In her essay "On Photography," Ms. Sontag seems to imply that the only way to be a competent thinker is to experience everything in life firsthand. Not o

nly is this goal unrealistic, but unnecessary. It self-righteous to think that simply by witnessing a real event or place in the flesh a person can perfectly understand its significance. Photography allows the astute historian to freeze a moment in time. From there, he has the opportunity to fully grasp the moment's importance by researching the sociopolitical climate, cultural situation of the times, and gain historical perspective, all the while using the photograph as a visual aid. Life should be lived for moment, but moments are fleeting. Only through analyzation and thoughtful interpretation can a person truly understand anything.

The most effective way to understand is to think independently. Regardless of whether they have actually traveled to a place or merely seen

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Approximate Word count = 529
Approximate Pages = 2 (250 words per page double spaced)