Letter

1 Darling Street Dubbo NSW 2830 4th March 2010 The English department St Johns College Sheraton Road Dubbo NSW 2830 To the English Department, I am writing to you regarding the importance students understanding themes through the appreciation of distinctively visual imagery. Stage 6, HSC students are currently studying Peter Goldsworthy’s ‘Maestro’ which compliments the theme of distinctively visual. To enrich this understanding, may I suggest two related texts; ‘Fox in a Treestump’ by Judith Beveridge and Colin Thiele’s novel ‘Storm Boy’. These texts offer experience through language and expose students to a variety of language techniques. The visual imagery explores the loss of innocence, growth and the setting reflects important events in the lives of the characters. The distinctively visual presented in these texts allow students a greater appreciation of the themes within these works. One of the important themes explored in Maestro through distinctively visual is growth. Goldsworthy develops the growth in Paul’s character through the recurring imagery of the hands. From the very first music lesson Keller begins to develop growth within Paul. Goldsworthy utilises personification how Keller needs Paul to understand the basics of Piano in order to improve and grow as a musician. Keller wants to take Paul back to the fundamental steps in music, learning the role of each finger, each hand, and how this is essential to play well. “This finger is selfish. Greedy… Those are the pupils and this is the teacher. The elbow…” In Paul’s arrogance he sees this as pointless. Throughout the novel Paul grows to appreciate Keller’s teachings and his knowledge. Goldsworthy again draws on the image of hands, Keller’s hands. “Here a miracle occurred: the first of many miracles, or sleights of hand; that I was to witness in this presence. Somehow that tiny, maimed claw released an effortless, ripping run of tenths.” After this Paul is astounded from Keller’s talent, and from witnessing this visual of his hands he gains respect for him. This is in comparison to the visual Goldsworthy creates with a metaphor at the conclusion of the memoir where Keller’s hands are portrayed as “a pale claw- a handful of frail bird bones, so light it might have been fashioned from paper-mache.” His hands symbolise the growth in the relationship between Pauls and Keller. The metaphor of bird bones portrays Keller’s weakness which is his age, but Keller and Paul’s relationship is strengthened throughout the novel. Keller’s shrivelled hands also symbolise the loss of music as the Maestro of Pauls music is no longer there. During their last encounter, Goldsworthy again depicts the hands, but this time he highlights Keller’s need of Paul’s help. Students can also use the symbol of the hands to explore Paul’s romantic relationships. The image of the hand also becomes important in showing the growth of Paul’s romantic relationship. One if Paul’s first instruction to Rosie is a reference to hands. As he tutors her in piano, he says she must hold them ‘looser’. When Paul realises his love for Rosie, again we see a visual of hands, gesturing his new profound love. “I squeezed my hand along the grass beneath her, and held my breath.” This is Paul’s first experience of intimacy, which explores the growth within a different aspect of his life. Goldsworthy uses distinctively visual images to create a setting which is initially foreign and fascinating to the central character Paul. He uses the setting to show the importance of music and how Paul grows and matures. As Paul first moves to Darwin he falls in love; “I loved the town of booze and blow at first sight.” Despite his father’s opinion that “All the scum in the country has somehow risen to this town...all the drifters, the misfits. The wife bashers.” These two quotes portray different views of the Crabbe’s new home town. Using repition of ‘all’ creates an image of outcasts taking refuge in one small, Nothern town. A sense of crowdedness is vivid in these images. This visual contrasts to Paul’s love of the city where we see a charismatic, infectious city. Goldsworthy creates a fascinating place by drawing on the images of wet adn dry. These contrast what Paul has known from Adeliade. This foreign place becomes many people’s refuge, including Keller. Keller’s refuge to the town of ‘booze, blow and blasphemy’ from the heartache on Euopre, shows Darwin to become his swan. “So much that was crucial in those years took place in Herr Keller’s crowded weatherboard room above the front bar of the Swan.” The Swan juxtaposes Keller’s identity as swan’s convey beautiful images of elegant white places. Keller’s suit also white, pressed linen suit reminds us of the colour of a swan. Darwin, however and inparticular, the swan, is dirty and filthy. Darwin’s rich environment is also a metaphor for Paul’s and Rosie’s ever-growing love. Goldsworthy has depicted the city as a superior natural wondreland of almost surreal perfection. When Rosie and Paul find their love for each other, Paul’s ‘heart hammered inside’ him. “I slipped an arm behind her, and she leaned slightly into me. Her perfume seemed an all-consuming sexual solvent.” This explores a visual of a rainbow haven, a paradise. The intensity reflects the rich, fertile environment. Paul reaches maturity when he realises he no longer has a connection with the town of his past. His connection to darwin is lost with the death of Keller and his childhood and the cyclone’s rampage. “I re-explored the town, trying to find some last trace of the past.” Keller’s death led Paul to feel nostalgia towards his old home and to his childhood. “I was trying to aviod the knowledge that grew slowly inside me: that I reached the end of a deep, last hope... he had been a safety net, offering a faint last hope, a genetic lifeline.” Colin Thiele also captures the way a home ties a character to their childhood. The importanc e of a childhood home is also experienced in ‘Storm Boy’. Storm Boy also misses his home when he decides to go to school for the first time one hundred miles away in Adelaide. “A hundred miles away in Adelaide, Storm Boy sits by the boarding school window adn look sout at the tossing trees and the windy sky. And everything lives on in their hearts- the wind-talk and wave-talk, and the scribblings on the sand.” He looks out into the distance remmebring his freedom of childhood with his father and Mr Percival. These texts allow the audience a glimpse of another life. The works of Goldsworthy, Beveridge and Thiele convey the loss of innocence in a distinctively visual way. “Maestro’ illustrates this through Paul’s growth and journey. By the conclusion of the novel, Goldsworthy portrays Paul as a man who has finally realised he must let go of his childhood dream. The idea presented above is also explored In Judith Beveridge’s poem ‘Fox in a Treestump’. Throughout the poem Beveridge illustrates how the child’s experience torments her both emotionally and physically. The girl is mystified by the task she must perform, and finds herself in an environment she does not belong to. The events portrayed have distrubed the child’s world and have shown her the harsh cruelty of life on the farm. In contrast to Paul Crabbe, who is in his 20’s when he realises his loss of innocence, whereas the girl has her innocence taken from her. Beveridge writes, “I was 9 years old. All my life i’d stuck close to my yelled name.” Beveridge creates the idea of the speaker no longer as obedient as a child her age. The experience has destroyed the peace in her world, and stolen her innocence. Colin Thiele’s “Storm Boy” also portrays the loss of innocence within the protagonist’s life. Storm Boy’s idyllic and peaceful life on the island is made richer when he befriends Mr Percival, a loyal pelican. Storm Boy loses his innocence when his best friend, Mr Percival passes away through his heroic action. Mr Percival linked Storm-Boy to his childhood, it was he who allowed Storm Boy to have a companion and have fun. “Mr Percvial listened to him very seriously for a minute, with his head held a bit more to one side than usual and his big beak parted in a sly smile. Then he stepped forward and dropped the ball at Storm-Boy’s feet, just like a retreiver.” Storm Boys relationship with Mr Perciva shows his innocence and the lifestyle he is forced to live. Detached from civilisation or anybody his age it is Mr Percival that saves him from isolation. Each of the authors discussed have ceated rich, dramatic texts. The strong imagery created allows the responder to find value in the works. Beveridge, Thiele and Goldsworthy respresent many themes through distinctively visual images. Thankyou for considering my ideas and taking the time to view my piece. Yours sincerly Joan