HSC English Essay - Belonging

Similarly the picture book “The Red Tree” by Shaun Tan shows how understanding nourishes belonging while a lack of understanding can prevent people from belonging. The girl is portrayed as not understanding the world around her. She does not know where she belongs or who she is, and

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

An individual’s sense of belonging stems from their notions of identity, personal context, and place. A lack in any of these areas may result in a thorough sense of alienation and pose as a barrier, which prevents belonging and facilitates an individual’s decision to exclude themselves from their surroundings. However, ironically, these barriers that present hardship can truly liberate an individual and help them in finding a more fulfilled state of belonging. These ideas are explored in Shakespeare’s play, As You Like It and Khaled Hosseini’s novel, The Kite Runner.

The concept of belonging is a fundamental human need, That is, According to Abraham Maslow.

However, the comparison between these two masterpieces shows two different aspects of society and community life. It shows how one community can manipulate other as well as how the society misjudges an individual on the basis of his/her appearance. Although each of these masterpieces shares distinctive emotions, yet both these poems seem interconnected and interrelated. Dickinson shares with the reader her thoughts about affected fame and fake glamour that people love so much; on the contrary she loves being “nobody”. On the other hand, there is sensitive and frustrating poem of Dunbar who communicates bigoted and biased behaviors that an entire community thrashes on another community. In Dunbar’s work, there are cultural conflict, ethnocentrism, group loyalty, dismay and too many other

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.’

Explore how perceptions of belonging and not belonging can be influenced by connections to places.

-Essay: 1300- 1500 words. ‘A sense of belonging is never permanent.’ Discuss in relation to TWO poems and TWO pieces of related texts.

The concept of belonging deals with not only acceptance but also with dejection and alienation. This concept can influence our belonging to a relationship or place by our background and culture. These ideas are explored through Shakespeare’s play “As You Like IT”, the poem “Villane on a Theme” by George Good and the film “Remember the Titans” directed by Boaz Yakin. By analysing the texts in relation to belonging we see a variety of perceptions to belonging in the means of relationships, family and place. The different contexts in which each text is written explore slightly different ideas that together broaden our understanding on the complexity that is belonging.109

Emily Dickinson’s “The Soul Selects her Own Society” presents herself as absolute and her rights as unchallengeable. The poem puts forward the idea of “friendship or love” which means choosing a significant person and excluding other people. Dickinson reveals that she was shutting people from her life, but because it had been so long, they are no longer interested in taking part of her life. Dickinson’s actions imply that the ability to create and construct a world for oneself, such as choosing your own actions, provides an example of a god-like achievement. Overall, Dickson asserts the importance of “the Self” theme which is shown my just speaking and writing as a ratification of the will to explore and express “the Self” to others.

Dickinson on Isolation from Society Emily Dickinson’s poems “I’m Nobody! Who are you?” and “The Soul selects her own Society--“ both discuss the idea of reclusiveness and consciously separating one’s self from the general masses. Dickinson asserts the idea that it is beneficial for people to choose a few companions who matter to them and exclude all others from their inner consciousness.

The poem evinces its deeper meaning in the context of Dickinson’s life – she rarely left her room and almost never interacted with people other than her family members. In her lifetime, she was “nobody” to

Emily Dickinson’s reclusive life was arguably a result of her proposed bi-polar disorder. This life and disorder unduly influenced the themes of her poetry. She chose not to associate herself with society and volumes of her poems, published posthumously, examine this idea as well as the themes of nature and death. The clearest examples of these themes are presented in the following analysis of just of few of her

The definition of belonging is shaped by various factors. Personal, Cultural, historical and social influences can determine in which way the theme is related to. It is labelled as an issue being associated with the depression as well as today. The two text types that I have analysed to further explore belonging is the novel “To Kill A Mocking Bird” and the film “The Breakfast Club” as well as the themes apparent in both of these Prejudice, cultural bias and stereotypes.