Why does gravity bend light?

Answer: Mass curves spacetime itself

Photons have mass — Wrong. Photons are massless. Gravity affects light because mass curves spacetime, and light follows those curves.

Gravity pulls photons directly — Wrong. Gravity doesn't pull photons like it pulls massive objects. Photons have no mass to pull. Light bends because spacetime itself is curved by mass.

Mass curves spacetime itself ✓ — Correct! Einstein's General Relativity: mass/energy curves spacetime itself. Light travels in straight lines through spacetime, but spacetime is curved by massive objects. Result: light's path bends near massive objects—gravitational lensing. Confirmed during 1919 solar eclipse (starlight bent by sun). Used to detect dark matter and distant galaxies!