Belonging
Essay
“A sense of belonging requires an understanding of one’s past.” Although the main aspect of this quote is referring to the past; in other words time, it could also mean features of the past, such as people, places, past experience etc. These aspects of belonging are extensively shown within Peter Skrzynecki’s ‘Immigrant Chronicle’; in particular the poems ‘Feliks Skrzynecki’ and ‘in the folk museum’. Belonging and all of its aspects are also shown through the movie ‘Dead Poets society’ and particularly through the characterisation of Mr Keating and Todd Anderson. Although they all have belonging placed within their storyline; they all have different aspects of connection whether it is positive or negative.
In the poem ‘Feliks Skrzynecki’ the poet celebrates the life of his father and begins to examine his father and his simplicity. In this poem belonging is shown through culture and personality of the father. However the aspect of belonging in this particular poem is not the connection with other people but more the connection with himself and hence his past. He does this through one way, refusing to go into current society and remaining with his culture which is part of his past. This idea is evident all throughout the poem particularly in the quote; ‘the Joneses of his own mind’s making’. In this quote the Joneses represents mainstream society and how the father refuses to go along with the Australian Society and continues with his Polish cultural. The poet does also show his father’s Polish culture within the poem; to represent the father’s culture the poet continually talks about his peaceful presence around nature, for example “Loved his garden like an only child” and “Talking, they reminisced about farms where paddocks flowered with corn and wheat.” The poet also shows how the father seems so different to society not only through the poets view but through society as well, which is evident through the quote; “Did your father ever attempt to learn
“A sense of belonging requires an understanding of one’s past.” Although the main aspect of this quote is referring to the past; in other words time, it could also mean features of the past, such as people, places, past experience etc. These aspects of belonging are extensively shown within Peter Skrzynecki’s ‘Immigrant Chronicle’; in particular the poems ‘Feliks Skrzynecki’ and ‘in the folk museum’. Belonging and all of its aspects are also shown through the movie ‘Dead Poets society’ and particularly through the characterisation of Mr Keating and Todd Anderson. Although they all have belonging placed within their storyline; they all have different aspects of connection whether it is positive or negative.
In the poem ‘Feliks Skrzynecki’ the poet celebrates the life of his father and begins to examine his father and his simplicity. In this poem belonging is shown through culture and personality of the father. However the aspect of belonging in this particular poem is not the connection with other people but more the connection with himself and hence his past. He does this through one way, refusing to go into current society and remaining with his culture which is part of his past. This idea is evident all throughout the poem particularly in the quote; ‘the Joneses of his own mind’s making’. In this quote the Joneses represents mainstream society and how the father refuses to go along with the Australian Society and continues with his Polish cultural. The poet does also show his father’s Polish culture within the poem; to represent the father’s culture the poet continually talks about his peaceful presence around nature, for example “Loved his garden like an only child” and “Talking, they reminisced about farms where paddocks flowered with corn and wheat.” The poet also shows how the father seems so different to society not only through the poets view but through society as well, which is evident through the quote; “Did your father ever attempt to learn