The Rabbit-Proof Fence to some was a source of employment, others was a division to keep rabbits from continuing to reproduce but “For the three runaways, the fence was a symbol of love, home, and security” (109). These three runaways were half-caste children, meaning their mothers are Aborigines and their fathers are white. The Australian government believed they were doing the right thing by removing these half-caste children from the Aborigine community, and stripping them from their families. The half-caste were sent to schools that were at comparable levels to a prison, and the purpose behind this was to train and teach the children to either become a house servant typically for females. While the males on the other hand trained to be …show more content…
The confidence Molly had, proved to be essential in their nine-month dreadful journey home from the Moore River Native Settlement. Her bush craft knowledge, kinship of direction, and intelligence helped the girls survive through the journey as well. When Molly finally spotted the Rabbit-Proof Fence she stated, “We found the fence now. It gunna be easy” (110). I believe this shows how Molly took on leadership and used hope as a motivation to get her sisters to continue through the hardships. There was a constant struggle between the idea of fear and confidence Molly felt throughout the story. Confidence that they will survive only appears in Molly. All the other characters they run into on their journey, the two other sisters, and those at the settlement believed they would never be able to make it back home or they would be caught and sent …show more content…
The girls learned to fend for themselves through their bush craft skills, but there were times when food was scarce and they needed assistance. There was even a Mardu man who supplied them with matches and food. Mrs. Flanagan gave the children a place to stay out of the rain, food, and some warm clothes. These people and the others who helped the half-caste children would give them supplies and food, but as soon as the children were out of sight they would call the Moore River Native Settlement in order to report where they last saw the sisters. These people thought that it would be beneficial to the children if they called the police to come get the children. They believed the children would rather go back to the settlement then die or get lost on their journey. The people who helped the children on their journey back, I believe are a representation of the Australian government. Both the government and the people in the story believed they were truly doing the right thing by taking them to a separate civilization to change
...nment. In Stage 2, the girls realize that must put forth a great effort to adjust to the new surroundings and culture, which causes some to feel alone, uncomfortable, and even depressed. Stage 3 is when the girls start to wonder why people in this new culture live the way do and may believe that their own culture is far better than the new one. The girls become more comfortable in their new environment at last in Stage 4, as they understand it better. Finally, the girls find it simple to be able to be a part of both cultures in Stage 5. All of these stages in the story represent some of the different phases in an immigrant’s life. By writing “St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolves”, the author, Karen Russell, puts the readers in perspective of immigrants, helping them to further understand and comprehend how challenging life can be when moving to a new place.
“The Lost Children of Wilder” is a book about how the foster care system failed to give children of color the facilities that would help them lead a somewhat normal and protected life. The story of Shirley Wilder is a sad one once you find out what kind of life she had to live when she was a young girl. Having no mother and rejected by her father she has become a troubled girl.
In Australia the Aboriginals face discrimination daily. The film opened with four young Aboriginal girls singing on a makeshift stage facing their community. When the camera panned to show the smiling faces in the crowd it gave a feel of unity and love. Later it showed two sisters who were trying to hitch a ride into the city from the main road. Yet every vehicle passed them by; once they saw who they were, frustrated the older sister. Gale stated it was because they ‘were black’. When in the town playing their song on the stage in a bar, the youngest sister turned up and took
Though the stereotyping and alienation is strong in Dougy and Gracey’s community they manage to break away from it. The whites feel that the Aborigines get everything free from the government and never do any work of their own, and according to the book, most of them do just this.
N. Scott Momaday, shares the cultural background of the Kiowa tribe in “The Way to Rainy Mountain”. He is a long descendent that has no experience with the tribe during their traditional era but from the stories he has heard from his grandmother, he feels more connected to the Kiowa culture. He spreads light about who the Kiowas were and described who his grandmother was as well. With the experiences he shared with his grandmother, likely influenced the person he is today. In the end he is happy and proud of who his grandmother was and will remain even after death.
“The Hmong came to America without a homeland. Even in the very beginning, we knew that we were looking for a home. Other people, in moments of sadness and despair, can look to a place in the world where they might belong.” (Pg. 273) This is probably the statement that best summarizes the book. It is sad to hear how the Hmong people were not wanted and were being killed. The Hmong people had nowhere to go except further into the mountains to avoid any harm. It is good to see that this family is having some success. However, it must be hard to not have a true place to call home.
Identity. Social Injustice. Coming of age. Those are three out of several other themes that are touched on in The Diary of a Part-Time Indian, written by Sherman Alexie.
