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The Simple Gift Analysis

748 Words3 Pages

Experiencing a transition can have the power to transform an individual’s attitudes and beliefs whilst continuing to challenge the world around them, this can been seen in the personas of Old Bill and Caitlin who both experience significant transitions when they meet Billy. Old Bill engages in a transition of self-pity emerging from the death of both his daughter and wife, which left him in a saddened state from which he was afraid to move on from. Caitlin on the other hand undergoes a transition of responsibility and self-growth, from being a young school girl with everything she could need ever need which leads her to be quite materialistic and judgmental to a respectable young lady who by the end of the novel, The Simple Gift written by …show more content…

The reader sees a real change in Old Bill when he says “I almost felt young again” “I like the kid” as seen on page 111, this is a significant transition as it is one of the first positive things that he has said, Old Bill’s attitudes and beliefs are clearly being challenged by Billy. Another example of Old Bill’s change is when Billy continues to bring him Weetabix and tea, Old Bill is a character that lost everything and did not attempt to make a change because of it but when Billy comes along he confronts Old Bill and changes him for the …show more content…

The book The Rabbits is a book about the European invasion of Australia, the white rabbits representing the Europeans and the Australian indigenous people represented by a mix of native marsupials. In the Book it begins with “many grandparents ago” instantly leading the reader to understand that the book is from the point of the indigenous people. Through the use of size Tan shows the power of the white rabbits with their guns where as the indigenous animals only have spears and are quite small in each picture, through this use of size it gives the reader the perspective of how powerless the natives must have felt when the first white men invaded the county. The Rabbits challenges our perspective of if the indigenous were more like the Europeans when they first came it would be better off, but as the book portrays the white rabbits have destroyed and ravaged the colorful land at the start of the book and left it as a dark and gloomy wasteland by the end of the

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In her book Nanberry, Jackie French portrays colonial life as a very confusing and perplexing time for both the Indigenous Australians and the White British Settlers, albeit in different ways. With the Indigenous Australians confused by the sudden invasion of the white settler (ghosts), and the British Settlers becoming confused by the new sights, smells and culture of ‘Sydney Cove’. Through the characters of Nanberry, Surgeon White and Bennelong, the viewer is shown just how confusing their life was at the time of the first settlement in Australia. Nanberry is one of the main characters in French’s book, and is a prime way through which she portrays colonial life as perplexing and confusing. Nanberry was born into, and partially raised by an Indigenous Australian family, however he was adopted by Surgeon White at the tender age of eight or nine.

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780 Words | 4 Pages

There are many themes explored in the novel, The Simple Gift. Such as homelessness, Random acts of kindness and the importance of positive relationships. Discuss two of these themes and how they are presented through the characters of Billy, Old Bill, and Caitlin. The Simple Gift by Steven Herrick is a unique book in which stories are told in very short sentences like how short poems are written, the Simple Gift is a book about Billy Luckett and how he fled his alcoholic father who would continually disrespect him and to Billy he felt that this wasn’t his home, he wasn’t safe and he didn’t have any free-will to do whatever he wanted to do without being torn by his father for anything right or wrong he did, to him he felt that it was just a

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946 Words | 4 Pages

The narrator describes how the Indigenous Australians in the area were forced to leave their land, saying, "The black people are gone, and so are the dingoes" (Ottley, 2007, p. 5). This quote highlights the displacement of Indigenous Australians by white settlers, as well as the impact of their absence on the environment. Moreover, the artwork in the text portrays the Indigenous Australians as dark and shadowy, emphasizing their marginalization and exclusion from mainstream society. Together, these examples demonstrate how power imbalances are present not only between humans, but also between humans and animals, and between different racial groups. The text serves as a commentary on the

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836 Words | 4 Pages

A transition is a process of changing from one form or circumstance to another. It can be challenging, confronting, exciting or transformative and has different outcomes or results for different people. Transitions are seen through the compilation of poems in The Simple Gift by Steven Herrick, they are evident in the picture book The Red Tree by Shaun Tan and are also in the film The Pursuit of Happyness by Gabriele Muccino. The Simple Gift has three main characters, an old hobo named Old Bill, a young homeless teen named Billy and a wealthy, privileged girl named Caitlin.

