ipl-logo

Looking For Alibrandi Identity Essay

1139 Words5 Pages

Identity is the “condition of being oneself”. This identity is predominantly based on relationships formed with peers and family. Looking for Alibrandi by Melina Marchetta, explores the life of Josephine Alibrandi and her journey to find her real identity. At the beginning of the novel, Josephine is unsure of her cultural, social and personal standing within her society. The novel Divergent by Veronica Roth presents similar issues in relation to uncertainty of the protagonist’s identity. However, the influences of relationships in this novel differ to those shown in Looking for Alibrandi. Josephine's relationship with her grandmother, Nonna Katia, is central to forming her identity. Coming from a traditional Italian family, Nonna emphasises the way in which Josie must behave to be in keeping with her culture. She stresses the importance of one’s reputation within her Italian community. “Talk could break you, Jozzie”. Josie resents her close connection to the Italian culture. “I had it the worst.”, she is …show more content…

Her identity is strongly influenced by the way she is required to live within her society. Each “faction” must have one main value, which is strictly adhered to with no interaction between “factions”. This means Beatrice’s identity is influenced purely by people who live in a very similar way, selflessly. Beatrice looks up to her brother, Caleb, as a perfect citizen of Abnegation, making her feel unworthy of the faction. She believes Caleb is comfortable in his identity and she envies that. Beatrice is unsure of herself, which is a characteristic of her upbringing in Abnegation, as she was never allowed to focus on herself. The aptitude test is where one is allowed to ascertain their true identity and place in society. Beatrice’s results show her to be selfless, brave and intelligent, therefore giving an inconclusive result as to her identity, making her

Show More
Related
760 Words | 4 Pages

When she leaves to go to tea with her friends she sees the shirtwaist girls spilling out of the factory. When she’s at tea her friend Pearl Kensington says that her cousin Eleanor Kensington is attending college at Vassar. Jane arranges a meeting with Eleanor to talk about the shirtwaist girls and women’s rights. Bella’s cousin Pietro is taken to South Carolina by his employer without telling Bella. She works for the Luciano’s and the factory for a while to make rent but after finding out that her family is dead she leaves and lives with Rahel and Yetta for a while before moving out with

Read More
724 Words | 3 Pages

In the novel “Looking For Alibrandi” Josie gains independence and breaks free from the Italian stereotype by confronting and resolving conflicts with her Nonna, which changes the power dynamic between them. At the start of the novel Nonna holds the majority of power, being able to make Josie do things unwillingly. Josie going to Nonna’s house every afternoon shows that Nonna holds the power in the relationship. In Chapter 3, the quote, ‘I was force-fed when I arrived. Force-fed like every afternoon of my life.

Read More
767 Words | 4 Pages

Initially, Josephine is resistant to the idea of embracing her Italian roots, as she feels caught between two cultures and struggles to reconcile the expectations of her family with the pressures of Australian society. However, as she starts to explore her family history and bond with her Italian relatives, she begins to recognise the value and intricacy of her cultural heritage. When Josephine first meets her father, Michael Andretti, she is sceptical of his intentions and hesitant to form a relationship with him. However, as she gains more knowledge about his life and experiences, her perspective of him shifts entirely, leading her to a deeper understanding of her identity. Through her journey of self-discovery, Josephine comes to understand that embracing her cultural heritage is not about rejecting her Australian identity, but rather about finding a way to reconcile the two.

Read More
274 Words | 2 Pages

A major factor Josie is facing is living up to the standard of her Italian grandmother ‘Giovani Marchetta’. She is influenced strongly by her strict grandmother who is constantly pressuring her to be the best. She feels isolated due to her illegitimacy and trapped within her Italian background.

Read More
924 Words | 4 Pages

Looking for Alibrandi In the book looking for Alibrandi, Josie is the main character. Josie is a teenager who has Italian background and has been brought up by one parent all her life she is also about to finish her last year of school. Her last year of school was defiantly her hardest year, she went through a lot of stuff that makes her year very difficult. She took on the leadership responsibilities within the school, but her personal life also got in the way, the suicide of her best friend was the hardest thing she went through near the end of the year.

