Belonging Essay
“A sense of belonging can emerge from connections with communities and people.”
Stella Wu
The concepts of belonging are primarily come from attachment with communities and individuals. In the novel “swallow the air” (Tara June Winch 2006) and the movie “Rabbit-Proof Fence” (Phillip Noyce 2002), authors use various language and visual techniques apply to writing and visual cohesion such as symbolism, motif, quotes and cycle to tell similar story about “the stolen generation”.
“Rabbit-Proof Fence” tells a true story of two Aboriginal sisters Molly and Daisy and their cousin Daisy. The girls were forcibly removed from their family in Jigalong and taken to the Moore River camp. Similarly, May left her Aunty in “swallow the air” and start a tour for seeking her roots.
First of all, the close bonding to family is the main belonging to the two protagonists. In “Rabbit Proof Fence”, family is the main factor which drives the story and bookends the whole film by the hunting scene and reunion scene. Just like in “swallow the air”, scenes with mother in the first chapter and the last chapter “home” forms a cycle. People have “roots” if they have family or belong to a community. Moreover, in “Rabbit-proof Fence” when the totem hawk first appears in high angle shot, Maude says “That’s the spirit bird, he will always look after you.” Close relationship shown here by both the quote and mother’s arm around Molly, fixing her hair, with satisfaction on her face in close-up shot. The scene highlights the strong bonding in this blood kinship. Correspondingly, the turtle Mungi which reborn and gain its new belonging without being disturbed connects May to her mother to reinforce the solidity of mother-daughter bond. When her mother dies, May loses not only love and affection form mother but also her sense of belonging to Aboriginal culture and even to the world, shown through “but when Mum left, I stopped being Aboriginal. I stopped feeling like I belonged.” Repetition emphasis
Stella Wu
The concepts of belonging are primarily come from attachment with communities and individuals. In the novel “swallow the air” (Tara June Winch 2006) and the movie “Rabbit-Proof Fence” (Phillip Noyce 2002), authors use various language and visual techniques apply to writing and visual cohesion such as symbolism, motif, quotes and cycle to tell similar story about “the stolen generation”.
“Rabbit-Proof Fence” tells a true story of two Aboriginal sisters Molly and Daisy and their cousin Daisy. The girls were forcibly removed from their family in Jigalong and taken to the Moore River camp. Similarly, May left her Aunty in “swallow the air” and start a tour for seeking her roots.
First of all, the close bonding to family is the main belonging to the two protagonists. In “Rabbit Proof Fence”, family is the main factor which drives the story and bookends the whole film by the hunting scene and reunion scene. Just like in “swallow the air”, scenes with mother in the first chapter and the last chapter “home” forms a cycle. People have “roots” if they have family or belong to a community. Moreover, in “Rabbit-proof Fence” when the totem hawk first appears in high angle shot, Maude says “That’s the spirit bird, he will always look after you.” Close relationship shown here by both the quote and mother’s arm around Molly, fixing her hair, with satisfaction on her face in close-up shot. The scene highlights the strong bonding in this blood kinship. Correspondingly, the turtle Mungi which reborn and gain its new belonging without being disturbed connects May to her mother to reinforce the solidity of mother-daughter bond. When her mother dies, May loses not only love and affection form mother but also her sense of belonging to Aboriginal culture and even to the world, shown through “but when Mum left, I stopped being Aboriginal. I stopped feeling like I belonged.” Repetition emphasis