For my final project, I want to build on Walter Benjamin’s essay “Unpacking My Library.” Benjamin writes about how each book in his collection carries a story. Where it came from, what it meant to him, and how it became part of his life. I really love that idea, because it makes books feel alive, almost like companions that share our experiences.
My project will be a photo story called “The Life of a Book.” It will follow one book through different moments in everyday life. Being bought in a store, carried in a bag, resting on a desk, or sitting beside a cup of coffee. Through these photos, I want to show how a book moves through the world with its reader, quietly collecting pieces of their life. It’s not just something we read and put away, it travels with us, changes with us, and holds memories of the time we spend together.
I will present the project as a digital photo essay with short captions or reflections next to each image. This format lets me show Benjamin’s ideas in a simple, visual way. Instead of writing about how books hold memories, I want to show how a book becomes part of someone’s story. The project is meant to be calm, personal, and a little nostalgic, celebrating the small ways books live alongside us.
I love this plan for creative project. I wonder if you are actually making an argument about how the book is a storage media– one that holds and also reflects its owner. I do want to see you work to develop an argument about what your project tells or shows or demonstrates. I would like to see you work with other scholars and thinkers, than just Benjamin, as his writing is so poetic and obtuse, in a good way. So, I think a bit more is needed here about what you hope your project will demonstrate about the book– is it about storage or reflection or personal intimacy?