In his collection of poems Broken Teeth, author Tony Birch explores Melbourne’s past from British Settlement to the present day. Within his poems “‘My Words’, Beruk (Ngamajet) -1835”, “Beruk Watches Melbourne from the Sky -1945” and “Visiting”, Birch creates a connected image of the city’s past through exploring snapshots of different time periods within Melbourne’s rich, diverse history. Birch’s poems also identify the strong links between the city’s past and its present, reviving the strong historical and cultural factors that influenced Melbourne’s creation.
Tony Birch’s Poem “‘My Words’, Breuk (Ngamajet)- 1835”, depicts the history of the colonisation of Melbourne, as told through the eyes of prominent Indigenous leader William Barak
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Birch describes a “darkened” (5) Melbourne, that despite not being “a bombsite”(1), is still “a city of cold light and benign shadows” (4-5), displaying the negative history associated with the city. In his poem, Birch examines that although Melbourne was not “among the rubble” (3) post World War II, it shared a similar pattern of destruction in the form of the devastation brought upon the Indigenous population at the time of the British Colonization. This concept links Burton Pike text The Image of the City in Modern Literature, in which Pike claims every city in the world has its own “individual history” (3), however cities “all seem to exemplify similar patterns” (3). This identifies that the formation of a city follows a general historical structure, and can be seen through Birch’s comparison of Europe’s involvement in WWII with the Colonization of Australia. Further to this, Pike also states that literature about metropolitan areas focuses on “the interpenetration of past and present” (4), showing that it often uniquely combines both the past and the present day to display the energy of the city. Both of these concepts are explored in “Beruk Watches Melbourne from the Sky” as Birch presents the ghostly figure of WIlliam Barrack wandering through the “tombstone towers” of Melbourne (5). In the same way that Birch …show more content…
Despite displaying Melbourne as being “a sludge of shifting grey” (6) after the War, the city was actually seen as a centre for celebration. On Friday the 17th of August 1945, The Argus, a Melbourne based newspaper, reported on the city’s reaction to the news that Japan had surrendered in WWII the previous day. Titled, “Peace Hailed with Outburst of joy in Melbourne”, the article describes the bursting energy that filled Melbourne city. Stating “the city went wild with a ecstasy of joy within a few minutes of hearing the news” (4), the article shows that Melbourne was a place for people to come in celebration and peace at the end of the War. This is in high contrast to the dark and sad portrayal of Melbourne by Birch, however by manipulating the history, Birch presents a different aspect of Melbourne’s past, and also explores memories of a negative history are able to permeate positive
The fact that Australia was considered as a global nation, which was ‘open to multiple international cultural, political and economic influences (pp.222), was very contentious. Sheridan makes it clear that Asia involvement has shaped Australia, acknowledging the positive and necessary changes in areas including culture, economy, education, defence and more. Knight indicates that Australia was encouraged to begin the desire for economic gain and civilisation. He states ‘Australia thus inherited from Britain a European country, its sense of cultural identity and its feeling of superiority towards Asia and Asians’(pp.223). This demonstrates that Australia views towards Asia were constantly changing leading to an increase in problems examples including smuggling and entering legally from other states.
It is evident that “Tony Birch revives Melbourne’s past” through the creation of structure, that creates images in the readers’ minds; and it is these images, that ultimately forms a type of a narrative, which restores Australia and Melbourne’s past – to the readers. The structure of – ‘My Words’, Beruk (Ngamajet) – 1835 – is interesting, because it creates a narrative accounting, the arrival of the British and the racism that prevailed, after their arrival. The poem’s structure can be unpacked by analyzing the poem thoroughly. The begins by addressing the arrival of the British colonial, by making references to the William Barak’s first impression of Captain Cook, who had “landed [wearing a] white jacket and brass buttons”.
Good morning and welcome fellow active citizens. Today we will be examining the wide spectrum of cultural identities, values, and beliefs that Australian poetry and film are underpinned with. By the end of this presentation, you will walk away with knowledge of the Australian Identity through the works of two Australia poets Oodgeroo Noonuccal and Bruce Dawe and one of our beloved Aussie box office smash ‘The Castle’.
Drysdale’s surrealist work was indicative of the Australian Modernist movement which either worked to portray the ugly nature of the urban landscape or showing the countryside as mythical and land of freedom. Similarly, Jeffrey Smart was also influenced by this movement depicting the apparent ugliness in the urban environment but in a highly detailed way. Both works develop the idea of isolation and alienation is present in society however differ in the way in which it forms. Drysdale had a deep emotional attachment to the land and depicted this through his work in a dark desolate sense conveying the suffering of the country and its inhabitants from fire and flood. It is common for rural areas of Australia to be lowly populated creating a sense immerse isolation for residents due to a lack of human interaction which may effects ones mentality, however Drysdale implies the resolution of humanity in the face of such remoteness, a testimony to strength of the Australian people who choose to survive in such areas.
