Michael Wilding's The Altar Of The Family

Set in the small country town of Birendulee, Michael Wilding's, The Altar of The Family is a dismal illustration that narrates the tale of an isolated and rather innocent boy's passage to manhood. Constantly falling victim to his father's belittling, David Murray, the protagonist of the narrative is coerced into sacrificing his innocence for his rite to passage into manhood, in what seems to be 'the altar' of his 'family'. Through a third person point of view limited to David's thoughts and feelings , Wilding induces the reader to understand deeper themes such as that of social conformity and pride vs individuality and the difficulties faced by those who stand out in a society.

Through his actions (playing with his sister's dolls and not hunting with his dad), David is alluded to being a feminine character; this severely contrasts with society's expectations and traditions of how it was di rigueur for a young boy to be tough and manly. Already opposing the everyday norms of society, David can be viewed as a symbol of
Succeeding the "permeated murder", David becomes trapped by guilt and also loses his sense of self. The conclusion is a contrast between the scene in the lagoon that consisted of a variety of birds flying. surging Birds are generally associated with freedom and they could arguably represent how David felt as he was a part of these birds; as these birds surged, they reflected 'the sun like blown blossom at the foot of the original Brendon' even the sun in this scene contradicts the latter scorching sun. The atmosphere turns from a breezy, light summer's sun to something more 'manly' and scorching that trapped David 'in a dome'. This manhood that he tried to achieve so badly had not only trapped him, but also had turned him into 'an automaton figure on a mechanical clock"- he had lost all sense of self and was now lost and trapped for