Belonging_and_Identity

Area of Study: Belonging question ( 20 marks ) By: Mary Marquez Thesis Statement: “ When you know and respect your identity, you know where you belong. You also know where you don’t belong.” What does knowing your IDENTITY mean' This means knowing who you are, knowing your name, knowing yourself, how you look like, your family, knowing what they are like, your ethnic group membership whether you are an Asian, African, European , knowing what language you speak, what food you eat, what religious organization you belong to, what personal and cultural values matter to you and many more. Respecting your IDENTITY means – that you accept who you are and you value everything about you and you take pride of yourself, of who you are. Because you accept who you are and you take pride of who you are, it follows also that you associate yourself with people who you like to be with, you join organizations where you know you will be accepted and valued, you go to places where you feel secured and safe, you pretty much do things that make you happy. Moreover, if you know yourself well, you will not do anything that will harm or hurt you. You will probably think twice before you make friends or connect with people whose personality, values and culture are different from you. You will probably hesitate to go to places that may cause danger to you or your life simply because their faith or culture is opposite from your own. The two prescribed texts that we studied in class, namely: China Coin novel by Allan Baille and the poems written by Peter Skrzynecki highlighted these ideas on identity. Leah identified herself strongly as an English-Australian. She was born and grew up in Sydney. Her father David was an English man. Although, her mum Joan is a Chinese, Leah never identified herself as a Chinese. There were many little incidents in the novel when Leah disliked being in another place simply because she did not belong there. At the beginning of the novel, in Chapter 1, Allan Baille used narrative technique, particularly, internal monologue to reveal to readers Leah’s thoughts and feelings about going to China. “ Leah thought: Here I am, about to be sold into slavery in the lost mountains of China.” This statement clearly shows Leah not wanting to go to China. The use of negative words like “ to be sold into slavery”- implies that she did not have any choice in coming to this country. Her lack of familiarity to this country and feeling of alienation was also expressed with the use of words like “ lost mountains of China.” Leah was telling herself that she doesn’t belong to China. In another incident, on page 16 Leah here was seen feeling awkward because of her height. She thought, “ I ‘m a giant.” Again through the use of internal monologue, readers get to know how she felt different from typical Chinese women. The use of italics in this statement, “ Always looking up at her” emphasises that Leah looks different from others and that she was getting uncalled attention to herself because of her height and this made her feel uncomfortable. On the same page, Allan Baille wrote an incident where Leah takes pride of her Australian identity by making an extra effort to sound like a real Aussie. Here the composer made a reference to this Australian film, “ Crocodile Dundee” whose main character is an Australian icon named Paul Hogan. Leah would like to be identified as a local by speaking perfect English. In the poems that Peter Skrzynecki wrote, he expressed a similar view when he referred to his father FELIX. Felix was of Polish background. Their family was one of the many displaced families of World War Two in Europe who migrated to Australia in 1949 to start a new life. In this nostalgic poem, “10 Mary Street”, Peter repeated the word“ nineteen“ in stanza 1 and 4, referring to the poet’s nineteen years spent in his parent’s house, emphasising the length of time that gave Felix and the whole family a strong sense of belonging to this place, stressing the idea that this is the only place for his father, Felix to belong. Furthermore, in stanza 4, lines 37-48 of 10 Mary Street poem, Peter wrote, “We lived together....” The poet reinforces the community life and the sense of unity that his family and friends hold in common. Immigrant community is instantly recognizable in the “ Non – Australian foods and drink” that their family served their friends; and the obvious sense of Polish community and belonging that have been relived through “ the photographs and letters , the heated discussions about their shared common past, their Polish history and geography.” All these clearly show how Felix felt safe and comfortable in this house. It also showed how Felix’s identity is respected and accepted in his own place. In another poem written by P Skrzynecki called, “ Felix Skrzynecki.” The poet used simile in lines 4-6, “ like an only child.” ( referring to his own garden- as the only possession he had ) Showing the extent of devotion and care of his piece of earth here in a foreign land, walking its perimeter, checking around the outside edge of his garden everyday, encircling his world and keeping it tidy because this is the only place that made him feel calm and peaceful. In the last text that I will discuss, I am making reference to the feature article written by Beverly Hodgegraft for the Daily Telegraph in October _____. She wrote about this guy who grew up in England with his foster family. When he learnt that his biological mother and father are both Australians, that knowledge about his identity triggered interest for him to go to Australia and find his parents which he did. He knew that Australia is the right place for him to belong. He sought his parent’s help to help him stay and live in Australia for good. In all the three texts that I write about, one clear idea was constant, that if you know who you are and accept and respect your identity, you definitely know where you belong and where you don’t belong.