From the poem's title, I predicted it stands for a symbol of an iconic image that portrays horrific depiction of the war on poverty, and how children are affected by it. The history behind the title also offers a point of entry into a set of interlocking questions about how women living in other countries are treated unfairly, especially if they come from poor families. Photograph of the Girl can have many impacts on viewers. People can begin feeling compassion, hurt, or even begin remembering a certain point in their life when they suffered certain pain or abuse. Thus, a photograph is a reflection of our own suffering. It represents the truth that a viewer chooses to invent. .
Sharon Olds used a certain photograph to explore identity, poverty, hunger, discrimination, and inequality. For centuries, women living in poverty suffered from abuse, had lack of education and healthcare. As a girl born into poverty, she might have been abandoned and left to die because certain countries only allow one-child per household. This policy has encouraged the abandonment of female infants and traditional bias for sons, because they don't believe women are capable of continuing the family legacy, or providing financial security for the family. Thus, the girl in the photograph is uncertain about her future because an unwanted baby is never registered, so that means, she begins to suffer for the rest of her life. .
It wasn't until I read this poem that I was able to remember a time in my life where I suffered sexual abuse from my father and uncle. It's not like I ever forgot it, I just tried to block it out of my memory. I didn't want to relive the torture and abuse I had to suffer at the hands of the people who were supposed to protect me. Because of the abuse, I felt abandoned, hurt, and disconnected from the rest of the world. I even made some very poor choices in life, that till this day I have to live with for the rest of my life.