Within Australia, beginning from approximately the time of European settlement to late 1969, the Aboriginal population of Australia experienced the detrimental effects of the stolen generation. A majority of the abducted children were ’half-castes’, in which they had one white parent and the other of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent. Following the government policies, the European police and government continued the assimilation of Aboriginal children into ‘white’ society. Oblivious to the destruction and devastation they were causing, the British had believed that they were doing this for “their [Aborigines] own good”, that they were “protecting” them as their families and culture were deemed unfit to raise them. These beliefs caused ...
Wilson does a creative job by using the fence metaphorically and literally. The fence was supposed to represent protection and family ties for the Maxson family. However, Troy’s past has left him with many scars. As he continues to make decisions for Rose and Cory, the layers of paint begin to strip away, revealing Troy’s failings to all, even to Death. After Troy’s failings become obvious to readers, the fences throughout the play begin to take form. The literal fence becomes a symbol that seals up the whole play. Readers see how if one continues to fence their loved ones out then eventually they will be left alone with their worse fear.
The mother’s resilience proves to be the key to overcoming her strife. “The second night in the car was not as much fun as the first, but my mother seemed in good spirits” (King 143). Refusing to betray her values as a proud First Nations people, the mother had her and her son spend two nights in their vehicle, and would remain doing so until they let her through. “Early the next morning, the television vans began to arrive” (King 144). It was only once news reporters heard of Laetitia’s mother’s plight and brought awareness to the matter, that something changed. The government has no desire to appear in a negative light, so they allowed the family to cross the border while still declaring them as Blackfoot. The mother’s pride for her Blackfoot identity spread to her daughter as well and after seeing her mother and brother appear on the news, she contemplates returning back to her community. “Laetitia said she was thinking about moving back” (King 147). The narrative ends with the final sentence; “I watched the border through the rear window until all you could see were the tops of the flagpoles and the blue water tower, and then they rolled over a hill and disappeared.” (King 147) The disappearing flagpoles symbolize the families experience with injustice. Even though their personal experience with oppression had ended, it is still a factor that remains for other minorities, even if the injustice is not always
side of a river. While the men and children flourished in their new homes the women suffered and
In the film Rabbit Proof Fence by Phillip Noyce there is a relevance to the present and past days of society. The relevance is shown through the strong judgment of racism between the white Australians and the Aboriginal people, and the actions that had been taken and only in the past 40 years changed. The race of people is still judged today in current society, Rabbit Proof Fence makes the viewer aware of the racial discrimination then and now.
Throughout the text, the white colonists are very racist towards the Aboriginals. Even cattle, horses and white women are placed hierarchically higher in society than the black people. In response to this, Astley constructs all narrations to be written through the eyes of the Laffey family, who are respectful towards Aboriginals, hence not racist, and despise societal ideologies. By making the narration of the text show a biased point of view, readers are provoked to think and feel the same way, foregrounding racism shown in the ideologies of early Australian society, and showing that Aboriginals are real people and should receive the same treatment to that given to white people. “They looked human, they had all your features.” (pg 27) There was, however, one section in the text whose narrative point of view was not given by a character in the Laffey family. This instead was given by a voice of an Aboriginal woman, when the Aboriginal children were being taken away from their families. By giving voice to the Aboriginal society, the reader is able to get a glimpse of their point of view on the matter, which once again shows that society was racist, and Aboriginals were treated harshly.
Racism is defined as, “the belief that all members of each race possess characteristics or abilities specific to that race, especially so as to distinguish it as inferior or superior to another race or races” (Merriam-Webster). Director Philip Noyce conveys Webster’s definition of racism in his 2002 film, Rabbit-Proof Fence, by examining Aboriginal racism of the 1930s through the eyes of three young girls: Molly, Gracie and Daisy who are forcefully taken from their mothers by the Australian government; and a man, Neville, who believes that giving half-castes a chance to join his “civilized society” is the virtuous thing to do, even if it means stripping them of their family, traditions and culture. The film follows the girls as they escape from the Moore River Native Settlement, an indentured servant training camp for half-castes, and walk 1,200 miles back to their home in Jigalong. Noyce weaves story progression and character development throughout the film to demonstrate the theme of racism and covey the discriminations that occurred to Australia’s stolen generation and Aboriginal people during the 1930s.
...e dysfunctional families we are all familiar with -- the overcrowded, meddling, abusive, alcoholic, substance controlled individuals that can make family life miserable and destroy the self esteem of the children they control. These families become encapsulated unable to function within the norm of the general population. Their children face the same trouble dealing with peers and finding their place in the world – because they haven’t been given the tools with which to work out their problems within their own family much less the rest of the world. In essence, it does take a village to raise a child – but it also helps if all of the tribe members have the child’s best interest at heart.