Currently in the Middle East, more specifically Syria and Palestine, ISIS (“the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria,” now known as ISIL “Islamic state of Iraq and the Levant”) has ripped through many countries and has once again brought unrest to the Middle-Eastern nations. The hate group began as a funded faction of Al Qaeda, another very infamous terrorist organization that once held many countries in the Middle East in the palm of their hand using scare tactics and random, merciless, mass murders. The United States of America and many European countries have banded together to eradicate the hate driven, genocidal, radical group that plagues many Muslim and Christian domains. The only way that the atrocity that ISIL is (and the terrible things that its followers believe and acts upon) can be brought to the world’s attention is with dedicated media personnel to capture news when it is happening. Their purpose is to show the world the truth. The picture taken by an anonymous photographer (anonymous as ISIL head-hunts journalists that attempt to expose their evil) aims to show the world the sorrow this organization can bring; just as this essay’s purpose is to show the evil effect of ISIL through analyzing the image taken by the fearless photographer. The picture above is of a protest against terrorism and the carnage is the product of an ISIL suicidal bombing attack on a Christian school in Palestine. The image is very heartbreaking as a father holds up his deceased child in protest against these hate fueled attacks. Something all humans can relate to is the loss of someone dear to one’s heart, especially the loss of child. The image above is so provocative due to its attributes and properties that the camera man was able to catch at just the right time. Analyzing  image properties such as color, contrast, dominance, and realism captivates the attention of its audience and ultimately can move people by bringing the picture and/or artwork to life. 

Color captivates audiences through the meanings that certain colors give them and perceive them to have. For instance, red, in the US at least, is the color of both love and hate, as well as blue is the color of sadness and gloominess. Color breeds captivation in a picture. The colors inside of the picture bring forth many emotions to the audience when looked upon. The color red, besides symbolizing love and hate as mentioned before, is indeed the color of blood. The blood stained cloth wrapped around the man’s child suggests that the child’s life was ended by a grievous wound to the head. The blood moves the audience as it blatantly shows that the child is no longer alive but instead a lifeless corpse, a casualty of senseless hate. The white sheet wrapped snuggly around the child, as if to swaddle a restless child has connoted meaning as well. White, as well as black, has always been the color of absence. Suggesting that the child is departed and is no longer alive as it is being clutched and lifted into the sky by a grieving father. White also is the color of innocence and purity, the purity of a child that was going to school like any other day, prepared to learn in hopes of receiving an adequate education to maybe one day become something that the child and their family can be proud of. But before that dream came true the innocence was taken away from its family in a fireball of destruction ignited by a group set out to destroy and take the lives of good people. The color yellow in many cultures represents energy, light and optimism, but also represents fear and cowardice. The yellow on the man’s shirt shows fear of this hateful group that took his child’s life. The man’s shirt shows his uncertainty of his own safety and the unknown end to the savages who had so much hate in their hearts, that they bombed a school for children.

Contrast is shown in the picture in many different ways. In the picture contrast is shown in the faces of the many people in the protest. The father that is holding the deceased child adorns a face of sheer despair and brokenness. The father’s face shows that he is heartbroken and cut deep into the heart because of the loss of the child.  The contrast between the emotional responses suggests that maybe the father was not the only one to lose something, but perhaps the only one to lose a child. The other faces show pain, but they do not show the broken soul the way the father’s face does. Color contrast also presents itself in the picture. The father’s shirt is yellow as mentioned in the paragraph about color significance, while most of the other people’s shirts are blue. The color contrast brings attention to the father and his pain, suffering, defeat. And humiliation. The worst feeling a father can ever feel is knowing that he himself cannot protect his family adequately to save them from danger. The humiliation of knowing he could not save his child cuts him to the core of his own being. The other contrast of color exists between the father and the backgrounds of almost solid grey. The contrast highlights the father and his deceased child to the front of the picture, giving the two dominion over the picture.

The two properties mentioned above, color and contrast, structure an image in a fashion that gives certain objects power and importance over the rest of the picture that make them catch the eye and stand out. The act of presenting an “eye-catching” symbol or iconic piece of an image is known simply as dominance. In the image, there are a few images that immediately stand out to the audience viewers. The first image that most viewers are immediately drawn to is the image of the dead child. The image draws the attention of the audience due to its morbidity and gruesomeness. The image draws the viewers gaze, and traps the viewer for a duration of time and forces the reader to connect with it emotionally. The second image that quickly leads the gaze of the audience to it and shares its story with them is the face of the father in detrimental pain. The face is of that of a man that has lost it all, something that provides a sharp pain that hits the hearts of those who know what a tragic loss can do to one’s heart. The third image that draws the gaze to the left, departing from the sadness and possibly even transitioning to an aurora of hope and determination, is the image of the Palestinian flag still standing tall and wavering in the wind. The flag shows the viewer that among the death, suffering, hate, destruction and relentless war that exists all around and in the hearts of these protesters, there is hope. No matter the size of the bombs, the depth of the oceans of hate, or how sharp the swords of war are, Palestine still stands strong, shaken but not shattered. The image provides an emotional balance to the negativity that hits the viewer head on. The flag in the background provides a sweet side to the harsh image that many people walk away scarred from.

The last property that makes the image the iconic statement that it is known simply as realism. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines the property of realism to be “a style of art or literature that shows or describes people and things as they are in real life” (Merriam-Webster.com). The picture hits close to home because many people around the globe have been affected by terrorism and/or deal with it every day. In America, in every town across the land, someone has been affected by terrorism. From the beginning of the war in Iraq, to the terrorist attacks on the world trade centers, and to the ISIL attacks in the US today, the sons and daughters of Americans have been slaughtered at the hands of hate. The brave soldiers that risk and often lay down their life to preserve the freedoms and ideals of the United States of America are cousins, neighbors, and friends to every American. As easy as it would be to say that terrorism only affects the US, or even to say that the US gets the worst of the attack is a lie. There are so many other countries that live in fear every day of this oppressive force. So many people wonder if today is the day that a bomb will drop on their heads, or if tomorrow will be the day that someone will enter their house with the intent to take everything away from them. The hate that exists in the Middle East has spread to every corner of the Earth, leaving ruins and pain in their wake. The property of realism is simply receiving a personal connection the piece of imagery that is presented. Realism is understanding that the image has relevance and current importance in its subject matter and has emotional ties to the viewers that witness it. 

The image of the effects of terrorism moves people and quickly grasps the emotions of many people. The image stirs the hearts of those who choose to set their gaze upon it. If not for its relatability, the picture evokes a response from its viewers with its relevance in media as it represents a strife that many cultures deal with every day. Part of the reason for the power the picture possesses is the expert skill or possibly the luck the photographer had when capturing the image. The image contains many important qualities that all thought-provoking images have. Many famous images and artwork contain only a few properties that this image boastfully contains. Just a few of the properties that this image employs are color, contrast, dominance, and realism which make this image the emotional powerhouse that it is.    

