An Outsider Looking In

Name: Kayla Ann Lefler

Age: 21

Height: 5'3"

Weight: 118 lbs.

Hair Color: Blonde

Eye Color: Blue

Hometown: Cumberland, Maryland

Accent: West Virginia Hick/Southern Belle

From Sophie Calle

Name: Anne Marie Thompson

Age: 21

Height: 5'3"

Weight: 118 lbs.

Hair Color: Brown

Eye Color: Brown

Hometown: Brighton and Hove, Sussex County, England

Accent: British

From Sophie Calle

The best way to discover the truth about American culture is to pretend to be uninfluenced by it. As Anne Thompson, I dropped the American cultural pretexts of my life (as much as I could) by assuming the cultural habits of an another country: England. I chose a name, desired features, a fashion style, a hometown. I studied the accent, the mannerisms, and the slang. I created an alias.

Location: The University Mall

Date and Time: Saturday, February 27th, 8:00 pm

Background Information: Upon approaching people, I asked them for their help. I told them I was an International student at BYU, and that for one of my classes I needed to take pictures of things/people I thought represented American culture well. I did not tell people where I was from or my name in order to see if people took an interest in who I was.

Most people I just picked at random. I tried to choose a variety of people in order to capture all the different manifestations of American culture. I found myself judging people based on how attractive or well-dressed they were as to whether they would be helpful or not. I admit that my own insecurities had an effect on the people I chose to approach. All people I approached allowed me to take their picture.

Subject # 1: Two teenage boys, most likely in high school, that had nothing better to do on a Saturday night than sit at the mall. The boy on the left was a show-off the whole time, and gave me pose after pose for each picture. The boy on the right only looked up from his text messaging to ask me for a hug for a "competition" they were doing with some other guys in the mall. I hugged them both. No personal questions were asked of me.

From Sophie Calle

Subject # 2: A family in the food court. The mother was very willing to help. She called her husband, who was waiting in line for food, to come over and be in the picture too. She said, "Oh come'on hunny, she is a BYU student." He got in the picture, but was not happy about it. After the photo she said, "I hope that works for you," but did not ask any questions.

From Sophie Calle

Subject #3: College students dressed up for an 80s roller rink party. The students were very bubbly, nice, and helpful. They asked me where I was from, the first group to do so. Taking a picture of them was easy.

From Sophie Calle

They were genuinely interested in me, and insisted on a picture together but did not ask for my name.

From Sophie Calle

Subject #4: A father and his two kids. Upon hearing my accent, the father immediately asked if I was from England. I replied yes. He then told me he served his mission in London, I was mortified. I asked him if I could take the picture, he said yes but he wanted to wait for his wife. He asked what stake I lived in, I fumbled. He asked if I married a Brit, I said no. He asked if my parents were okay with that, I said they thought it was strange at first, but they had gotten over it. His wife was taking way too long, and I was running out of answers. I asked if I could take the picture right then, he agreed but said he first had to make a "proper pose" first. I took two pictures, thanked him, and left immediately. He was interested in who I was, and I could sense him making an effort to ask questions with the hope of finding common ground. Unfortunately, I knew their wasn't any so I had to make a quick exit.

From Sophie Calle

Subject # 5: Young lady at the hair accessory kiosk. She was reading a book and I interrupted her. She seemed reluctant about the picture, but got off her stool anyway. She stood with her hands clasped nervously. The colorful stand made her look happy, sweet, and playful.

From Sophie Calle

But when she thought I was done, I took another picture. The cheeriness turned artificial. She did not ask a single question and said "Ok, bye" as soon as I thanked her for helping.

From Sophie Calle

Subject # 6: A young man at the tutu kiosk. He was sitting on his stool texting, he had been for a while. I interrupted him and asked for the picture. He slumped out of the stool and sulked over in front of the stand. I took a few pictures then he turned around and went back to his stool and phone. No words were said.

From Sophie Calle

Subject # 7: Two beautiful women in Forever 21. Both women had flawless make-up. Their hairstyles and clothes were quite fashionable, yet both were insecure. The women on the left asked if she had to be in the picture, but then added that I had a beautiful voice. The girl on the right wanted to view the picture afterward to ensure she looked alright, and then asked to see my wedding ring. No other questions were asked.

From Sophie Calle

Subject # 8: Two boys I passed on the way out of the mall. I asked if I could take their picture and they said cool. These two boys were the most relaxed and casual about their photo, and yet they still managed to be memorable to me. The words "cool" and "see ya" were all I heard from them.

From Sophie Calle

Things I learned about American culture:


1. Text messaging is vitally important.
2. Insecurity is everywhere.
3. People want to be helpful, but don't want to waste time.
4. Talking to strangers is awkward.
5. Not a single person asked my name.