“the_Potential_of_Individuals_to_Challenge_a_Group_Is_Influenced_by_Their_Own_Sense_of_Belonging_to_Their_Community_and_the_World_Around_Them

“The potential of individuals to challenge a group is influenced by their own sense of belonging to their community and the world around them” How have the texts you have studies demonstrated the truth of this statement' When one analyses the poems of Peter skyrzynecki, the graphic novel The arrival by Shaun tan and the motion picture Goodfellas directed by Martin Scorsese one come to realises that the potential of individuals to challenge a group is in fact influenced by their own sense of belonging to their community and the world around them. As the poem called “Feliks skyrzynecki” and “postcard” by Peter skyrzynecki, in addition to the texts “the arrival” and “Goodfellas” unequivocally are perfect examples into the naked truth of this fact. As the contexts of these texts differ greatly and seem to come from different dimensions as they are set in very different times, worlds and places full of their own unique traditions, rituals and customs. However these texts are intrinsically linked from their core in relation to the universal theme and need for belonging respectively faced and felt by the protagonists of the aforementioned texts. As the states of their spirits ultimately rely on their experience of unity and harmony of the relationships they have throughout their lives in the different texts. To begin the poem titled “Feliks skyrzynecki” discusses the way that belonging rises from being attached to places and people and that people as individuals can choose to belong and the concept of belonging to an individual can be changed or modified over time. As the protagonist is conveyed to be strongly attached to his home as at the beginning of the poem, the simile and hyperbole evident in the lines “loving his garden like an only child...sweeping its path ten times around the world. Effectively conveys the perception the composer has of his father’s “paternal-connection” and the dedication he has towards the garden. In a similar manner sense of belonging also comes from his close connection to his polish friends. As the accumulation of affirmative verbs in the lines “they reminisced about farms where paddocks flowered....horses they bred...”conveys the sense of their shared nostalgia and pride that they have for their cultural heritage which connects them together and fosters a sense of belonging. These two examples clearly indicate how the potential of individuals to challenge a group is influenced by their own sense of belonging to their community and the world around them as due to the protagonists strong attachment to his home and friends he gains a sense of security and comfort in what to him is a foreign and unknown world. The crux of this statement is validated when it is revealed in the line “kept pace only with the joneses of his own mind’s making”, which means he was content with what little he had and as a result didn’t conform or assimilate into the new society or world he now lived. However in stark contrast the protagonist featured in the “The arrival” for the most of the story feels alienation, confusion and discontentment due to the fact that he is not with his family and he now lives in a place where he was very little connection to. This is evident in the great difference of the expression in the protagonists face between when he leaves and when he is reunited with his family at the end of the text. This emphatically highlights how the company of family and friends in addition to a sentimental attachment a place is important to a sense of belonging. As this concept is also demonstrated in the poem called “Feliks skyrzynecki” and as just discussed the graphic novel “The arrival”. Since this is the case it obvious that the potential of the protagonist to challenge a group would indeed be is influenced by their own sense of belonging to their community and the world around them. As he as a migrant would face my challenges living in to him what would be a foreign world he knows very little about as in the story the immigrant struggles to find a job, a place to stay and a sense of meaning in his new existence in addition to the language barriers he must face living in a new world. An example of this is when he arrives on shore and a series of time lapse medium shots present the difficulties and convey the confusion of him communicating with migration officials. However despite all of these obstacles he’s spirits are elevated when he is reunited with his family and enjoys a nice meal with them at the end of the text. This shows that in addition to food, clothing and shelter the protagonist has also attained love, peace and happiness from the company of his family. By not conforming to his new home to be content. And as a result indirectly challenging proponents of assimilation and encouraging multiculturalism. Hence it is clear in this case that the potential of individuals to challenge a group is in fact influenced by their own sense of belonging to their community and the world around them. On another note the motion picture Goodfellas directed by Martin Scorsese presents a much different perspective to the table in relation to belonging. As it’s a true story of the life of the mobster, Henry hill and his intoxication to belonging to his “extended crime family”. His obsession is perfectly conveyed in a extreme close-up in addition to the narration which was juxtaposed with this scene near the start of the movie when a then a young Henry is scene eagerly, prying on the gangsters across the street through the window. “To me being a gangster was being better than the president of the united states”... “It was there I knew I belonged”.... “People like my father couldn’t understand I was a part of something”. These techniques effectively highlight Henry’s motives for joining the mafia and just how important belonging was to him. The mafia not only challenged the law they also challenged traditional notion of belonging as Henry “belongs” more to his crime family than he does to his “blood relatives” as when he gets released from court his crime family is the first to greet him. In another scene Henry explain in the form of narration that “For us to live anyway else was nuts, those goody-goody people who worked crappy jobs for bum pay checks ever, who worried about their bills were everyday dead. they were chumps, they had no courage if we wanted something we just took it anyone who complained twice got hit so hard believe me they never complained again “While a panning shots shows them and him and his friends living the high life that came with being in the mob. This unequivocally shows that the potential of individuals to challenge a group is influenced by their own sense of belonging to their community and the world around them. As Henry and his crime family got everything they wanted while developing a highly loyal, close-nit organisation in the process which allowed them to take on the law and traditional notions of belonging. In a similar vein the poem titled “Postcard” by Peter skyrzynecki also shares the same sentiment that the movie Goodfellas portrays to traditional notions of belonging as the personification in the line “Warsaw, old town I never knew you....” in a nutshell sums up the composer’s feelings of dissociation with the “old country” and feelings of being divided between two cultures in a generation gap. However the composers confidence in the rhetorical question “beloved Ukraine, What’s my choice to be' Sums up his predicament as he is not going to accept a past he does not know. And in the process the potential of the composer to challenge his cultural heritage and hence his parents is influenced by his own feelings toward the old country. And hence his sense of belonging albeit lack of and the lack of attachment he feels to his cultural heritage strengthens his own perspective of belonging as an individual. In conclusion as evident from the texts discussed earlier it can be clearly noted that without a doubt that individuals are influenced by their own sense of belonging to their community and the world around them. As these texts demonstrate that the universal concept of belonging and attachment can take a myriad of different forms whether it is belonging to a powerful crime family, the traditional family or a lack of belonging to one cultural heritage. Whatever the context may be, it is undebatable that from the study of these texts the truth of the statement “The potential of individuals to challenge a group is influenced by their own sense of belonging to their community and the world around them” can be validated.