small children like this boy
who probably didn’t quite
understand what was going
on.
Irony
I believe in some ways this could
be kind of ironic. They wanted to
send a message to the public that
men did in fact come home, but at
the same time they are showing
how this negatively effected
people like children who were
probably overlooked during this
time.
Does it seem
ironic that the
Office of War
Information sent
out a picture like
this when they
were trying to
convey a positive
message of the
war?
Logos
In what ways does this picture appeal to your logic?
Logically everyone knows that a lot of
men do come home from war for
various reasons. We also know that
not every single soldier comes home
for the holidays and some never come
back at all. So this picture is logical.
Ethos
Is the creator of
this photo
credible? Why or
why not?
Yes I believe the Office of War
Information is a credible source.
They are a government
organization and in bad times of
war they tried to keep people’s
heads up by showing them the
positive things occurring like the
soldiers who did get to return
home for the holidays.
Pathos
How does this picture make you feel?
It makes me feel sad. The boy seems to
be the last thing on his fathers mind.
All this little boy wants is some
attention from his father who has been
gone for who knows how long. I’m
sure the soldier missed his wife and his
son, but he could acknowledge them
both at the same time that way the
boy doesn’t feel neglected and neither
does his wife.
Bibliography
A Youngster Clutching His Soldier Father. 1944. Photograph. World Digital
Library Home. Web. 17 Oct. 2010. <http://www.wdl.org/>.