Summary Of Billy's Relationship With Her Father

There is a clear distinction between the appearance of belonging and the reality of an internal struggle.
This links to the simple gift as the appearance of old bills belonging is to the category of homelessness and hoboness, as opposed to the reality of his internal struggle of losing loved ones. He loses the purpose for living and loses motivation to pick himself up and make something of the rest of his life. This is a story which remains untold with the simple assumption that he is nothing more than a poor unfortunate and grumpy hobo.
The appearance of Billy’s rebellion as opposed to the reality of his internal struggle of searching for unconditional love and an environment where the person he wants to be can be fully expressed without
However, Caitlin’s tone is not one of ungratefulness but rather an acceptance of the expectations of her with her simultaneous struggle for independence. Caitlin mentions her dad is ‘too rich for his own good’ which implies that although there is no ill treatment in her household as there was in Billy’s case, there is definitely a gap in the relationship with her parents, as if money has been used to fill the void of any lack of affection. The role of the parent is also a factor in ‘open hearts for the youngest on the streets’. In comparison to Caitlin’s situation the youth of the streets experience neglect. On the other hand the reasons for this neglect are very different. The youth have no one there constantly for them, whereas Caitlin has someone her parents there with the materialistic world creating the
In the beginning, Billy is depicted as being nothing more than a rebellious teenager displaying unacceptable behaviour in the initial setting of his life at long lands road. This is later arguably justified with the revelation that Billy’s relationship with his father had been diminished by his father’s alcohol abuse and domestic violence. Despite his neglectful upbringing Billy musters the courage and initiative to make a new start and that new start is to take place in Bendarat. Billy’s morality which is a complete contradiction to that of his father’s is demonstrated in his care for his dog bunk brain and continues to become evident to the reader though his interactions between Ernie’s the train driver, the librarian, old bill and Caitlin. These interactions bring light to Billy’s qualities of generosities, empathy, and gratefulness, even for the simplest acts of kindness bestowed upon him. Through meeting these people Billy gains a new found confidence in humanity, in that he discovers the potential for genuine relationships with genuinely good people. In return, Billy commits himself whole heartedly to these