Ned_Kelly_and_the_True_History_of_the_Kelly_Gang

‘Do not applaud me. It is not I who speaks to you, but history which speaks through my mouth.’ This quote clarifies history is not just based upon the facts and evidence that remain; but of the memories that individuals, historians, and authors construct from these evidence to create this history itself, the history that we come to believe in today. While time progresses and culture changes the enthrallment with the Kelly story remains. Edward Ned Kelly, through his trademark iron helmet and his passionate expression, has an extraordinary ability to hold our attention. The Kelly story has been told and re-told, elaborated and argued again and again conveying that the memories of history can be uncertain. It is what the authors and directors show to convince you of what is true and what is false, but in the end it is up to that audience to believe these perspectives that are being set out in front of them. In my belief, Ned Kelly was a hero. Long after his death, Ned Kelly lives on in Australian culture through various media. In this presentation I will exemplify the way different texts skilfully show the man behind the mask. Peter Carey’s novel, True History of the Kelly Gang is a sympathetic account of Ned Kelly’s life from Ned’s perspective. This novel is written entirely in Kelly's voice, the lyrical and largely unpunctuated narrative is presented as a series of letters addressed to an unborn fictional daughter whom he will never see. Australian director Gregor Jordan's “Ned Kelly” film adaptation of the novel, Our Sunshine, remains true to much of the historical detail, while giving a sympathetic portrayal of the outlaw. It exposes Kelly as an honorable man driven to misdeeds by circumstances and false accusations. Sidney Nolan’s ‘Ned Kelly’ series, one of the greatest sequences of Australian paintings simplified depiction of Kelly in his armor, becoming an iconic Australian image. These series became the setting for the artist’s meditations upon universal themes of injustice, love and betrayal. In the novel True History, Ned Kelly is portrayed as a victim of colonial oppression, who kills only in self-defense and is devoted to his mother and sister. Kelly was close to his mother and admired her courage. Carey’s focus on Kelly’s love and devotion for his mother represents him as a caring, loving son who acted only out of necessity. “…it were only as I held her that I knew how deep I loved her we were grown together like 2 branches of an old wisteria.” This is also evident in the film “Ned Kelly” as the movie illustrates their bond and how he struggles to fight for his mother’s justice. This straight away outlines Kelly’s intentions were only to keep his family safe and fight for what was right. Using Kelly's text “the Jerilderie Letter” as a template, Carey narrates the immense of True History in Kelly's voice. The voice of Ned Kelly comes through the language of the text. The style of Carey's Ned Kelly is somewhat poetic and natural without being sentimental, creating a feeling that this is the authentic voice of Ned Kelly. Although it is not grammatical and randomly punctuated with the use of abbreviations, it is highly readable, illustrating the real, unschooled voice of Ned. Right from the opening paragraph it grips the reader's attention and conveys a clear sense of character: 'I lost my own father at 12 yr. of age and know what it is to be raised on lies and silences my dear daughter you are presently too young to understand a word I write but this history is for you and will contain no single lie may I burn in Hell if I speak false'. The emotions in his words enables the reader to believe that this is the only true history of what really happened which is parallel to the title of the novel itself as the “True History of the Kelly Gang”. It allows the reader to hear Kelly’s voice, envision his hardship and sympathize his traumatic experiences. In the movie Ned Kelly, the film opens with Ned, as a child, rescuing another boy from drowning and being awarded the silk hero's sash of green and gold. The film then continues with Ned Kelly’s voice. His deep, strong voice gives the movie its characteristic tone with the Australian landscape in the background engaging both these techniques to create warmth in his voice and a connection between Ned Kelly and the land. Likewise in Sidney Nolan’s painting, the intensity of the colors of the land and bush along with its overall smooth texture help create harmony between legend, symbol and visual impact. It’s a much straightforward picture but highlights that Kelly is in the centre of the painting and the colors are around him which help to make him stand out and represent him as an Australian icon. His black armour shape is very basic as Nolan tries to illustrate Ned as a simple, neutral yet unique character. The narrative True History relates the repeated conflicts between the Kelly family and the police and Kelly's apprenticeship with the famed bushranger Harry Power. Using Harry Power, Carey explains the way Ned Kelly was taken advantage of as seen in this quote “I am painted as such a criminal but it seems to me I was so young and gullible that Harry Power could play with me almost any way he wished“. This exemplifies the innocence and purity of Ned Kelly that has been taken away from him in his childhood and hence trying to convey sympathy. The novel covers the most famous exploits of the Kelly gang, including the battle at Stringybark Creek. Carey’s representation of the famous incident is that of a regular man trapped by situation and filled with remorse and guilt. . “The rain begun sprinkling on the dry earth I wished it would wash away my sin but it came on the cold breath of the Southern Ocean…” Similarly in the movie Ned Kelly, every time Kelly takes some violent action, they give us a scene of him protesting that he doesn't want to shoot anybody. Both texts integrates the way we perceive Ned Kelly and prove to us that he is of good heart and means no harm to the community. The film also touches on the highlights of Kelly's life, including his unfair imprisonment for horse theft, the Kelly Gang's two bank robberies; and the final shootout at Glenrowan, in which the Kelly Gang wore medieval-looking suits of armor. Also, in the Sidney Nolan Painting he presently animates the black bold helmet’s recognized shape and the way Kelly’s steel head guard controls the composition, defines the importance of the helmet as an Australian icon. This was visible in all three texts. Carey's 'history' of the Kelly gang is conventional, with the exception of his focus on Kelly's relationship with Mary Hearne, with whom he has a daughter. Kelly’s lover is absent from most historical accounts so Carey’s decision to include their love illustrates a sympathetic perspective. In portraying Kelly as a loving father and husband, Carey gives us a domesticated Ned Kelly, a man committed to family and friends. The movie had a similar relationship between Ned Kelly and a married woman. Although it applies to very little of the movie, it underpins the representation of a kind, young man incapable of committing any crimes. Given the countless retellings of the Kelly legend, Carey's fictional account of the Kelly story provides a powerful and fresh perspective on Kelly's life and times. Nolan wanted to create and define episodes in Australian independence, to retell the story of a hero, a hero that resonates in every corner of Australian society making him one of the most successful outlaws in Australian history. Gregor Jordan’s film sentimentally reflected how Ned Kelly is looked upon in a heroic way for fighting the justice system and showing courage, strength and ability to resist laws through making his own lifestyle, with separate beliefs, attitudes and values. These are the values and beliefs that many Australians today follow because it is these artists, writers and directors who utilized their memories and the remains of Ned Kelly to illustrate a history that we come to believe in today.