semiotic cricket
The BBC website includes a series of seven pictures of Bush playing cricket in Pakistan. This bizarre meeting of cultures is deemed worthy of greater analysis:
Picture 1: Bush with Inzamam-ul-haq, the Pakistani captain, and Salman Butt, the young opening batsman. Inzamam is one of the broadest sporting superstars in the world. He looks suspiciously like a Pakistani version of Clooney in Syriana. (A film which also contains its cricket reference). Butt has his hands in his pockets, and looks at the President as though he’s faintly amused/ bemused. This suggests Bush is good at putting people at ease or hard to take seriously. Or perhaps both. In one hand Bush holds a cricket ball, in the other, some books. His belt has a Texan twang, looking like something you’d buy at Camden market.
Picture 2: Bush is at the crease, holding the bat in one hand, his arms raised in a faintly simian pose. Behind him, Inzamam walks away whilst schoolchildren in cricket whites look on. One child looks like he might be putting a bail up his nostril. Bush looks ridiculous, one foot just off the ground. There is the air of a high spirited circus.
Picture 3: Bush is batting in the nets. He looks away as a tennis ball is about to strike him/ has just struck him on the shoulder. His grip of the bat and posture are reasonable, not too reminiscent of baseball. He is still wearing his watch, implying that nothing too threatening is being bowled in his direction. His eye is off the ball. In fact it is nowhere near the ball.
Picture 4: Again in the nets, Bush strikes the ball. His posture is reasonable, he is hitting through the line, not across, against his baseball instincts. Bush has an expression of concentration and satisfaction on his face, as he follows the trajectory of the ball. It looks as though he’s starting to get the hang of things. The clue to the picture is in the posture of the young wicketkeeper stood behind, whose hands are excessively relaxed. There was clearly no menace in the delivery. The wicketkeeper’s trousers have retained their neat crease. His expression is benign, almost paternal, even though he looks young enough to be the batsman’s grandson.
Picture 5: In some ways the most beautiful of them all. Bush has three teenagers beside him. He looks as though he is preparing to bowl. The teenager in the middle looks at the President as though she is not sure what to make of him. Is he mad? Is he a clown? If he is (and his facial expression supports this perspective) what does that mean? Her bemusement carries a hint of concern.
Picture 6: The President bowls. As the caption suggest this looks more like a baseball action than a cricket one. Nevertheless, it is executed with gusto. The President is game. His lips are pursed. One young man with a hint of a moustache and a teenager look on. The former has dirty shoes which are not as neat as his clean, new whites. In the background is a sign saying ISLAMABAD and CRICKET. These remind us both that cricket is the most popular and lucrative sport in the Indian sub-continent, and of the fact that Bush, famously, did not know the name of the President of Pakistan before his first election. This whole photoshoot has been designed to increase his visibility and popularity in the region. Pakistan has become a key player in Washington strategy. Bush wants to be seen playing their game. As a reminder of security issues, the shaven head of a white man can be seen in the background. He has no interest in the cricket and his burly form implies he could be plain clothes US security.
Picture 7: The money shot. Bush holds his bat out towards the camera and winks. The wink says that he’s a good sport. It is confidently executed. Two wealthy looking elder statesman stand beside him. He’s in more comfortable surroundings. The bat is no longer something he has to use: it has become a prop. Most of all, we see Bush’s grasp of the art of photogenics. He knows exactly where the camera is and plays to it. Like a model, or an actor. He looks more self-assured than in any other photo. He’s been bold, he’s executed his mission (to play cricket/ to make himself more popular with another demographic), he can afford a certain macho smugness.
Picture 1: Bush with Inzamam-ul-haq, the Pakistani captain, and Salman Butt, the young opening batsman. Inzamam is one of the broadest sporting superstars in the world. He looks suspiciously like a Pakistani version of Clooney in Syriana. (A film which also contains its cricket reference). Butt has his hands in his pockets, and looks at the President as though he’s faintly amused/ bemused. This suggests Bush is good at putting people at ease or hard to take seriously. Or perhaps both. In one hand Bush holds a cricket ball, in the other, some books. His belt has a Texan twang, looking like something you’d buy at Camden market.
Picture 2: Bush is at the crease, holding the bat in one hand, his arms raised in a faintly simian pose. Behind him, Inzamam walks away whilst schoolchildren in cricket whites look on. One child looks like he might be putting a bail up his nostril. Bush looks ridiculous, one foot just off the ground. There is the air of a high spirited circus.
Picture 3: Bush is batting in the nets. He looks away as a tennis ball is about to strike him/ has just struck him on the shoulder. His grip of the bat and posture are reasonable, not too reminiscent of baseball. He is still wearing his watch, implying that nothing too threatening is being bowled in his direction. His eye is off the ball. In fact it is nowhere near the ball.
Picture 4: Again in the nets, Bush strikes the ball. His posture is reasonable, he is hitting through the line, not across, against his baseball instincts. Bush has an expression of concentration and satisfaction on his face, as he follows the trajectory of the ball. It looks as though he’s starting to get the hang of things. The clue to the picture is in the posture of the young wicketkeeper stood behind, whose hands are excessively relaxed. There was clearly no menace in the delivery. The wicketkeeper’s trousers have retained their neat crease. His expression is benign, almost paternal, even though he looks young enough to be the batsman’s grandson.
Picture 5: In some ways the most beautiful of them all. Bush has three teenagers beside him. He looks as though he is preparing to bowl. The teenager in the middle looks at the President as though she is not sure what to make of him. Is he mad? Is he a clown? If he is (and his facial expression supports this perspective) what does that mean? Her bemusement carries a hint of concern.
Picture 6: The President bowls. As the caption suggest this looks more like a baseball action than a cricket one. Nevertheless, it is executed with gusto. The President is game. His lips are pursed. One young man with a hint of a moustache and a teenager look on. The former has dirty shoes which are not as neat as his clean, new whites. In the background is a sign saying ISLAMABAD and CRICKET. These remind us both that cricket is the most popular and lucrative sport in the Indian sub-continent, and of the fact that Bush, famously, did not know the name of the President of Pakistan before his first election. This whole photoshoot has been designed to increase his visibility and popularity in the region. Pakistan has become a key player in Washington strategy. Bush wants to be seen playing their game. As a reminder of security issues, the shaven head of a white man can be seen in the background. He has no interest in the cricket and his burly form implies he could be plain clothes US security.
Picture 7: The money shot. Bush holds his bat out towards the camera and winks. The wink says that he’s a good sport. It is confidently executed. Two wealthy looking elder statesman stand beside him. He’s in more comfortable surroundings. The bat is no longer something he has to use: it has become a prop. Most of all, we see Bush’s grasp of the art of photogenics. He knows exactly where the camera is and plays to it. Like a model, or an actor. He looks more self-assured than in any other photo. He’s been bold, he’s executed his mission (to play cricket/ to make himself more popular with another demographic), he can afford a certain macho smugness.
posted by maldoror at 1:41 p. m.
0 Comments:
Publicar un comentario
<< Home