Write a 2QCQ (2 Quotations-a comment-a question) that synthesizes at least two of these works in any combination of painting/poem/essay. To write a 2QCQ: Choose 1 quotation or example from 2 different works. Write at least 5 sentences that comment on what you see in each example separately and, importantly, what becomes visible as you bring them together. Use this synthesis to raise a question or set of questions for discussion. Your question should be interpretive/analytical in nature, open-ended (not a yes/no question), and follow directly from your commentary.
Q: “Who is this little girl with doll and lamb?” – John Seeyle, Mourning Picture
“I am Effie, invisible and visible, remembering and remembered” – Adrienne Rich, Mourning Picture
C: I really enjoyed reading these two pieces together as I felt like they build off one another in terms of context. Starting with Seelye’s piece, I found it to be very ambiguous in describing what the actual image was showing and instead giving more of a lyrical response to it. It felt as if the girl in the photograph was a symbol for a larger concept, that being all Victorian girls who passed at young ages. Opposite of Seelye’s piece, Rich provides a much more straightforward response to the image by taking a first-person perspective. It was easier to follow for me as I could look at the image and believe the description they were assigning it. In putting these two together, it felt like a whole picture was made. Not only was I able to understand the image itself in context from Rich, but Seely’s work specifically added a larger meaning, which I believe is a commentary on pre-mature death tolls in the Victorian era. Also when put together, how grief can be haunting and ever-present despite the passed individual being gone.
Q: Who are the individuals being depicted in these images if not those described by either Rich or Seelye? What historical event or series of events is this image/its purpose tied to? Would this image look different or be interpreted differently if put in the context of today’s society/ 21st century?
