Many different contexts play a part in forming our identity. Where you live, who you live with, how financially strong you are all contribute to your perception of troubled times. If you live in a slum – like the boys from “Trash” by Andy Mulligan – then your identity, life and perception of troubled times would be different to that of a person from a 1st world country such as Australia. In my essay, I will demonstrate why troubled times differ depending on our contexts. I will explain why our geographical, personal, financial, working and political contexts shape our perception of troubled times
Where we live brings different troubled times. The boys from the novel “Trash” live in a slum, with harsh living condition and next to nothing when it comes to safety and protection. In a slum, there are terrible living conditions and bad sanitation and life threatening situations are common. There are no police or emergency services a slum so living there can be a very dangerous place to be in.
Children in Australia face very different troubled times because in Australia there is no bad sanitation and living conditions are good. There are services such as police and ambulances to protect children. Children in slums have all these problems to face, so they must adapt to these terrible conditions and troubled times. Therefore, where we live plays a big part in shaping our perception of troubled times.
While our geographical context plays a part in defining our troubled times, our personal situation also affects our perception of troubled times. From reading the novel “Trash” I have realised that our perception of troubled times is influenced by the people around us, our age, and our physical health. Many children from slums does not have the benefit of loving, caring parents in the sense that we know it. Most children don't have good health either because of the lack of health care and services, so they will face different