C. Cavafy's Ugly Duckling

I was not aware of the depth or many aspects of concept of journey till our study of it. After our study I have developed a appreciation not only of all of the things I have mentioned but the affect that journey has on the lives on everyone of us.

A journey is not just a voyage one physically goes on from one place to another, rather it is also a mental and emotional process. On journeys such as that, calm seas and fair winds will not always be destined; in fact, throughout ones travel, one will encounter many challenges, physically, mentally and emotionally, that will affect not only the individual but those who encounter them as well. Homer’s epic nostos, The Odyssey, as well as the movies Iphigenia and The Clash of the Titans all include characters that endure transformative journeys home.

1. The thesis of this essay in the author's words is "Travel is how we put a voice to the Other and step a little beyond our second hand images of the alien." In other words, the author is trying to tell us that travelling is necessary in order for us to not hold prejudices and experience the lifestyle of other cultures.

Novelist and poet, Rainer Maria Rilke once said, “The only journey is the one within”(Rainer Maria Rilke Quotes). Meaning, what makes a journey important is how one changes and learns from the experience. The claims made in this quote are well proven in relatively new literature and even one of the oldest poems still studied today. The Odyssey is a famous, well known epic poem. It was written by the renowned poet, Homer, in ancient greek times. The Odyssey follows a man known as Odysseus, he just left fighting in the Trojan war after years. Odysseus has quite the adventure due to the gods’ and goddesses’ constant manipulation, all in the hope of reaching his homeland, Ithaca, and beloved family. Quite the opposite, much younger and shorter “The Journey” is a poem written by Mary Oliver in the 1900s. This poem relays what a journey really is and the purpose of going on journeys. Despite the differences between The Odyssey and “The Journey”, the two both use figurative language to convey a very similar message. People embark on journeys to fill an empty void and learn what they appreciate in life.

“Journeys allow travelers to reflect on their own experiences because of new knowledge gained and greater insight into themselves and the world around them.”

The tale of “The Ugly Duckling” has been told for many generations. It is the story of a little swan that is mistakenly hatched in a duck’s nest and because of his strange and different appearance he is teased and ridiculed. Even his mother can’t understand how this “ugly duckling” could be one of her own. The ugly duckling goes through many hardships and a long, lonely winter. Then upon seeing his reflection in the pond he realizes that he has become a beautiful swan and happily swims off, joining a group of nearby swans.

There are many people who travel a distance in life to find the path they should take or to remember the path they once took. In the poem “The Path Not Taken,” by Robert Frost and the short story "I Used to Live Here Once" by Jean Rhys there are many similarities and differences. The authors’ use of describing a path helps them personify life’s journeys and self-reflection.

Journey is an act of travelling from one place to another which can be seeking permanent home in a different country or travelling in the same country. It can affect different people in many different ways as they get emotional, intellectual and imaginative experiences individually in their life. All of these have been explored in some of Bruce Dawe’s meaningful poems ‘migrants’ and ‘drifters’ and a related text ‘Still Life’ which is a short film by Martin Sharpe. The poem ‘migrants’ was about group of European migrants seeking permanent home in a completely different country to escape from war and have better standard of life but the poem ‘drifters’ was about a family journeying in the same country. In comparison, the short film, ‘Still Life’ is about a man who has boring and meaningless life. The composers employ poetic and film techniques to convey the possible positive and negative ramifications of journeys.

Travellers in order to arrive at their desired destination may encounter hardships as a result of trying to proceed forwards or overcoming obstacles. Journeys challenge travellers with obstacles and without being able to overcome them, may result in life changing consequences preventing the traveller from reaching their destination. The poems by Peter Skrzynecki and Missing Her are two texts in which an exploration of how failure to overcome obstacles within journeys may have resulted in different destinations for the traveller.

Poems can be interpreted in many ways; however, every reader has their preference. One interpretation of “The Journey” is that it is a story about battling depression. The

The journey,not the arrival is what matters in human experience. It can be said that when one takes the first steps of a journey, that person will be forever changed as they will no longer be the way they were. As on travels, through physical or inner journeys the experiences one has, the decisions one makes and the affects of those decisions enables one to grow and develop in new and unexpected ways. These ideas are explored in Roberts frosts poem the “road not taken” and Peter Skrzynecki's poem “crossing the red sea” in both poems, journey is represented as both a physical and inner state of journeying that all people experience Journeys last forever. Decisions that lead to another can continue throughout one’s life. Proof of this is embedded in “way leads on to way”,a form of repetition shows the continuous nature of the process of journeying. “Ages and ages hence” also represents the similar idea, future tense is used show how the future is undeniably full of new and exciting journeys. Both quotes allow us to understand that the persona understands that journey is continuous/that a journey never ends. Frost shows us that there are a number of possibilities that can all be assessed once a decision is made.

In order for someone to reach their destination they have to go on a trip or journey. One question that has been debated is if the journey is more important than the destination. Some people say that there is no point in going on a journey if someone doesn’t have a destination. The idea that the journey is more important than the destination is true because in the journey it is possible to meet new people, view new things, and make friends.

Representations of journey can foreworn us of challenges, often life challenges we are yet to face. How do the unfamiliar journeys undertaken by others relate to ourselves in challenges life may present us? An example is found in Peter Skrynecki’s poem ‘Migrant Hostel’ as he explores a common, yet individually unique journey embarked upon by immigrants as they confront life changing challenges, arising along their migratory journey in seeking acceptance and new beginnings.

Wherein this is the extent of the metaphor, where in this poem it is a changeable anomaly subject to the readers interpretation of taking the road less travelled and whether it be a positive (sigh of satisfaction) or negative (sigh of regret). This is all one can hope when using a metaphor relating to the readers life, that they substitute their own feelings and create their own meaning, their own attitude towards to such decisions and subsequently, such journeys.

In conclusion an individual’s journey could always involve the process of learning, maturation and self-discovery as a personal development. Therefore inner journeys increase our personal knowledge and understanding of others, although the play Away by Michael Gow and the film To Kill a Mockingbird by Robert mulligan involve three types of journey. They all demonstrated the inner journey throughout the play and the film giving us an understanding of an individual’s journey could have an impact on others. I would like to end my speech with a quote by Greg Anderson ‘Focus on the journey, not the destination. Joy is found not in finishing an activity but in doing