Whale Rider Peter Skrzynecki Essay
The challenge to belong may be resisted or embraced.
How is this explored in your prescribed text and one other related text of your own choosing?
Within the text “Immigrant Chronicle” by Peter Skrzynecki, belonging is thoroughly explored, and is both resisted and embraced, not simply one or the other. This is also evident throughout the movie Whale Rider, directed by Niki Caro. The authors express this notion of belonging through a variety of themes including culture, family and schooling. These themes are particularly apparent within the poems “Feliks Skyrznecki” and “10 Mary Street”.
A significant phase within the journey towards finding belonging is resisting. This is particularly shown in the film ‘Whale Rider’. Pai, as the female protagonist does not want to belong, as there is pressure associated with the Maori culture. At the beginning, the death of her twin brother is shown, and dialogue as well as non- diegetic music is used to show her lack of cultural acceptance at the beginning. “Where’s the boy?” is said. At this point, the non- diegetic music seizes and silence is heard. This is effective as it emphasizes the emptiness in Koro’s words. Additionally forlorn music in this opening scene demonstrates feelings of isolation and the blue visual presented shows the ubiquity of the ocean. Pai is forced to resist the culture she was born into, due to lack of approval from her family, and in turn, culture.
This is mirrored in Peter Skrzynecki’s paean “Feliks Skrzynecki”, as he resists devoting himself to a culture, since he belonged to two cultures; Australian and Polish. It is seen that his lack of cultural identity is related to his absence of interaction with others and the world. An instance of this is seen where the author speaks of his father’s Polish ‘friends’ as opposed to mentioning their individual names. Language and visual imagery are utilized to create the image that Peter is excluded and in turn, lacks a sense of belonging “His polish
How is this explored in your prescribed text and one other related text of your own choosing?
Within the text “Immigrant Chronicle” by Peter Skrzynecki, belonging is thoroughly explored, and is both resisted and embraced, not simply one or the other. This is also evident throughout the movie Whale Rider, directed by Niki Caro. The authors express this notion of belonging through a variety of themes including culture, family and schooling. These themes are particularly apparent within the poems “Feliks Skyrznecki” and “10 Mary Street”.
A significant phase within the journey towards finding belonging is resisting. This is particularly shown in the film ‘Whale Rider’. Pai, as the female protagonist does not want to belong, as there is pressure associated with the Maori culture. At the beginning, the death of her twin brother is shown, and dialogue as well as non- diegetic music is used to show her lack of cultural acceptance at the beginning. “Where’s the boy?” is said. At this point, the non- diegetic music seizes and silence is heard. This is effective as it emphasizes the emptiness in Koro’s words. Additionally forlorn music in this opening scene demonstrates feelings of isolation and the blue visual presented shows the ubiquity of the ocean. Pai is forced to resist the culture she was born into, due to lack of approval from her family, and in turn, culture.
This is mirrored in Peter Skrzynecki’s paean “Feliks Skrzynecki”, as he resists devoting himself to a culture, since he belonged to two cultures; Australian and Polish. It is seen that his lack of cultural identity is related to his absence of interaction with others and the world. An instance of this is seen where the author speaks of his father’s Polish ‘friends’ as opposed to mentioning their individual names. Language and visual imagery are utilized to create the image that Peter is excluded and in turn, lacks a sense of belonging “His polish