Belonging

“an individual’s interaction with others and the world around them can enrich or limit their experience of belonging” Discuss this view with detailed reference to your prescribed text and one other related text An individual’s interaction with others and the world around them can limit their experience of belonging solely due to their culture. This is portrayed in both Peter Skryznecki’s poetry and in the short film directed by Michael Weisler, Missing Her. The poem “Migrant Hostel” identifies that a culture will seek out people of the same culture in order to create a sense of belonging. The poem “Postcard” identifies that belonging to a place is achieved through experience. The short film Missing Her shows how ones culture can alienate. A culture will often seek out other people the same culture in order to belong. This can be seen clearly in the poem “Migrant Hostel” by Peter Skryznecki. The use of the metaphor of the animal tracks identifies how people will seek out others of similar qualities as the line “unaware of the season whose tracks we would follow” clearly shows. This not only shows how an individual will follow similar individuals, it also shows how important a culture is in order to belong. This is also portrayed through the symbolism of the ‘tracks’ as they are the cultures tracks and where in society they are. The line “nationalities sought each other out instinctively” conveys the idea that this occurance of seeking out people of similar qualities is natural and is therefore an instinct used in order to feel as though they belong to something. However, this natural instinct can negatively affect an individual as it isolates them from others limiting their experiences. This can be seen through the metaphor of the highway as it shows how the culture itself has been alientated from others. The line “A barrier at the main gate sealed off the highway” clearly identifies the petaphor and its effect on the people within. Although this can be seen as a negative a sense of belonging is still created as they are with people of the same culture. Belonging to a place is achieved through experience. This is clearly shown in the poem “Postcard” by Peter Skryznecki. The personification of Warsaw in the line “Warsaw: old town I never knew you except in third person” shows that by giving Warsaw human qualities he creates a relationship between Warsaw and himself. However, by not experiencing the person/place first hand, he does not understand or belong to the place. Peter’s experience of the town he is meant to belong to is lacking and therefore he cannot accept it to be a place where he feels as though he belongs. The use of the rhetotical question “what more do you want besides the gift of despair'” creates a sense of confusion and that Peter wants to belong to that place but has only experienced the culture though people, in turn making it hard for him to belong. However, the use of direct speech “we will meet before you die” suggests that his culture will bring him there, as that is where he truly belongs. An individual’s culture can alienate. The short film Missing Her directed by Michael Weisler identifies this clearly through the story of a young Asian boy taken from his country, adopted by white Australians who take him to his “new home”. The positioning of the boy when he first arrives at his new home shows that he is alienated as he is positioned clearly away from his new parents. This is also seen through the symbolism of the skin colour, as he is different to his new parents. This shows his limited experience and lack of belonging clearly due to his difference of culture. However, the symbolism of the starts and their relation to his family clearly shows that he still has a sense of belonging to his culture. This is seen through the quote “my mother told me she would be watching me from the stars” and it clearly shows shows his sense of belonging as the stars are in his room above his bed where he can always see them. The difference in languages also isolates him, as he is unable to understand them solely because of their culture. Similarly to “Migrant Hostel” the boy, like Peter feels a sense of alienation within a new place. Ultimately, these texts clearly convey how an individual’s interaction with others and the world around them can limit their experience of belonging solely due to their culture. Both Peter Skyrznecki’s poems “Migrant Hostel” and “Postcard” clearly convey this as well as the short film Missing Her directed by Michael Weisler. this was written under timed conditions but it took me 43 minutes instead of 40 to finish