The murder, trial, and funeral of Emmett Till have a strong effect on the national view of southern racism. It forced people to recognize that there were people who were willing to kill African-Americans without legitimate reason and that southern society was willing to coexist with that type of racism. The picture of Emmett's funeral shows his mother weeping beside the casket, the photographer choose to focus on her grief with only the corner of the casket visible as it is carried away. The function of this is to try to get the audience to empathize with Mrs. Till and her grief. It uses a persons natural attempt to glean information from a picture, to force them see that this is not simply a death of a loved one but a death that is tragic and immoral. The funeral itself was an argument in logos, presenting the maimed body of Emmett to leave no doubt in those who came to the funeral of the evil and cruelty with which the murders committed this crime.
I like your post and agree with you that the murder of Emmett Till and the coverage in the media was a pivotal point, because the U.S. needed to do something. Emmett Till was sacrificed not only in his murder, but in the exploitation of his murder. I agree about the maimed body of Emmett, because I believe Emmett’s parents wanted the world to see the brutality and pain that their son suffered and the hurt and agony they have to live with for the rest of their life.
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