The late 1980s were a time of change, anxiety, and uncertainty for the country of China. Following the death of their Communist Party leader, the government scrambled to make new changes and received an abundance of backlash from their dissatisfied citizens. While the people were protesting their concern about a corrupt fascist government, the government responded with military force. The Chinese government at this time was primarily condemned by other nations for their methods, but this did nothing to change their ways. This picture, by Jeff Widener, captures a moment during one of these military interventions when a single man stepped in front of a line of tanks to barricade them from interrupting more protesting people. The contrasting elements of this image, such as color, size, intent, and position, reflect the contrasting views between the Chinese government and their people. 

This image, titled, “Tank Man” is the nickname of an unidentified man who stood in front of a column of tanks on June 5, 1989, the morning after the Chinese military had suppressed the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 by force. As the lead tank maneuvered to pass by the man, he repeatedly adjusted his position in order to obstruct the tank's attempted path around him. The Tiananmen Square protests, commonly known in China as the June Fourth Incident, were student-led demonstrations in Beijing in 1989. The protests were forcibly repressed by Chinese military after the government declared martial law. In what became widely known as the Tiananmen Square Massacre, military troops with assault rifles and tanks fired at and killed at least several hundred demonstrators trying to block the military's advance towards Tiananmen Square. The exact number of civilian deaths is unknown, but it has been estimated at anywhere between hundreds and thousands. The man in this image was just one of the thousands attempting to block or slow the progress of the military into the square. 

The image itself shows a strong contrast in the colors between the man and the tanks. This is another reflection of the clashing sides as the Chinese protestor wears a white shirt and the tanks of his own government impose dark camouflage and shadows. This was not intentionally set up by either party of the image, but it does stand as a symbolic reflection of the two sides. This could be compared to two enemies or opponents, such as the black and white pieces of a chess game. The opposites face each other and challenge the other to make a move while strategizing their own. In this case, the white side reflects the entire population of the China that was opposed to the dominating regime of the Communist party. Typically, white is associated with goodness and light, which leads the viewer to side with the white-clothed man.  The black side represents the overbearing Chinese government as it worked to oppress the protests against its actions. Black, on the other hand, is more commonly perceived as the color of death, power, or evil. This could lead the viewer to see the imposing tanks with a negative perspective. The disparity of colors and their stigmas here embodies the popular siding of not just the Chinese population, but the rest of the world as well. 

The entirety of the picture is visually split across the middle by the lines of road paint. The tanks do not drive on the right side of the road as any vehicle typically would. Instead, they take a route down the middle of both lanes, causing the picture to have diagonal lines separate it into two sides. The two sides of the image could possibly be symbolic for the division of the state during this time. After years of reforms in the 1980s, the people were anxious about the future and the legitimacy of their new government. After peaceful protests started in response to their unrest, the people were brought down by force once the government decided the protests were an actual political threat. This is where the tanks came into play, as they were part of the government efforts to quell the protests and stop the chaos on the streets. Meanwhile, this image shows the tanks travelling down the middle of the road without any regard for road laws or care of who was in front of them. This detail, however small, is ironic nonetheless as the tanks are creating a new disorder in response to trying to solve another. Visually, as well as politically, this image testifies for the state of China, as the linear division of the image stands as a symbol for the split between all of the Chinese country at this time. 

Another contrasting detail of this image is the size difference between the singular man and the four large tanks. In the peak of the protests, a million Chinese citizens had gathered together in the square. The military at this time was much larger than this, and there was an abundance of troops prepared to combat the protests at any time. When the protestors gathered on the day of the Tiananmen Square Massacre, the government had no difficulty in sending its military to force the people into submission first by threats, then fatal action against so many that had assembled and died on that day. The size difference of the tank and man is a clear reflection of how the size of the military ensured that the number of protestors was no threat to the Communist government, just as this man stood no chance against four tanks if they so decided to take action against him. 

The intention of both parties in this image is clearly evident from their body language and position. The tanks, although not human, are obviously trying to get somewhere. The man’s position is relaxed – he holds both hands down at his sides and even though he is challenging four military tanks, he does not do so in a threatening position. He stands directly in front of the tanks to prevent any further movement in the direction they wished to go. Historical context tells us this was towards Tiananmen Square, where even more protestors were congregated in unanimous dissatisfaction with the current state of their country. The man’s vulnerable position in front of the tanks indicates that he valued the message of those protestors over his own life. In a battle between four tanks and one man, the tanks would have no difficulty in removing the man from their path, whether it be by firing at him or simply running him over. This means that the tanks were showing some level of constraint, or potentially mercy, against this man. The positions of the two sides reveals that each side had very different goals for where they wanted to go. 

The Chinese people and their government had very different opinions during these hard times. Although both wanted change, the ways of going about that were greatly argued. This image embodies the conflicting sides of the two parties through 1989, as it encompasses the opposition of the Chinese citizens to their corrupt government. Through contrast in color, position, size, and intent, this picture captures the opposing opinions of the Chinese government and their people. 
