Places and People

Source:  http://ocw.mit.edu/ans7870/21f/21f.027/beato_places/fb1_visnav01.html


This is an image of a view of the harbor in Nagasaki. This harbor isn't artificial, rather a natural one. There are some vessels sailing in the harbor.  There is also a large area of many houses surrounding the harbor, and in the distance there are high hills surrounding the houses and commercial area. The high hilltops is important in that they are natural windbreaks on all sides.  And the whole layout of the hills signify protection of the main commercial and residential areas.  It's sheltering the terrain from strong winds and bad weather. The wide front of the harbor is also important for traffic movement and transshipping.  There's a long and wide plank alongside the harbor.  The stretched terrain contains a flourishing foreign settlement, and a large amount of inhabitants laid-out, snaking up through the hillsides. Also, many western-style houses are visible all around the harbor. I see it signifying that Japanese culture has assimilated into western culture. In addition, the large amount of inhabitants could be an indication that this harbor is the ideal natural place for commerce.







Source:  http://ocw.mit.edu/ans7870/21f/21f.027/beato_people/fb2_visnav01.html

This is an image of a man holding a wooden stick, dressed in ragged clothes.  He seems to be penniless. He's wearing a filthy and tattered garments.  He is also wearing a light blue head wrap.  Next to him looks like a knapsack-- a sack connected to a wooden pole, which is about the same height as the man.  By the way he is dressed, it looks like it is pretty cold outside.  Also, the way that he has his arms crossed over his chest can be an indication that he's very cold.  It looks very lonely since he doesn't have any friends or families around him.  It can be inferred that he is homeless and has nowhere to stay. By the look of his gaze it looks like he sees some sort of shelter, or maybe he is spotting someone with food at a street stall.  

After reading the caption, I realized that coolie in Japanese is nin-soku. Nin means "man", and soku means "help".  In other words, he is a man of labor which explains the ensemble of his clothing being ragged.  Overall, his garments represent homelessness, and the whole image itself evokes the state of solitude.