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Scroll.in
14 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Scroll.in
Poet Walt Whitman used photography to curate his image – but ended up more lost than found
When I read and study Walt Whitman's poetry, I often imagine what he would've done if he had a smartphone and an Instagram account. Unlike many of his contemporaries, the poet collected an ' abundance of photographs ' of himself, as Whitman scholar Ed Folsom points out. And like many people today who snap and post thousands of selfies, Whitman, who lived during the birth of commercial photography, used portraits to craft a version of the self that wasn't necessarily grounded in reality. One of those portraits, taken by photographer Curtis Taylor, was commissioned by Whitman in the 1870s. In it, the poet is seated nonchalantly, with a moth or butterfly appearing to have landed on his outstretched finger. According to at least two of his friends, Philadelphia attorney Thomas Donaldson and nurse Elizabeth Keller, this was Whitman's favorite photograph. Though he told his friends that the winged insect happened to land on his finger during the shoot, it turned out to be a cardboard prop. Feigned spontaneity The scene with the butterfly reflects one of the main themes of Whitman's Leaves of Grass his best-known collection of poems: The universe is naturally drawn to the poet. 'To me the converging objects of the world perpetually flow,' he insists in ' Song of Myself.' 'I have instant conductors all over me whether I pass or stop,' Whitman adds. 'They seize every object and lead it harmlessly through me.' Whitman told Horace Traubel, the poet's close friend and earliest biographer, that '[y]es – that was an actual moth, the picture is substantially literal.' Likewise, he told historian William Roscoe Thayer: 'I've always had the knack of attracting birds and butterflies and other wild critters.' Of course, historians now know that the butterfly was, in fact, a cutout, which currently resides at the Library of Congress. So what was Whitman doing? Why would he lie? I can't get inside his head, but I suspect he wanted to impress his audience, to verify that the protagonist of Leaves of Grass, the one with 'instant conductors,' was not a fictional creation. Today's selfies often give the impression of having been taken on the spot. In reality, many of them are a carefully calculated creative act. Media scholars James E Katz and Elizabeth Thomas Crocker have argued that most selfie-takers strive for informality even as they carefully stage the images. In other words, the selfie weds the spontaneous to the intentional. Whitman does exactly this, presenting a designed photo as if it were a happy accident. Too much me As Whitman biographer Justin Kaplan notes, no other writer at the time 'was so systematically recorded or so concerned with the strategic uses of his pictures and their projective meanings for himself and the public.' The poet jumped at the opportunity to have his photo taken. There is, for instance, the famous portrait of the young, carefree poet that was used as the frontispiece for the first edition of Leaves of Grass. Or the 1854 photograph of a bearded and unkempt Whitman, likely captured by Gabriel Harrison. Or the 1869 image of Whitman smiling lovingly at Peter Doyle, the poet's intimate friend and probable lover. Some social scientists have argued that today's selfies can aid in the search for one's ' authentic self ' – figuring out who you are and understanding what makes you tick. Other researchers have taken a less rosy view of the selfie, warning that snapping too many can be a sign of low self-esteem and can, paradoxically, lead to identity confusion, particularly if they're taken to seek external validation. Whitman spent his life searching for what he termed the 'Me myself' or the 'real Me.' Photography provided him another medium, besides poetry, to carry on this search. But it seems to have ultimately failed him. Having collected these images, he would then obsessively chew over what they all added up to, ultimately finding that he was far more lost than found in this sea of portraits. I wonder if – to use today's parlance – Whitman 'scrolled' his way into a crisis of self-identity, overwhelmed by the sheer number of photos he possessed and the various, contradictory selves they represented. 'I meet new Walt Whitmans every day,' he once said. 'There are a dozen of me afloat. I don't know which Walt Whitman I am.'
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
White House shows off a stern-looking Trump portrait with a knock-off Austin Powers twist
The White House just unveiled a new presidential portrait of Donald Trump, and the administration appeared to use a knock-off version of the Austin Powers movie theme to make the reveal in a video posted on X on Monday. The official portrait replaced one introduced earlier this year for Trump's inauguration. The new close-up image shows a stern-looking Trump in closeup wearing a navy suit and a red tie against a dark backdrop. The posting on social media shows a sped-up time-lapse of a staffer hanging the portrait as the bootleg version of Quincy Jones' Soul Bossa Nova — the music used as the theme to Mike Meyers' series of Austin Powers comedies — plays in the background. The portrait utilizes high contrast and dark shadows across the president's face. The first portrait released for Trump's second term featured different lighting and a background, with a more evenly lit image, showing the president wearing a blue tie in front of an American flag. Both portraits stand out from the one used by Trump in his first term, which was brightly lit and showed a smiling Trump in a blue tie, also in front of an American flag. Trump's new image is the first presidential portrait not to feature an American flag in the background since Richard Nixon's in 1969, according to a gallery on the website of the Library of Congress. Most presidential portraits before Nixon's predecessor, Gerald Ford, tended to be set against a plain background. The White House website and President Trump's Facebook account have been updated to feature the new portrait, which has been hung in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building adjacent to the West Wing. The expression in Trump's two portraits from this year is similar to the one seen in his Georgia mug shot from two years ago. His supporters used the image of the president at the Fulton County jail to depict him standing up against what they viewed as the deep state. The Trump campaign was quick to capitalize on the image, putting it on hordes of merchandise. In March, Trump complained about a portrait in the Colorado Capitol, which he claimed was 'purposefully distorted,' and told Democratic Governor Jared Polis to remove it. The portrait was commissioned during his first term and had hung in the Capitol since 2019, but Colorado's Republican lawmakers took swift action to remove it.
