密歇根新闻广播 一张具有纪念意义的"活照片"

 

Imagine choreographing¹ thousands of people into formations to look like famous things like the Liberty Bell, or the Statue of Liberty.

Sound like a stunt²? Maybe a little nutty?

Well, that's exactly what Arthur S. Mole³ and John D. Thomas did in the early 20th century.

Their project photographed in Michigan at Camp Custer near Battle Creek⁴ was their most ambitious. Mole and Thomas arranged 30,000 military troops into the U.S. Shield.

Intended to rally public morale⁵ during World War One, these pictures had a big impact on the American political landscape.

Louis Kaplan, a Professor of History and Theory of Photography and New Media at the University of Toronto, describes how Arthur S. Mole and John D. Thomas were the first to use propaganda in the form of mass photography.

Doing extra service that served to rally the country, troops would sometimes have to stand for many hours to get angling and perspective just right.

Kaplan describes Mole climbing atop an 80-foot tower. He used a microphone, body language, and a long pole with a white flag attached at the end to conduct and align⁶ the troops into formation.

1 choreographing   

v.设计舞蹈动作( choreograph的现在分词 )

参考例句：

2 stunt   

n.惊人表演，绝技，特技；vt.阻碍...发育，妨碍...生长

参考例句：

• Lack of the right food may stunt growth.缺乏适当的食物会阻碍发育。
• Right up there is where the big stunt is taking place.那边将会有惊人的表演。

3 mole   

n.胎块；痣；克分子

参考例句：

• She had a tiny mole on her cheek.她的面颊上有一颗小黑痣。
• The young girl felt very self- conscious about the large mole on her chin.那位年轻姑娘对自己下巴上的一颗大痣感到很不自在。

4 creek   

n.小溪，小河，小湾

参考例句：

• He sprang through the creek.他跳过小河。
• People sunbathe in the nude on the rocks above the creek.人们在露出小溪的岩石上裸体晒日光浴。

5 morale   

n.道德准则，士气，斗志

参考例句：

• The morale of the enemy troops is sinking lower every day.敌军的士气日益低落。
• He tried to bolster up their morale.他尽力鼓舞他们的士气。

6 align   

vt.使成一线，结盟，调节；vi.成一线，结盟

参考例句：

• Align the ruler and the middle of the paper.使尺子与纸张的中部成一条直线。
• There are signs that the prime minister is aligning himself with the liberals.有迹象表明首相正在与自由党人结盟。