Crow Country by Kate Constable is a story of Sadie Hazzard, a girl who slips into the past to right the old wrongs and prevents it from reoccurring in the present time. The author successfully reveals the best and worst of Australians to a great extent through reflecting values that are found in contemporary Australian society and the past such as integrity, respect and acceptance. Gerald Mortlock displays the worst acts when he neglects the value of respect, however, Lachie and Ellie show Australians at their best. Kate Constable explores the idea of disrespect being shown in the past, reflecting the worst of Australians. This is evident when Gerald Mortlock, Jimmy Raven’s friend says ‘the War’s over… Jimmy is a good man, a good worker.
This correlates to the ideology of heritage and identity within Australia. Australia was known as terra nullius (land unoccupied) when European settlers colonised due to their belief that indigenous Australians were a different race similar to fauna (Byrne 2003). Jones and Harris (1998) expand on this notion with the idea that European settlers deemed themselves the first occupiers of Australian land due to their discourse surrounding the permanency and entitlement of land ownership. This Euro-centric construct of land ownership is discussed within the article with specific importance placed colonials concept of being an inheritor of the land rather than an invader and also the historical European concept of racial identities and their link to ‘the nation’ (Byrne 2003, p. 78). It was seen that because the indigenous Australians didn’t comply to the settler’s social construct of home, then the land wasn’t owned and therefore any remains were also free for the taking.
Jack Davis’s play No Sugar depicts the struggle for survival by the Indigenous population during the Great Depression in Western Australia. Set on an Aboriginal Reserve, the Munday and Millimurra families become victims of racist political manoeuvres that force them to move to the Moore River Native Settlement in the 1930s. During this time, racism against Indigenous Australians was normalised, which becomes evident in the powerful characterisation of key players such as the chief protector, Mr Neville and the head of the settlement, Mr Neal. Not only does Davis suggest that racist policies are powerfully entrenched throughout the political system, but they also inform political, social and cultural decisions to such an extent that the Indigenous
The Bombing of Darwin, which occurred on February 19, 1942, was a significant event in Australia's history. The attack, which was carried out by Japanese forces, resulted in extensive damage to the town of Darwin and the loss of hundreds of lives. In this essay, I will explore the background to the bombing and the impact it had on Australia's involvement in World War II. The bombing of Darwin took place just over two months after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, which had drawn the United States into the war. The attack on Darwin was part of a larger Japanese campaign to establish a stronghold in Southeast Asia and to cut off Australia's supply lines to the United States.
They had problems linking ancient cities with those in the modern world. However, there was another beautiful city activist while embracing Sargent’s views took them a few steps further, Charles
In her book Nanberry, Jackie French portrays colonial life as a very confusing and perplexing time for both the Indigenous Australians and the White British Settlers, albeit in different ways. With the Indigenous Australians confused by the sudden invasion of the white settler (ghosts), and the British Settlers becoming confused by the new sights, smells and culture of ‘Sydney Cove’. Through the characters of Nanberry, Surgeon White and Bennelong, the viewer is shown just how confusing their life was at the time of the first settlement in Australia. Nanberry is one of the main characters in French’s book, and is a prime way through which she portrays colonial life as perplexing and confusing. Nanberry was born into, and partially raised by an Indigenous Australian family, however he was adopted by Surgeon White at the tender age of eight or nine.
Oodgeroo Noonuccal’s non-traditional view of Australia in ‘An Appeal’ shows how stereotypes of Australia are not always correct. The poem shows how camaraderie and mateship are not always expressed in Australian lifestyle. It is evident in the poem that not all Australians help each other to get through tough times and Australia is divided into different groups of people and is not equal. ‘An appeal’ shows how the nation stands up for themselves and fight for what is right against the power of the ‘not really’ authoritative people of Australia. The concept of inequality is a crucial part of Oodgeroo Noonuccal’s poem ‘An Appeal’.
It was soon discovered by political parties across Australia that something very drastic had to happen in order for the integrity of Australia’s borders to remain secure. When such a significant outpost fell and 130000 Soldiers became prisoners of war(L Murdoch, 2012)-a very large percentage of Australian troops- morale was low, even amongst military leaders. So when Britain refused to aid Australia in bolstering and reinforcing its national borders there was much anger on local and national levels. Citizens believed that they deserved the right to a liberated country especially with the number of men who had fought and died for that same ideology. At the time though there was very little speculation of a Japanese attack so this rage quickly died off.
There is the idea of a city, and the city itself, too great to be held in the mind. And it is in this gap (between the conceptual and the real) that aggression begins” is central to Saunders’ essay, due to the fact that this quote illustrates Saunders’ message that people tend to have misconceptions generated from their own limited experience and misconceptions can easily lead to conflicts and aggression if handled
In conclusion, the poem no more boomerang is a mesmerizing poem about Australia that resembles the cultural difference between both the Indigenous and white Australians which shows how the colonization of the Europeans and how it had dramatically changed the Aboriginals lives and ways of
Memoir Writing I used to live in a place known for its glamourous coast and stunning terrain. When I was still a toddler I took a plane to Australia, not knowing that it will be my home for four years. When I first arrived in Australia, I was amazed by the beautiful beaches and unique wildlife it had to offer. Throughout the 4 years I lived in a small house near the Gold Coast with my family.