A Simple Gift Belonging Analysis

The idea of belonging is conveyed in several ways throughout these three texts, the novel ‘A Simple Gift’, by Steven Herrick, the song ‘She’s Leaving Home’ by The Beatles, and an image from an online art site. By analyzing these texts, you’re drawn to many conclusions on belonging, such as the idea that the need to belong shapes our behaviour, attitudes and actions, as well as the realisation that belonging is a basic human need to be accepted. In Steven Herrick’s novel ‘A Simple Gift’, he uses various techniques to portray belonging or the lack thereof. One technique used is Multiple Narrators, such as Caitlin, Billy and Old Bill, which not only allows you to see several situations through more than one pair of eyes, but also shows how important it is to connect to other people, as well as relationships. Multiple Narrators also tells of how each feels in terms of how and where they belong. Overall, it tells us how everyone feels the need to
This song gives the idea that the perspective on belonging can vary in a relationship, depending on where you stand. It shows that the girl feels alienated while her parents believe otherwise. This is shown via the use of repetition, which reinforces her parents disbelief while telling of how alone their daughter feels. It conveys the idea that belonging is not about possessions or wealth, but personal relationships. The use of a dual perspective, successful by use of brackets, gives you both points of view, of how both the daughter and parents feel about the situation. It reveals the parents devastation, and the daughters final decision to leave. It has an ironic twist, with the parents believing the could buy their daughters love, while the daughter believed they didn’t love her enough to spend time with her. This method ultimately shows how the daughter feels she doesn’t belong and craves to do so, pointing out that you can’t buy