A World In Pictures - Meagan Hale

This is a famous picture taken in Times Square on Victory Over Japan Day on August 14th, 1945. A soldier grasps a girl and happily kisses her in the face of victory. So what? What's so important about one man kissing one woman? Well, it's more than just a kiss. It's a celebration. Soldiers can come home now and can stop putting their lives at risk every day. They can settle down and have a family without fear of being taken away. Women can stop fearing their husbands and brothers and friends and sons may not make it home alive. This is the day that America had been waiting for. If you were to do a little research on this picture you would find that these two people were complete strangers. This act was completely spontaneous. That was perfectly fine because now everyone was free to live their lives again. Spontaneity was encouraged. Soldiers were now able to get jobs and have families. Pictures can have a huge impact on others and I am sure the couple in this picture had no idea how many people they would inspire with their sheer happiness and excitement. Others who saw this whether it was the same day or a week later or a year, they got to celebrate all over again after seeing this. When looking at this viewers get a sudden burst of the same happiness those in the image experienced. A picture like this reminds people even today of one thing, victory, and how sweet it tasted.