The Idea of Innocence Faces Two Ways

I chose to go with the quote from John Berger’s Ways of Seeing:

“The idea of innocence faces two ways. By refusing to enter a conspiracy, one remains innocent of that conspiracy. But to remain innocent may also be to remain ignorant” (Berger, 32).

For my movie poster, I emphasize the beginning part of the full Berger quote; “The idea of innocence faces two ways” and have three images as the poster’s background. Berger suggests that innocence can be both a good and a bad thing. Without participating in “conspiracy” or as I am showing in my poster, a political stance, it can keep one’s innocence, keeping them from any wrongdoings. This innocence also becomes ignorance, choosing not to learn or engage with such things leaves one unaware and uninformed. Specifically when it comes to politics in the U.S. currently, when someone says they “don’t do politics” or they just “stay out of it” it clearly indicates someone’s ignorance. It is a privilege to not care about the political state of the country/world.

The first image on the far left is an image from the January 6th storming of the Capitol building in 2021. This image represents a group of people who are fighting for a “true” and more free America under Trump. This innocence they carry is from ignoring facts and refusing to accept the results of an election. Some would call this a peaceful protest, refusing to educate themselves on opposing sides and worldly effects of the event, even though it was an attack on democracy itself. They have a different idea of innocence than someone who is at a peaceful protest fighting for equal rights, as seen in the third photo on the far right. This is a photo of a gay rights march, people fighting for LGBTQ+ equality and equal rights for all. The middle image is the Statue of Liberty, I specifically chose this image because the Statue of Liberty is seen as a symbol of freedom and hope. The images next to the statue of Liberty are both examples of people fighting for what they believe makes them more free, even though their stances are very opposing.