Learning goal - Compare and Contrast the ways that migrants are represented in Fireshadow and poetry Thesis: Fireshadow, by Anthony Eaton, is a novel about the influences past events have on the present, and in particular how this is achieved within Australia. Within the novel, Eaton explores aspects of isolation and dislocation due to an individual’s foreign background. Through the use of dialogue, “Cause she’s got no right bein’ in this country in the first place. She’s the reason me old man got shot in the leg. Now piss off, both of you!”, Eaton portrays to the audience the frustration and impatience that Australian people have towards foreigners; the basis of such repulsion being a result of the exposure to historical events that have directly affected their families. By representing migrants in such a manner, the …show more content…
Likewise, the poem, Migrant Woman on a Melbourne tram, by Jennifer Strauss, establishes barriers of culture through the woman’s conspicuous peculiarity. This further creates a sense of isolation and oppression towards the migrant woman, once again reflecting the difficulties that immigrants endure. Furthermore, Strauss’ deliberate use of metaphor, with the words “Street-names in the glare/leap ungraspably from sight/ formless collisions of letters”, depicts to the audience the difficulties involved with roaming unfamiliar terrains, more specifically Australian landscape. Once again, Strauss conveys to the audience the struggles that an immigrant must overcome when going to a foreign country. However, this time she refers to language barriers and an unfamiliarity with the