Boston Globe
2 days ago
- General
- Boston Globe
White House unveils a new, darker presidential portrait
Trump's portrait from his first term showed him standing in front of an American flag with a blue tie, brightly lit and smiling. The absence of the American flag in the most recent portrait is a departure from contemporary tradition. A gallery of past portraits on the website of the Library of Congress shows that the flag has appeared in every official presidential photograph since Gerald Ford's, which was released by the White House in 1974. Advertisement Before Ford, most presidents were shown against a plain backdrop, as Trump is in his latest portrait. The new photograph has already been added to the White House's website.
New York Times
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- New York Times
White House Unveils a New, Even Darker Presidential Portrait
A new official portrait of President Trump has been unveiled by the White House, replacing an earlier photograph that was released for Mr. Trump's inauguration this year. The portrait, revealed by the White House in a short video on Monday, shows Mr. Trump, wearing a red tie, in close-up against a dark backdrop. His face, bearing a stern expression, is accentuated by high contrast and dark shadows. The lighting and background differ from the portrait released for Mr. Trump's inauguration, which was more evenly lit but still subdued, and showed the president in a blue tie in front of an American flag. Mr. Trump's portrait from his first term showed him standing in front of an American flag with a blue tie, brightly lit and smiling. The absence of the American flag in the most recent portrait is a departure from contemporary tradition. A gallery of past portraits on the website of the Library of Congress shows that the flag has appeared in every official presidential photograph since Gerald Ford's, which was released by the White House in 1974. Before Mr. Ford, most presidents were shown against a plain backdrop, as Mr. Trump is in his latest portrait. The new photograph has already been added to the White House's website.
Indian Express
2 days ago
- Science
- Indian Express
The mystery of ‘zombie ants': How a mind-controlling fungus hijacks nature
A fascinating and eerily sophisticated biological puppet show unfolds deep in tropical forests worldwide. The star is Ophiocordyceps unilateralis, a parasitic fungus that transforms carpenter ants into 'zombies,' manipulating them with remarkable precision to ensure its survival. The process begins when an unsuspecting ant encounters a fungal spore. The spore penetrates the ant's protective exoskeleton using a combination of enzymes and pressure. Once inside, the fungus begins its insidious takeover, spreading throughout the ant's body while carefully avoiding its brain. What happens next is both fascinating and disturbing. The infected ant abandons its normal behaviour and colony responsibilities, entering what scientists call the 'zombie phase.' As reported by The Atlantic, the fungus compels the ant to climb 'exactly 25 centimeters above the forest floor, no more and no less' — a height that provides optimal conditions for fungal growth. The ant then clamps its jaws onto a leaf vein in a death grip, where it remains until its final moments. The fungus's manipulation of its host is extraordinarily precise despite its lack of a brain or nervous system. Recent research has revealed surprising insights into how this control is achieved. According to the Library of Congress, researchers discovered that rather than attacking the brain directly, the fungus appears to control the ant's muscles. The fungus grows around the brain while infiltrating every other part of the ant's body, suggesting a sophisticated method of behavioural control that scientists are still working to understand. A post shared by Inside History (@insidehistory) The Atlantic reports an even more remarkable finding: the fungal cells work cooperatively, forming a complex network within the ant's body. As Pennsylvania State University entomologist David Hughes's research revealed, the fungal cells connect through specialised tubes, allowing them to 'communicate and exchange nutrients.' This network essentially turns the fungus into a colonial organism, much like the ants it parasitises. The grand finale of this biological horror show occurs when a fungal stalk erupts from the dead ant's head, releasing spores onto unsuspecting ants below. This strategic positioning ensures the cycle continues, as the spores rain down on foraging trails used by the ant's former nestmates. Despite its terrifying efficiency in controlling ants, O. unilateralis faces its own challenges. The Library of Congress notes that this fungus has its own parasites — hyperparasites like Niveomyces coronatus and Torrubiellomyces zombiae that may help keep its lethal effects in check, preventing it from completely decimating ant populations.
