Malcolm Browne is the famous photographer of the historical moment of the Buddhist Monk, Thich Quang Duc performing a selfless act of self-immolation.  The photograph, "Burning Monk", shows a South Vietnamese Buddhist monk burning himself in a town square in front of a large crowd of people of the same religious community(Browne). It was the perfect example of being in the right place at the right time for American photographer, Malcolm Brown. The majority of the South Vietnamese population was aware of the protest that was to be held in the square, scaring most people away. That left Malcolm as the only American photographer to capture this moment.

 Visual imagery of a text is often the main component when describing the theme and meaning of a piece of work. By looking at the aspects of "Burning Monk" that show purpose, such as the position of the tank of gasoline, the crowd of monks surrounding Thich Quang Duc, and the serene look on Duc's face as he goes up in flames, we notice that Thich's act of burning himself was fully intentional. These visual components are important because the viewer begins to realize that the Buddhist community felt that sacrificing a man of their own, as opposed to a non-living, materialistic item, was the only thing that would help the Buddhist community fight back against the repressive government of the Diem regime in order to prove their point. (Biggs)

In the foreground of the photo is a tank of gasoline, located less than two yards from the burning man, Thich Quang Duc (Browne). The man appears bright compared to the background of the picture due to the light, white color of the tank and the billowing flames in which he is engulfed. This is important because it makes the viewer's eyes become drawn straight to the gas tank sitting alongside the man in the foreground, which is located there because it is meant to be the main focus of the photograph. The gasoline tank is in close proximity to the man, but no other people are around to blame for the dousing of his body. It becomes more clear to the viewer that this tragic incident may not have been merely an accident, but an act of self-immolation. The intentionality of the act caught on camera by Malcolm Browne increases the severity of the event and suggests the desperation of the monk community. 

After the viewer notices the brightness of the gasoline tank and flames, their attention will follow the flames to the crowd of Buddhist monks behind Thich Quang Duc (Browne). Each individual looks unphased by the sight of their fellow Buddhist member sacrificing himself in such a harmful and permanent way. This suggests that the entire Buddhist community was aware of the fatal act that was being held in the town's square that day. This is shown in the photograph by the crowd members surrounding Thich Quang Duc, who are from the same religious community as him, but who are not stopping the protest. The community as a whole allowed him to follow through with his self-immolation, "as a donation to the struggle" (Biggs). The torture towards the Buddhists had gotten so bad that they felt that it was necessary to allow one of their own men to sacrifice himself, instead of offering up a meaningless object in order to gain religious recognition and prove a point to the South Vietnamese community(Biggs).

The illumination of the monk grabs the viewer's attention a second time, allowing a deeper analysis of his expression. As he goes up in flames in the street, his facial expression remains completely serene (Browne). This photographic evidence is important because it guides the viewer's perspective to a place of better understanding of the reasoning behind the protest. The monk's face remains serene even as he suffers unconditionally because he knows that he is suffering for the sake of his religious community and, because of his act of selflessness, his community will be better off. Michael Browne captured an extremely important and historical moment as Thich Quang Duc and the Buddhist Monk community strived to prove a point and fight for their religious rights that the Diem regime of South Vietnam took away from them. His act of self-immolation is more destructive, traumatizing, and more memorable for the community and any onlookers to experience than the sacrifice of a materialistic, replaceable object. Human life is precious and irreplaceable; therefore by burning himself, Quang Duc made an intentional, everlasting and extremely memorable sacrifice for his community, and it appeared effective in the protest. 

Michael Browne captured the perfect, most serene moment of the Buddhist monk protest against the regressive government of the Diem regime. Viewers assume the pain in the eyes of the burning man and look away to spare themselves the horrific feeling of experiencing that pain with him. However, this image holds a much greater meaning than can be noticed at first glance. A gas can is situated close by, a crowd of expressionless monks are surrounding the man as he burns to death, and the man has a look of serenity across his face. The monk clearly set himself ablaze on behalf of each of the surrounding monks and their entire religious community. Each aspect of the photograph is exemplary of the intentions that Thich Quang Duc had in the protest. The gas can sitting close by shows that he doused himself in gasoline before setting himself on fire. The surrounding monks give the viewer a clear insight to the religious support Quang Duc had in the protest. Finally, the straight, serene look across his face shows him in a state of peace. Burning alive for the sake of his Monk community was Thich Quang Duc's full intention ever since the beginning of the protest.
