Of Belonging In Peter Skrzynecki's The Pedestrian

Your perception of belonging can be shaped by your surroundings and community which can impact on whether you are isolated to the point of conformity.. This is determined by the individual which either leads them to adapt-which offers them safety, security and feelings of acceptance or to feel outcast and ostracised. In Ray Bradbury The pedestrian and in Peter Skrzynecki’s poem Felik Skrzynecki examine how individuals are pressured to conform to the norms and expectations of society, however a lack of it can also cause alienation.
Our surroundings impact on our sense of belonging. In the short story The Pedestrian, Mr Mead has “been walking for 10 years” which confirms the connection he feels with the nature because it offers him safety
“In ten years of walking by night or day, for thousands of miles he had never met another person walking, not once in that time” it shows the conforming society in which Mr Mead lives. The fact that he has not met anyone walking in ten years tells us that people don’t pay attention to the environment and are more occupied with their daily lives because everything can be done from the ‘comfort of your own home’, thus you never see people roaming the streets anymore. Mr mead must be careful when he goes walking because “lights might click on and the faces appear and an entire street be startled by the passing of a lone figure” the word “ startled” depicts that it is unusual to find people walking at night as it is not the norms of society. However being the rebellious Mr Mead, he won’t compromise his individuality because society doesn’t approve of what he loves doing. therefore he chooses not to conform by going against expectations. This shows he values his individuality over conforming to society. On the other hand, Mr Mead does not conform to their way of life, however, his presence in his ‘community’ in itself, show a sense of connection to a place and so complying to society