Nate Nesbit
Third World Women Speak
“The photos bother Sirine: they remind her of times she’s known she was dreaming and couldn’t
wake herself up.”
-Abu-Jaber, Crescent pg 37
Sirine isn’t well versed in the art of photography; she has never dabbled in it and isn’t
particularly interested in the subject. Despite her lack of experience in the field, there is
something in the photos that sticks with her, something in the pictures that deeply bothers her.
She unconsciously recognizes that the aptly named art display isn’t about creating art, it’s about
reality and seeing the truth of a person. The name of the display is “Photography Against Art:
Real Seens by Nathan Green”(37) and the title is a large tell as to what the author is trying
communicate with us. Another clue is when she describes how Nathan took his pictures, “he
hunched a little before each shot as if in apology.”(37) Why would he need to apologize? It is
because these photos are not simply photos: they are the essences, the souls, of the people in
them.
Sirine understands this and that is a large part of why these deeply intimate photos bother
her so much. This art display is used as a beginning and foundation for later connections
involving Sirine and her interactions and deliberations with herself. Sirine doesn’t really know
herself and who she is: her physical appearance is an outward sign of her inner turmoil and
confusion. Her deeply Arabic heritage and style of cooking give her firm Arabic roots and yet
she knows nothing of the Middle East or what it means to be an Arab. It doesn’t help her cultural
identity that she is firstly referred to as “Miss Hurry Up American” and described as having
blonde hair, pale white skin and sea-green eyes.
