Tom Brennan's 'My Father Began As A God'

Moving into the world involves different pathways to new experiences and gaining a deeper understanding of oneself and others. Transitions act as a catalyst for individual transformations, as significantly seen in J.C. Burke’s novel ‘The Story of Tom Brennan’ and as seen in Ian Mudie’s poem “My Father Began as a God”. The Story of ‘Tom Brennan’ focuses on a family who comes to understanding that laboriously overcoming the obstacles and challenges of the past, can enhance self-growth and deepen, as well as renewal the perceptions of one’s life and of others. The poem 'My father began as a God' is about a man's self-reflection on his own life, and also a reflection on his father's life and values that he role modeled to the speaker as a child.

‘The story of Tom Brennan’ chronicles a young man named Tom as he faces obstacles which arise as a result of a fatal car accident caused by his brother’s drink driving. Burke incorporates flashbacks, juxtaposing the past with the present. The past symbolises happiness and the present depicts misery. She uses evocative imagery throughout her novel to enhance the reader’s experience of Tom’s physical transition and emotional transformation. Toms initial transition is explored through the internal monologue as he says “my father closed the door of our home for the last time.” The closing of the door symbolising the uprooted comfortable communal existence which was once had in