Read More
1724 Words | 7 Pages

Throughout literature the constant theme of identity has been explored, with Northrop Frye even suggesting “the story of the loss and regaining of identity is, I think, the framework for all literature.” For characters, true identity isn’t always apparent, it needs to be searched for. Sometimes the inner struggle for identity stems from ones need for belonging. Whether one finds their sense of identity within friends, family, or in a physical “home”. It’s not always a place that defines identity.

Read More
978 Words | 4 Pages

In John Knowles’s novel A Separate Peace Identity is shown as what defines us and makes us be placed in other peoples perspectives. An author can use identity to place characters in the readers mind to portray them a certain way, just as John Knowles did in A Separate peace. An identity can be defined as who a person is inside and out.

Read More
2020 Words | 9 Pages

Although her faction does not celebrate birthdays, she estimates her age to be around sixteen. Beatrice feels nervous about taking "the aptitude test". As Beatrice reveals, the aptitude test it is an exam that kids who are of age take to determine which faction he or she belongs in. Society in the story is split into five

Read More
267 Words | 2 Pages

In her town she grew up to be quiet, smart and obedient to her mother, sister and boss. However, many events in her life, such as the big move across the world, finding love, and the death of her sister, caused her to become more bold and rebellious. She meets a man at a irish dance, and to her surprise, he was italian.

Read More
669 Words | 3 Pages

n Veronica Roth’s “Divergent”, the Beatrice’s personality and qualities make her belong in Dauntless. When Tris was in Abnegation, she never knew exactly what she wanted. Changing factions made her true characteristics blossom, which reflect the ones of a Dauntless. Therefore, even though Tris hesitates about her faction, she does, in fact, belong to Dauntless. This can be seen through her fearlessness, and her array of physical skills.

Read More
822 Words | 4 Pages

Her next desire, that I had any friend would be a man for my purpose of is a questioning to benedick to do what she, as a woman, can not: put forward arguments for her son or daughter of ones father's or mother's brother or sister with acting, not words, and publicly put forward as opposite the society development of misogyny in messina This makes her first request, put to death Claudio, less a request that benedick crime of putting to death his friend and more a Plea 2 that he break with the deadly, full of poison society development of male camaraderie. And benedick is in

Read More
649 Words | 3 Pages

Identity is formed through a variety of factors. Elements such as culture, society, and friends all have a huge influence on forming identity. However, the social pressure to fit in has especially affected the female population. For years, women have changed their identities in order to be accepted into society. While this theme is prominently seen in today’s society, it is also commonly seen in a variety of older novels.

Read More
1092 Words | 5 Pages

Identity is something people tend to think of as consistent, however that is far from the case. The Oxford English dictionary states that the definition of identity is “ The characteristics determining who or what a person or thing is.” The allegorical novel Lord of the Flies by William Golding tackles the issue of identity while following young boys from the ages twelve and down as they struggle with remembering their identities when trapped on a deserted island. Identity is affected by the influence of society and how individuals influence society based on their identities. By looking at Lord of the Flies by William Golding, the Stanford Prison Experiment, and Sigmund Freud 's philosophical ideas, it becomes clear that identity is affected by society through peer pressure and social normalities.

Read More
579 Words | 3 Pages

The identity a person holds is one of the most important aspects of their lives. Identity is what distinguishes people from others, although it leaves a negative stereotype upon people. In the short story Identities by W.D Valgardson, a middle-aged wealthy man finds himself lost in a rough neighborhood while attempting to look for something new. The author employs many elements in the story, some of the more important ones being stereotype and foreshadow. For many people, their personal identity is stereotyped by society.

Read More
991 Words | 4 Pages

Identity is often a cornerstone in a many important works of literature. The struggle of a protagonist to reconcile with their identity and the expectations or restrictions that accompany this struggle often mirrors real life endeavors and makes important critiques on social structure. The essay A Room of One’s Own by Virginia Woolf makes an influential claim that a woman’s identity as lesser than a man’s in society prevents her from the opportunity to fill her role as a writer while the novel The Bell Jar written by Sylvia Plath describes a woman’s struggle to reconcile with her expectations as a woman in the 1950s. Both pieces make a statement about the impact of identity and its influence on the women faced with the consequences of these societal expectations.

Read More

More about Looking For Alibrandi Identity Essay

Related Topics

Open Document