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Hoe Culture In An American Exodus

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The second image in An American Exodus: A Record of Human Erosion (1939), a book she compiled with her husband Paul Taylor, reinforces this type of dual message through a body part. ‘‘Hoe Culture’’ (Alabama, 1937) shows dark, worn, strong hands holding the end of a hoe (see Figure 3). We don’t see thek blade or the field, just a man’s forearms, fingers, tattered shirt, and patched pants, suggesting an individual fragmented by the relentless need to work. To some degree, these working conditions have taken away his individuality, reducing him to a tool or part, but this reduction does not completely define him. His hands imply a whole that is strong and resilient, showing his body to be a site for physical strain and survival. Similarly, in
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