Essay about Belonging

Belonging means different things to different people. The most common definition is feeling a sense of connectedness to a person, place or thing. Understanding nourishes belonging while a lack of understanding can prevent people from belonging. This is shown through Peter Skrzynecki’s poem ‘Migrant hostel’ which is about the challenges faced by travelers on their journey, and the hardships they have to overcome by exchanging their old world for the unfamiliar and unwelcoming new world in which they don’t understand anything. Skrzynecki’s poem ‘Feliks Skryznecki’ explores a relationship between father and son, and their contrasting experiences of belonging to a new place. The related text, ‘The Red Tree,’ by Shaun Tan also shows that a lack

A fundamental part of human existence and interaction is the notion of belonging or identifying with a group. Groups form and exist for various reasons and purposes, comprising of individuals similar or diverse in nature, that often work together toward a common goal (Stanhope & Lancaster, 2014). In 1902, the American sociologist by the name of C. H. Cooley, made distinction between primary and secondary groups. Cooley (1902) classified primary group to have intimate and comparatively permanent associations as one might find in a cohort of close friends, or a family. The groups or associations in which individuals related to each other through formal and often legalistic rules, were classified as secondary groups (Nolen, 2010).

It is a well-known fact that belonging to a group can make an individual feel not only accepted, but more powerful that if they were on their own. Whether it is a community, youth group or even religion, belonging is an everyday occurrence of like that many of us do not even realise. Belonging to a group is more influential than belonging to an individual. We can see this in the texts The Crucible by Arthur Miller, 1984 by George Orwell and the listening task. Belonging to a group can give you a feeling of acceptance, but also can help you not to be targeted or marginalised. Also, people who appear to belong to groups, when looked at closer, in truth do not belong. Belonging to a group can also give you more power as a

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An individual’s relationship with others and the places which surround them can have an effect on the individual’s sense of self-worth and their feelings of belonging. This notion is conveyed through the use of language techniques in both the set of poems “Feliks Skrzynecki”, “St Patrick’s College” and “Migrant Hostel” from Peter Skrzynecki’s anthology Immigrant Chronicles (1975) and the novel The Story of Tom Brennan (2005) composed by J.C. Burke.

Belonging is the connection to person place, or thing. Belonging can have a positive impacts for example, immigrants arriving in a new country and bad examples can include someone blending into a bad population. Poems 'Migrant Hostel ' and '10 Mary Street ' portray belonging via literary techniques by Peter Skrzynecki, and also 'The Lost Thing ' by Shaun Tan convey belonging and how ones choices and attitudes of others affect the sense of acceptance. 'Migrant Hostel ' includes poet Skrzynecki and his family living in a hostel along with other Polish migrants, Peter Skrzynecki documents his experiences, as well as the

People’s perceptions of belonging can change over time, but this isn’t the case for all. When people experience moments of crisis in their lives they sometimes force a change within themselves and that is what helps them find an individual sense of belonging. This is highlighted in many texts and even composers life works. Texts that support this statement include Peter Skrzynecki’s Immigrant Chronicle poems, of which I have chosen St Patricks College and Feliks Skrzynecki. Skrzynecki’s poetry expresses the difficulties he faces when change doesn’t occur throughout time, as time alone isn’t a factor and that your sense of belonging is something that comes from within, with or without anyone.

‘An individual’s interaction with others and the world around them can enrich or limit their experience of belonging.’

Belonging is having a connection between a place, person or possession. This relationship is based on how one feels about these bonds. Through Peter Skrzynecki’s two poems “Ancestors” and “10 Mary street” we look at how a sense of belonging Is not permanent. Through the use of related texts the understanding of this statement is better gripped. The movie “The Help” written and directed by Tate Taylor, this text includes two worlds that are separated by skin colour brought together by one book. The colourful picture book “Where the wild things are” Written and illustrated in 1963 by Maurice Sendak includes

This evident transience is perhaps symbolic of the migrants' own fleeting sense of connection as they instinctively seek out members of their own culture, efficaciously conveyed through the use of a familiar analogy – “nationalities sought/each other out instinctively – like a homing pigeon/circling to get its bearings”. These superficial relationships thus serve to hinder the development of any lasting sense of belonging – regardless of a common history and identity – as, whilst for some migrants, their time in the hostel represents a new beginning, for others the sustained sense of alienation and despair, due to a lack of strong relationships, becomes too difficult to bear, as the final lines of the poem poignantly suggest through juxtaposition – “lives/that had only begun/or were dying”. Thus a feeling of belonging depends on a strong relationship, developed over a period of time.

“We belong … like fish in water. We’re in our environment.” This quote from the New York Times shows the perception of belonging as the idea about connecting to a place, person, group or a community. 'Feliks Skrzynecki' by Peter Skrzynecki, 'I'm nobody! Who are you?' by Emily Dickinson and 'The Rabbits' by John Marsden & Shaun Tan show the concept of belonging as being contrasted towards the New York Times quote, showing the alienation and non-existent connection towards it. These texts have furthered my understanding on the perceptions of belonging by recognising the different concepts of connection to people, places and things.

What do you think the most powerful influences that impact on an individual’s sense of belonging?

The need to belong in an integral part of the human psyche. All people, on some level, desire to feel a sense of belonging that will emerge from the connections made with people, places, groups, communities and the larger world. Belonging cannot be achieved without an understanding of oneself and their surroundings.

There are numerous factors that either make up or restrain the self-identity of a person or an individual. Culture, in addition to family traditions, is one of the factors that affect the self-identity of an individual. When growing up, the environment around affect the personality, values, as well as, beliefs of an individual. The environment includes friends, family members, and the people that affect the life of an individual. So, if the environment is negative, then an individual will have low self esteem.

A person’s basic human need to belong to people, places and circumstances can fuel many of their actions throughout their life. For some people a sense of belonging can be difficult to obtain. The struggle to belong is represented in many ways in the 1998 memoir, ‘Romulus, My Father’ by Raimond Gaita. Through Gaita’s employment of various writing techniques and his recollection of past events and adversities, the reader becomes aware of the many struggles of the characters, particularly to belong to the Australian culture and landscape. In the 2001 short story ‘Mate’,