1. According to Du Bois, the “sorrow songs” give us insight into the feelings of African Americans during the time of slavery. These songs were passed down through generations with people not knowing what the words meant, “but knowing well the meaning of its music.” People can feel the breaths of hope through each tune, which points to the fact that even in the toughest of times, they always had faith that justice would prevail. This cultural expression is essential to the African American experience since it has always been a sense of peace and comfort through racism, discrimination, and segregation. 

2. In my opinion, “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot” is the most significant, because of its extensive message of hope. This song talks about crossing over to freedom from slavery and going to heaven. The display of “faith in death” is so powerful and makes you feel the hope and sorrow that Du Bois describes. 

I think Krukowski was trying to hint at the idea that turning yourself more towards the marginalized (such as record stores or book stores) is a key to taking back power. Today in society, we use these apps run by large corporations that have an algorithm that gives us suggestions of music that is popular and will fit in with our tastes. Rarely will we find a song that is outside our comfort zone, because they only suggest what is familiar to us. As Krukowski says in his podcast, “They are replacing the freedom and chaos that is the internet at large with the control and predictability of their programs.” The only way we can take back the power to look for random music that is not manipulated is when we step into a record or CD store. In stores, you have to dig and sift through every single vinyl record or CD to find something to your liking. Through music, it shows how controlling the powerful (big corporations such as Spotify) is and how you gain back control through the marginalized.

1. In the “Love” episode of Ways of Seeing, Krukowski lays out the argument that digital sound does not provide the same full presentation of the human voice as analog microphones. He mentions the idea that there is a certain intimacy that you can only have with analog and that, “The sound of our voice has gotten worse as we have switched to digital.” While I do agree with this idea to a certain extent, I believe there is a different type of intimacy that can be found through digital microphones. With analog phones, you are very aware you are on the phone. You often had to keep the landline to your ear to hear what the other person was saying. On digital phones, you can put your device on speakerphone, close your eyes, and imagine that the person is just right next to you. While the quality might not be as good, you still can have an intimate conversation while feeling like the person is not a million miles away. 
2. In the New York Times article “How A.S.M.R. Became a Sensation”, I found the idea that A.S.M.R. belongs “to a general complex of safety, caring, connectedness and trust” the most interesting. When A.S.M.R. became quite popular, I never understood the concept. I found some of the sounds satisfying, but I never went out of my way to search for videos. The idea that people are so drawn to A.S.M.R. because some of the sounds are ways that adults soothe infants is a fascinating take from a psychological standpoint. It is interesting to note that this is a way of comfort for people and a possible fill for intimacy that they lack in their everyday lives. 

In his podcast, Krukowski and his guests point out how people are completely caught up with their phones and headphones that they don’t even notice the space around them. Jeremiah Moss describes this as “a private kind of bubble in which to move through public space”. In my own experience, I do witness many other people moving around in these bubbles, but I choose to walk around without headphones. The noises of New York was part of the appeal of the city for me. Every day I used to walk out my door and hear the men on my apartment stoop blasting music having conversations. I enjoy the honking of cars and buses and the rustle of the subway, but many others like to drown out the noise. However, it is interesting to note that these past seven months have been different for NYC sounds. The ambulance sirens have a different meaning. The outdoor noise has become quieter, and the men that used to hang out on my stoop have disappeared. The soundscape of NYC has changed as people are confined to stay inside.

Martin Berger’s theory of how the media often featured photographs of black victims to draw out the sympathy of white people in order to pave the way of civil rights legislation is useful because it sheds light on the difficult problem of this “white savior complex” that in turn downplays and limits the extent for race reform. In all of the images presented by the media with white editors, black people are shown as these poor, helpless victims. This ultimately minimizes what they are fighting for, reducing their whole movement to violence. While it was helpful to show these images to spread awareness of the Civil Rights movement, it was also harmful. The conversation that was being held was about how white people can help these black victims instead of talking about the actual issue of systemic racism in America. Even in today’s media, you can see images of protesters being beaten by the police. Instead of lifting the voices of black people or showing images of these powerful individuals fighting for change, the media consistently decided to portray the protests with images of violence that ultimately discredits what the movement stood for and now what the Black Lives Matter movement stands for today.

1. Berger argues that “publicity” images depict an alternative way of life if we purchase this product. They promise if we modify ourselves or our lives by buying something more, this “more” will make us richer somehow. Their promise of wealth is significant because the reality is you will not be richer but poorer after spending your money. These images play on your fear of not being glamorous along with you wanting to be of a higher social status.                                  
2. These two images that Berger lays out for us are important because, within the differences, you are able to reveal the truth about publicity images. Oil paintings are giving us a picture that shows what type of life a person was living. It showed the person as they already were. With publicity images, the whole picture is a fantasy. From the background to the clothes, each element of the image is carefully created, contorted, and fixed in a way that tells a specific story that goes with the product’s narrative. Everything in the dream-like photo invites us “to enter them but exclude us as we are now.” 
3. Berger acknowledges the dream of “skin” in his video. This “skin” dream offered by advertising shows people with perfect skin and promises their product will make you look like the model. They use editing and lighting to show you this unattainable image of skin that is extremely clear of any texture, has no pores, and is free of acne. Claims made by celebrities or beautiful models telling you that this is their one miracle product, and you can look perfect too if you purchase this item. These empty promises persuade the consumer that they need this product. The consumer is filled with the thoughts of them having perfect skin and looking like this model so they can be prettier, more glamorous, and more desirable. 

Berger argues that women depicted in Renaissance Paintings are seen as objects solely present for the male’s gaze and pleasure. While I believe that this idea remains true to most of the representation of women today in advertising, I also think that there has been a shift in our culture, and women are taking back their sexuality in art. The objectification of women in our society is everywhere you look. Magazines, commercials, and ads often portray women as sexual items to sell random things like beer, perfume, or jeans. Parallels of the portrayal of women can be seen between Renaissance Paintings and a photograph in a magazine. Both women lay around showing submission and portray an ideal body type (large breasts, small waists, large butt). During the Renaissance, artists painted this ideal image, yet today, photoshop is widely used to achieve this standard of beauty. While this is not always the case in mainstream media and there has been a movement toward female empowerment, I do believe that advertising has a long way to go. Although aside from commercial media, I do think more artists and creators are slowly changing things. During the Renaissance, men were the ones creating these images. They painted naked women for their pleasure and to appease their sexuality among other males. They would paint this ideal woman “by taking the shoulders of one body, the hands of another, and so on”, Berger states. Men created these paintings and had power over how to portray these women. Today, more women creators and artists are taking control of how they are being seen. There are now art installations (like Maggie West’s installation “98”) of nude women by women that celebrate female sexuality without objectifying it because the subject is in control. Instead of being shown as timid, submissive, perfect objects, women are showing themselves nude as proud beings. Flipping the narrative from “women being nude has to be seen as objects” as nude women being a celebration of female sexuality.