As a student, I have looked at a picture titled the “Migrant Mother” many times. This picture is the epitome of “less is more”. It is so incredibly uncomplicated, yet so powerful at the same time. The picture was taken in 1936, during the height of the Great Depression (Phelan). Countless families were struggling to survive and this photograph displays that with outstanding simplicity. The “Migrant Mother” has always been one of my favorite photographs because it shows every emotion that the mother is feeling in just a single shot. The photographer, Dorothea Lange was the one who captured the photo of Florence Thompson, the mother in the photograph, and her children (Phelan). It was Lange’s goal to try and portray what life was like for poor families during the Great Depression. She chose to illustrate this through the Thompson family. Needless to say, she did just that because the “Migrant Mother” is one of the most iconic photographs from that time period. 

The Great Depression was a period of chronic decline in economic activity across the globe during the late 1920s and 1930s (Great Depression Defined). In the United States, it began on Black Tuesday (October 29th, 1929) when the stock market crashed. The struggle that the United States, and the rest of the world, had to endure during this time was epic. Millions of families were unemployed, out of food, and without permanent homes. Life during the Great Depression was nothing short of devastating; no one had anywhere to go or anyone to turn to. Many different works of art were created, including the “Migrant Mother”, to display the types of struggles people were going through during the Great Depression. 

In this photograph, the look on the mother’s face and how she’s staring off into the distance is chilling. She is just sitting there, thinking about all the struggles her children have to endure in this miserable life. The wrinkles that crease her forehead show the amount of worry and stress she is under.  She must bear the brunt of holding her family together. She is a young mother, but the amount of pressure she is under seems to have aged her. As a mother, it is her life’s goal to make sure her children live a plentiful and happy life. Yet, she has to live with the fact that her two most prized possessions must go through hardships no child should. The way her hand is placed on her face reminds me of something my own mother does when she is worried or anxious about a particular situation. How her eyebrows are furrowed displays her worry about the future and the feeling of not knowing what will happen to her and her family. The look in her eyes is excruciating because, as the viewer, you can see the pain that she is in trying to hide the fact that she’s worried from her children. Her eyes look empty, as if she has nothing to live for. But as a mother, she knows that she has to live for everyone in her family even if it is not what she can handle. Being a woman in this point in history was already difficult enough. However, during the Great Depression, these women had to singlehandedly take care of everyone in their family because most men were out of work or making ridiculously low pay. Some women even had to take care of themselves and the children on their own because many men left their families to find jobs, or left their families all together (Phelan). 

When it comes to the two children, they are what really make the picture powerful. Although we cannot see their faces, the way they are hanging onto their mother is really compelling. They are clinging to the mother because they know that she is all they have. How their heads are facing make it seem to the observer that they are sad along with their mother. The Great Depression created stress and anxiety on everyone, including children who should never be concerned with those harsh realities. The dirt that covers the kids’ bodies encompasses how difficult it was to do the simplest things, like bathing. The way their hair is so raggedy and tangled makes the viewer think that the kids have been neglected of the essentials that children deserve. Even though this neglect is not on purpose, the photo shows that it is taking a noticeable toll on the happiness and well being of the children. 

In addition to the family, other features in this photo are also very important. For instance, the lighting is mainly focused on the mother’s face to show her obvious expression of concern and worry. Her face is clearly brighter than anything else in the picture and that was clearly done on purpose to be the first thing the spectator sees. What is also interesting to me is how the photo is almost blurred out in the background, which therefore puts more focus on the family. Even though black and white photographs were all that was available during this time, the fact that the picture is in black and white adds to the overall effect of the photo as well. The color makes the mood seem grim and hopeless, which is what the mother and the children seem to be feeling. 

The clothes that the family are wearing also add to the effect of the picture. From what it appears, the clothes that the mother and children are wearing were probably all that they owned at the time. The child on the right side of the mother has a shirt on with several holes in the sleeve and the other child has on what looks like a shirt that is not fitted to his body. This makes the spectator think that this family must make due with what they had to clothe themselves. As for the mother’s clothing, it seems like she still attempted to look presentable. The sweater and the button-down underneath gives off a professional-like appearance even though that is obviously not what her position is in the family. Her outfit further adds to her position of the main caregiver in the home. She is clearly the one that is attempting to provide for everyone and do it all on her own.

As I have said, this photo is not new to me. Yet, when it came time for me to really look at and analyze it, I grew to appreciate certain artistic elements that Lange used to take the picture. At first glace, this photograph does not seem like much, but after reading about the history of it and after taking the time too look at it, anyone can see it’s value. I take a particular fascination with this photo because it reminds me of how my own mother would look in a situation like this. She is the type of woman who lives for her kids and I can only imagine the pain she would endure during a painful time such as the Great Depression. I believe that the reason this photo received all the recognition and fame that it did, was because it touched so many hearts. Seeing a family in a situation like this makes people realize that they need to value what they have and to not take the little things for granted. The Great Depression was a horrible and traumatizing time for many different families, and the “Migrant Mother” projects that feeling perfectly through it’s modest sophistication. 
