Let Us Now Praise Famous Men

When I first read James Agee's reading, Let Us Now Praise Famous Men, I was confused. More than confused, I was just surprised, since I was expecting more of a journalistic, novel-like essay. Instead I found myself reading his essay as a poem even, illustrating the daily lives and representation of three impoverished white tenant families, sharecroopers living in Alabama. The title itself was ironic, and not necessarily indicative of what we were about to read- since they were not really praising famous men- which we tend to automatically assume is also rich men- but rather depicting the agonizing actuality of these families. And that is what Walker Evans' straight photography did as well.Both, Walker Evans photographs and the words of James Agee are depictions of truth and reality. The photographs itself would have done a lot for me. But Agee's writing definitely made the photographs a lot more clear, and much more symbolic, I feel. Although looking at and analyzing every detail the camera captures is worthwhile and can be very fulfilling, it can also be very challenging. I feel as if I got a lot more from having the photographs there to reference to, in addition to the background information- informing us of the experiences of their daily life.