The Black Girl - Beca G.

Pair C of photographs juxtaposes the influence of Parisian/Francophile culture in Senegal, as opposed to the strong political message that Diouana’s boyfriend is sending when he is standing in front of the separatist movement’s flag.

In the first photograph, the pair is huddled over a magazine, their bodies very close signifying a close bond. The picture in the magazine is a white French woman holding a baby, and it is sort of a popping image in contrast to the very dark skin of Diouana and her boyfriend. The way that Diouana has her hand placed daintily on the side of the magazine signifies that she is fascinated about the lifestyle that is being presented to her, yet her boyfriend’s pose with his hand covering the picture, shows that he does not really buy into the French lifestyle. His body language is also more angular and aggressive, showing that out of the two of them, he has perhaps more power in the situation. However, in the events of the film, he is still unable to keep Diouana from leaving for France.

In juxtaposition, the way that Diouana’s boyfriend is standing aggressively in front of a flag depicting a liberation movement’s leader, obviously gives away that he is not fascinated by French culture like his girlfriend. The boyfriend is so clearly against it, not only in the way that he gets upset when Diouana decides to go, but also in the way that he grows angry when she wears the dress given to her by the mistress. He does not appreciate the way that she so gleefully disregards his feelings about the French and their rule over the Senegalese.