Joy of Mother and Child

This photograph was taken by Arthur Rothstein during The Great Depression. it depicts a negro mother holding her infant child. The first thing I noticed about this picture, was that it depicts a moment of happiness during a time in the country when times were tough for everyone. With this depiction centering around a mother and her young infant child, I get a feeling of unity and serenity, this is also emphasized by the other members of the family in the background. I can see in this photo that the vantage point is on level with the people being taken, which to me symbolizes a certain kind of equality in the essence of the picture. This picture to me symbolizes the bond of a family during hard times. Though times during this period in the US were very tough and unforgiving for the majority of folks, this photo shows that people could still live and be joyous.
I feel that this photo showed me a side of that period I was not familiar with, I had always thought of The Great Depression as being this horrible, depressing event, but this provides me a view of it that shows even during such a time, people can still find time to be happy. The sun shining on the woman really emphasizes the brightness of the situation. I also notice in the photo how there is an older white man in the background. Though his relationship to the negro family is undetermined, I get the feeling there is some sort of bond between him and them, this to me shows the general attachment some people had to each other during this time period, regardless of their background.
I think that Arthur Rothstein took this photo to show a lighter side of The Great Depression, to show a simple moment of joy between a mother and child, that even during such a had time, being with your family smiling can make things just a little bit better.