It is in human nature to strive towards a sense of Belonging, a process that incites the creation, or deterioration of a sense of personal and cultural identification. The memoir, Romulus, My Father, by Raimond Gaita; John Guare’s play, Six Degrees of Separation; and Tim Winton’s short story, Big World, from the collection, The Turning, explore the concept that Belonging is the driving force for the human condition. Each composer represents their varied perceptions of belonging in their texts, conveying that Belonging as a fundamental need we strive for in our search to create a concrete identity.
The memoir, Romulus, My Father, portrays the ways in which immigrants in 1950’s rural Victoria struggled to be accepted in a foreign society,
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Guare uses the post-modern technique of fragmentation to purposely distance the audience from the action. This technique causes the audience to immediately see the fear of rejection and isolation by society felt by the characters, provoking the audience to reflect the characters determination to be accepted.
Guares darker twist on the need to belong is represented through the central motif of the play, the Kandinsky, the two-sided painting, a metaphor for the different dimensions of a person. Guare seems to be suggesting that to belong in our modern society, we must follow the rules dictated by society and hide our true desires. This is enhanced by the characterization of Ouisa and Flan who present themselves as courteous, but expose the audience to their true intentions of striving to connect to a higher social class: “Having a rich friend is like drowning, and your friend makes life boats.” The character Paul is a symbol of this determination and desperation, creating the persona of Sidney Poitier’s son for the acknowledgement and acceptance he receives from it. He uses deception of his true identity to minimize social marginalization and fulfill his emotional need to connect. Like Romulus, Paul becomes a representation of the impact of rejection, forging multiple personalities in an attempt to connect to what he believes he deserves. This is Guare’s central irony; Paul has attempted to belong by forming these personas but they ultimately cause him
To start, Tim Winton’s short story, Neighbours explores many themes about multiculturalism. Neighbours explores multiculturalism in a deep way as the composer examines the barriers and common interests between include learning to accept new ideas, developing a new respect for different cultures and learning to not judge a book by its cover.
Good Afternoon teachers and students, The following texts express how an individuals understanding of belonging can quickly be changed by the people and place around them. “Jasper Jones a novel written by Craig Silvey”, it is a short story of a boy named Charles Butkins and the events that occurred because he helped Jasper Jones mask the death of Laura Wishart. “Australia by Ania Walwicz”, is attacking the people of Australia in the form of a poem, because of their point of views and attitudes in life. She also hates Australia itself because the people are not welcoming, this is the main point of this poem.
One’s understanding of belonging can broaden their understanding and acceptance of themselves and the world around them. The statement that we all strive to belong is true, however it may take time to belong to a certain person, place, group, community or even the larger world. This issue is explored in Raimond Gaita’s biographical memoir Romulus, My Father and Khaled Hosseini’s confronting novel The Kite Runner. Throughout these texts, the themes of personal relationships, migrant experience and morals and values arise from the concept of
“Compare what the two stories (from Joyful Strains) suggest about gaining a sense of belonging and/or establishing an identity.”
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.
People have the longing to belong and to be accepted by a group or community. A sense of Belonging can emerge from the connections and acceptance we have with other people, communities and the larger world. These ideas of belonging are represented in texts which explore aspects of belonging and an individual’s potential to challenge or improve a community group. The film ‘Strictly Ballroom,’ directed by Baz Lurhman, the film ‘Looking for Alibrandi’ directed by Kate Woods and the exaggerated true story of an African American youth’s fight to belong in the song “dance with the devil” by immortal technique all represent ideas of belonging formed by life experiences.
Good Afternoon Ladies and Gentlemen of the Multi-cultural convention, I have been selected to address the statement, “The Language used by composers has the ability to present responders with opportunities to challenge their perception of self and the world”. I will be doing so by closely analysing the language used by Komninos in ‘Hillston Welcome’ and ‘Back to Melbourne’ and John
Belonging brings to our attention the potential that all individuals are affected by not only their choices but the attitudes of others. The Notion of time allows for an individual’s perception to change and in-turn, form different attitudes towards people as we see through the characters in Rainbows End by Jane Harrison and Othello by William Shakespeare. An individual’s choices and the attitude of others plays an important role in shaping the way that characters perceive their sense of belonging, in both negative and positive ways in “Rainbows End” through the Koori women, Nan Dear and Gladys and in
-Essay: 1300- 1500 words. ‘A sense of belonging is never permanent.’ Discuss in relation to TWO poems and TWO pieces of related texts.
The fundamental importance of family in completing one’s identity within an Australian context is demonstrated through the measures Gran takes to keep her family united. Despite her age, Gran insists on ‘goin’ with Sam and Milly’ by foot to Moore River, despite being offered the less vigorous train
Belonging comes from an understanding, or the knowledge that an external sense of being comes from an internal sense of connection and safety. This critical analysis will portray how the text “Stolen” by Jane Harrison relates to the concept of belonging. Stolen is a play that tells the stories of 5 Aboriginal children that were stolen away from their families and were forced to grow up in institutions, following the European way of life. The children were segregated from their communities and treated as inferiorly. Their worth was seen as minimal and only useful to Europeans as slaves. “Stolen” is an example of not belonging to the environment that one is living in. The children are stolen from their parents, their culture and traditions,
Before introducing any major events, or analysis, it’s important to note that this autobiographical work was only made possible with the aid of written documentation, and tales passed on from the family and the community. This is imperative because a great portion of the piece focuses on events that Edwidge didn’t experience first-hand, so she heavily stresses on the details being re-surfaced through friends and family to complete a holistic emigration story. Family history and the involvement of cherishing family moments is often an overlooked form of communication, but without this, this and many other important minority stories would have never been complied in a way where we can now discuss them in a culturally-reflective academic setting, like this course.
The film showcased Gordie’s thoughts and growth with his friends. From his exterior of a young lad, wimpy and afraid, he had managed to mature in to an independent and confident individual. In the beginning of the film, he had been described, by himself, as a weird guy, since he wasn’t like his late brother, who was the favorite. He loved writing and was good at it, but the unfortunate reality he was in was comparison from his parents, who would rather have a popular kid with ‘normal’ friends later, made him diss his own passion. And this practice developed and later on gave him enough fright to accept his invisibility.
Exploring the themes of identity and immigration, this essay will focus on one short story and two case studies. Caterina Edwards’ Island of the Nightingales, follows Teresa Pomoronzola, a second-generation Italian immigrant living in Edmonton, who is sent to her mother’s homeland, the island of Lussino, in order to think clearly and gain perspective. Primarily, Teresa faces the internal conflict of choosing between her two lovers, yet she is also conflicted about her identity. Through the juxtaposition of divergent lifestyles and cultural values, Edwards’ Island of the Nightingales, suggests that a second-generation immigrant’s return to their family’s homeland is the ideal method for reconciling a conflicted identity and effectively understanding one’s background.
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’,