Ways of Seeing

John Berger is one of Europe's most influential Marxist critics, with considering work. He has been recognized to write in tones such as quiet, powerful, thoughtful and measured. Berger started off his work as a seris on public television. Which made serious claims of what was happening in the United States. Bergers later wrote many books whom he choosed to focus on "the way we estalish our place in the surrounding world; we explain that world with words, but words cad never undo the fact that we are surrounded by it"(97). He also sais that the way we see things is affected by what we actually think of it or believe. We presume things that are believable and think everyone sees what I see. He pointed out, "all images are manmade"(98). Because a picture even the simplest hasbeen given by men many interpretations. The way an image is represented also affects of ways of seeing the real image. Peaple add assumptions many concerning, beauty, civilization, and so on. Berger says these assumptions, "they mistify rather than clarify"(99). After an image has been seen we seem to situate ourselves in them. We are shown pictures of the past and some how we situate ourselves in the past so if we to be kept from seeing this important images its like stealing us the right to know. We accept these mistification of images because like Berger agrees, "we still live in a society of coparable social relations and moral values"(102). Then the camera came and seemed to destroy or rebuilt these mistifications. Now the idea of images were timeless. And that affected the way men saw. Now paintings sometimes have words attached to them to add value. The invisible power of a picture of the past is to share historical experience, "that is to say that experience of seeking to give meaning to our lives, of trying to understand the history of which we can become the active agents"(118). Berger concludes that wher we situate ourselves in history we make the entire past a political issue.