Jasper Jones. Towns Prejudice

The context of Craig Silvey’s Jasper Jones influences different aspects such as language, values and attitudes within the text by using techniques such as figurative language, metaphors, grammatical aspects and structuring, with many more. This creates context for the story and pushes along the true intentions that Silvey wished to portray helping readers understand the story better.

Craig Silvey engages us with Jasper Jones in order to convey a certain moral message in hope to make us stop and think. No one in this novel is truly accepted into the community, which tells me as the responder, that in order for this society to succeed differences need to be tossed aside. Jasper Jones is a credible recollection of the injustice, racism and social exclusion that exists in the Australian society. It also tackles growing up, first love, family unity, and a sense of belonging in a community.

After having a thorough read of the novel ‘Jasper Jones’ by Craig Silvey, I have come to understand the powerful effects of using written codes and conventions in novels. Silvey’s impressive piece of literature was carefully constructed through techniques such as characterization, socio-cultural context, themes and intertexuality. By doing this, Silvey was accredited for convincing the readers, appealing to their emotions and manipulating their beliefs and values to accept or agree with his opinions on the issue covered in the novel.

The Novel Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey revolves around a young boy named Charlie Bucktin living in the small Australian town of Corrigan in the 1960’s. Charlie is exposed to the confronting issues of racial prejudice, injustice and moral duality. He is challenged to question right from wrong, has to come to the realization that law doesn’t always uphold justice and we as readers are positioned to understand that people are capable of holding two conflicting values and remain in confortable harmony. The ideas are portrayed through Silvey’s use of narrative conventions that are used to either challenge or reinforce our values, attitudes and beliefs on the issues explored.

Charlie Bucktin learns a great deal about himself, others, Corrigan and important lessons that will help him live a better life in Jasper Jones. In the novel, Charlie goes through some experiences that teach him some of life’s great lessons. In particular he comes to learn a great deal about trust, love, facing and overcoming fear, role models and racial prejudice.

Craig Silvey‘s 2009 novel ‘Jasper Jones’ is established in the fictional town of Corrigan, Australia during the Vietnam War in 1965. The story follows the journey of a 13-year-old boy named Charles, or Charlie, Bucktin as he encounters various challenges and obstacles. His struggle initiates as soon as he encounters Jasper Jones, the mixed-race outcast of the small mining town, knocking on Charlie’s window in the midst of his sleep in request for his help to uncover the mystery murder of his secret supposed girlfriend, Laura Wishart. Following this discovery, Charlie endeavours to survive his town as it gradually closes in on itself in fear and suspicion. As he clashes with his mother, falls nervously in love and desperately holds back on

Prejudice: noun. “Preconceived opinion that is not based on reason or actual experience” (Dictionary). Prejudice is one of the most relevant things in the lives of two children, Jem and Scout, in a small town, Maycomb, Alabama. It’s the 1930s, the Great Depression has already hit, and racism has already impacted this small, innocent town. Jem and Scout learn what their town is hiding by finding out who their neighbors really are. In To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, prejudice is like a second language to the people of Maycomb. It is shown by gender, race, and social status.

* ‘This late, the architecture is desolate and reached of colour’’ symbolic, suggests of life having been washed out in the town-devoid of colour.

Jasper Jones is a novel about racism, prejudice and intolerance. Craig Silvey shows us that we need to be more accepting towards each others differences. He shows us how prejudice can hurt people and have a negative impact on there lives. He also shows us that if we were more accepting then there would be less conflict in the world.

In the novel Jasper Jones, Craig Silvey provides us the audience an insight into the characters’ pursuit of truth by exploring overarching ideas such as Fear, Racism and Scapegoating and linking them with character dialogue as well as narrator descriptions. The main truth presented by Craig Silvey is the investigation of Laura Wishart’s death, by pursuing this truth Charlie uncovers truths about his family and town. I believe that by using these overarching ideas, silver is able to offer us a deep insight into the characters’ pursuit of truth.

November 18, 1978, altered America, but the process leading up to that day began much earlier by a mind only described as perverse. The Peoples Temple of the Disciples of Christ, Peoples Temple as it is commonly referred, led by James Warren Jones blazed its own way into the history books with what is still one of the most disastrous endings of a movement. Jim Jones is known for founding the most infamous cult in American history; his reputation revolves around the manipulation of a population, professing skewed values, controlling that population, and eventually destroying what he created in a final act of domination.

Prejudice and discrimination is looked down upon, yet people still continue to be judgmental and have preconceived assumptions about others. It is a common thing that still happens in today’s society. To be particular, racial discrimination is one example of prejudice and is based solely on the color of one’s skin. In the story To Kill a Mockingbird, Tom Robinson is a caring individual who tries his hardest to treat everyone he meets with appreciation and respect. However, he is African American, which influences him and the other characters' lives in different ways. All he wants to do is help out another character, Mayella, which inevitably costs him his life in the end. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee uses the character of Tom Robinson to illustrate the fact that innocent people are sometimes victimized to a racist society.

Prejudice, the chain of hatred and ignorance, has haunted our history at every step. In the twenty-first century prejudice and its destruction can be viewed in many forms of modern literature. Two of the most famous and rejoiced literatures that examine the theme of prejudice are Harper Lee’s realist fiction novel ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ and Martin Luther King’s heart warming speech ‘I Have a Dream’. Both texts explore the theme of prejudice of white Americans on the Blacks in the racially tense times of the early twentieth century. Unlike Harper Lee, Martin Luther King goes a step further to persuade the audience that there is prejudice present and we should be motivated to stop this evil from blossoming in our world.

I have always liked Laura. She has a bright future. She’s by far the smartest in our year and has the most beautiful hair I have ever seen. Pretty yet smart. She is the only girl in the year who pretends I don’t exist and it kills me. The most popular boys should get the prettiest girls. I’m the best at cricket in town and the second best at footy behind that prick Jasper Jones.

Jasper’s father never informs Jasper that Jack Lionel is his grandfather, or of the true events surrounding his mother’s death. Jack Lionel continuously calls out Jasper’s name whenever he walks by his house, unknowing of the truth, Jasper believes this is because Jack Lionel dislikes him and possibly intends to harm him. However, this is very far from the truth of the situation, in reality Jack Lionel only wishes to talk to Jasper, as he is his grandson and wishes to apologise about the accident that occurred with his mother, of which he was driving a car which crashed and caused his mother’s death. Jasper’s father never tells him the truth about Jack Lionel, this causes Jasper to believe that Jack Lionel is a crazy old man, and even that