Belonging- Strictly Ballroom W/ 1 Related Text

* Our growing understanding of the belonging concept: The desire to be included is strong and the action of being excluded is humiliating:

The parents respond to her fear by telling her that the owl is only asking “an odd question…” (4). They say that if she “rightly listened” to the owl, she would be able to hear it merely asking “who cooks for you?” (6). The stanza expresses a humorous tone with phrases such as “[It] was an odd question from a forest bird…” (4), and “Who cooks for you?” (6). On one level, the parents comfort the child by telling a lie in order to get her back to sleep, on another level, this changes the perception the daughter has of the owl. The parents do this by using the term “forest bird”, instead of “owl” to make her feel less intimidated. Through this lie she perceives the owl as a friendly forest creature, rather than a horrid monster from the night. The poem’s “AABBCC” rhyme scheme also helped further establish the tone, giving a child-like feeling to it, because it’s often used in fairy tales which is meant for children. Wilbur believes that the lie is a good way to help the child go to sleep. He justifies it in the

Doodle, a young disabled boy, is a burden to his Brother . Brother, is very ashamed and embarrassed of Doodle. The story “The Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst shows how Doodle is like the Scarlet Ibis. Doodle and the Scarlet Ibis have many of the same conflicts and repeating actions in the story. In “The Scarlet Ibis,” Hurst develops the symbolism, which is shown through birds, death, and the color red shows how fragile Doodle really is during his lifetime.

In “A Barred Owl,” Wilbur adopts a playful tone through rhyming: “We tell the wakened child that all she heard/ Was an odd question from a forest bird” (3, 4). The rhyme imitates the style of nursery rhymes, creating a joking tone. The playful tone avoids seriousness and weakens the horror of the owl, which contributes to the poem’s style like a nursery rhyme. Wilbur also euphemizes the owl to help create a nursery style. He does not represent the horrible creature of an owl as a carnivore with sharp claws that hunts during the night, but euphemizes it as a “forest bird” (Wilbur 4). The owl’s representation as a safe forest bird refers its figure to the enthusiastic birds with heavenly sounds in cartoons and story books, which often help the protagonist to overcome difficulties and dangers. Referring to nursery imageries of birds, the euphemism contributes to the poem’s style as a nursery rhyme. Creating a playful tone and a nursery style, Wilbur uses rhymes and euphemism to “domesticate fear” (Wilbur

Self belief is shown through the realistic dancing of the Spanish community and Fran’s family compared to the exaggerated and unreal images of the ballroom community, dominated by flashy costumes and insincerity. At the Toledo Milk Bar the earthy and sensual colours of reds and browns allows us to feel the real spirit of dancing. When Rico, Fran’s father challenges Scott to dance the Paso doble, Scott is laughed at by the way he dances. “What is so funny about the way I dance?” Fran’s Family and the Spanish community soon teach Scott that the real value of dancing comes from the heart and Fran’s grandmother shows him where he needs to really feel the rhythm in his body.

"To feel a sense of belonging, you need to accept yourself and be accepted by others."

Lastly, Wilbur and Collins use contrasting rhyme schemes to imply that children must be kept uninfluenced and pure in order to flourish in their childhood. In “A Barred Owl”, Wilbur uses a very consistent end rhyme scheme in which he rhymes every two lines, AABBCC to create a playful, childish feeling. The reader can then connect more with

In the first two lines, an aural image is employed to indicate a never-ending anger in the girl's father. Dawe uses onomatopoeia to create a disturbing and upsetting description of his enraged "buzz-saw whine." An annoying, upsetting sound, it gives the

The reader introduces a story called "Snowman". Living in a place that seems to be in contact with others, Snowman does his utmost to psychologically survive. He set up a temporary shelter on the beach, describing his living environment and diet. The reality of his living conditions is expressed in the original description of the environment. Melancholy mood comes from the snowman's inherent sadness. His few interactions with Craker's kid only aggravate the conversations between them because most of them are unfamiliar with the world to which the snowman comes.

From beginning to end, the poem utilizes specific wording to illustrate a certain form of desensitization taking place within the narrator. In the beginning, the narrator wants to eradicate her pests in the most humane way possible, describing her first attempt at extermination as “merciful” and “quick.” This humanitarian view on the extermination soon turns to a “righteously thrilling” hunt for the woodchucks. After shooting the little woodchuck, she watches him die in the rose garden and she is very brief in her description of its death because she is somewhat embarrassed of the fact that she actually pulls the trigger and shoots an innocent creature. In fact,

He says when his mother passed away his town didn’t even realize what had happened. “I felt I was in a colder, more distracted world” (Ferrucci p.34). With this story he told it hits the reader’s emotions and interests them on learning more about warmth.

In the 15th century, everyone “ watched from chairs or from temporary bleachers erected around the walls of the ballroom” (Jonas, 79). The seating arrangement would follow the king and queen sitting in the first row in the middle, “the highest ranking gentleman, and the highest ranking lady and so on down the social ladder” (Jonas, 79). The ballrooms would also sometimes circle around the dance floor, where individuals can see the dance from all angles. Today, ballet performances are often performed in theatres, opera houses, or in local school auditoriums depending on the level of ballet. The seating arrangement in the 20th century also varied by the event. Individuals who go to professional dance performances can purchase the best seat in the theatre. Family members, who are going to see a local dance studio performance, most likely follow the first come, first serve motto or they could also purchase tickets. The theaters, opera houses and auditoriums would also only have seating in one section of the venue instead of providing seating at all

Throughout the little boy’s quest to return the penguin to its home, the weather begins to worsen. The narrator states this with the following quote, “And just as things seemed to be working out well, they began to take a turn for the worst.” The inclement weather imitates how

The five dancers all within it continue to dance individually however almost fit into each other like puzzle pieces. Also in this portion their expressions are no longer somber but strong, much like their movements. One dancer would make a window and look through it hopefully, as another would stretch their leg and jab their arm powerfully. All remaining within this small window spotlight on the stage. The spotlight highlights their individuality however much like in the end of the first section they seem to be in sync with each other; this is shown through the dancers keeping the same tempo and exiting at the same time.

There are some children who have large imaginations, while others only exceed to the edge if what they know. The boy in this poem leads the reader to believe that his imagination expands further than anyone else’s. Although this little boy has a great imagination, his point of view isn’t the happiest. In the first stanza in “Boy at the Window” only the boy’s point of view is shown. Through Wilbur’s diction, the child is expressed with melancholy emotions. The little boy wants the snowman to come inside because there will be a blizzard. The boy has tears in his eyes and line three states, “The small boy weeps to hear the wind prepare…” As the boy stares at the butter life beyond the window pane, his heart only longs for the snowman’s presence inside and feels pain.