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380 Words | 2 Pages

Summary The article “Returning the Gift” that written by Robin Kimmerer has discussed the importance of having our appreciations for nature. The Earth is providing many valuable gifts for us, including fresh air, water, lands and many more natural resources to keep us alive. The author has pointed out that human beings are being greedy, and taking everything for granted. From the author’s perspective, human beings should feel grateful of what we have.

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996 Words | 4 Pages

This prompts him to make a sentimental scrapbook for Daniel. The scrapbook is a physical representation of the advice Daniel’s social worker gave the family: “…when the memories come back, let them in, look at them, then move on”. Tom also moves from his intolerance for his Gran to a genuine appreciation for her sacrifices as demonstrated through the gift of a new chook pen. In addition, he finds forgiveness for Kylie following her speech further demonstrating his deepened understanding of those around him. In accepting the situation at hand and moving positively towards improvement for all, individuals are able to develop personal qualities including resilience and self-awareness which equip them to deal with new situations and move beyond the darkness of the

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884 Words | 4 Pages

A theme is a moral that the reader can take away from the story to use in their everyday life. The allegory, “Terrible Things” by Eve Bunting, the poem, “ First They Came for the Communists” by Martin Niemöller, and the memoir, Night by Elie Wiesel all share one common theme. In the 1900’s during the holocaust, many Jews and anyone who was part of the aryan race (blonde hair blue eyes) were taken away by Nazis led by Adolf Hitler. They were taken to concentration camps many children, the elder, and babies were exterminated once they got there because the Nazis felt there was no use to them. The jews that were needed went and got their heads shaven and marked with a tattoo of numbers that were used to identify them.

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621 Words | 3 Pages

The Rabbits John Marsden and Shaun Tan 'The Rabbits' is a picture book written by John Marsden and Shaun Tan that uses anthropomorphism to convey a story of colonisation. Despite the small amount of text in the book, it seems to offer many deep meanings. Because of this, Marsden and Tan heavily rely on their illustrations to convey themes using this such as symbolism, motifs, characterisation, and colour. By doing this, they make the book relatable not just to Australian Indigenous people, but to Indigenous people from all over who have had to experience colonisation. The clear depictions make the concepts understandable to all people Colonisation is investigated heavily through the book by use of characterisation.

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952 Words | 4 Pages

How does the main character change? The teenagers go to court and could go to jail. The main charicters change because at the begining they were reckless and foolish.at the end they are vety scard and worried. Conflict - What is the major conflict that develops throughout the novel?

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1495 Words | 6 Pages

Both “The Things They Carried” by Tim O’Brien and “A Small, Good Thing” by Raymond Carver use similar pacing. Pacing can refer to either the amount of time lapsed in text or the amount of time it takes to read each page, and the two stories utilize both definitions. By doing so, the texts invoke tension and feelings of helplessness in the main characters. “The Things They Carried” uses slow pacing to mimic the destitute and prolonged feeling of aimlessly going to war. In this story, the pacing focuses both on creating a sense of monotony through long sentences and detailing the actual passage of time spanning from Lieutenant Jimmy Cross’ deployment up to and just after Lavender’s death.

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887 Words | 4 Pages

The Giver Compare/Contrast Essay When some people hear the words ‘perfect society’ what do they think of? Take a look at our society, then take a look at Jonas’s society, between our two societies there are some comparisons and a vast amount of differences. For instance, the rules are different, as well as their family units and their individuality. While our society is more on the modern side, Jonas’s society is plainer. When it comes to the rules in our society, we don’t normally think of rules that are very extreme.

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720 Words | 3 Pages

Christopher starts out by acting as Aspergers controls him. Christopher runs away from social interaction and communication. He goes on to challenge his Aspergers when he finds out that his father has been lying to him his whole life about his mother being dead. In the end Christopher sees the real world for what it is and doesn’t shelter himself through it. This makes the novel the perfect story the theme of coming of age.

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691 Words | 3 Pages

Composers utilise language to explore significant ideas. Steven Herrick’s prose novel, The Simple Gift is a valuable novel that showcases the development of belonging from the perspectives of three characters, Billy, Caitlin, and Old Bill. Herrick uses these multiple perspectives to further explain the damaging effects of grief, trauma, and isolation through Billy and Old Bill. In addition to the importance of valuing others communicated by Herrick with the characters Caitlin and Old Bill. The Simple Gift leaves the readers questioning the impacts of grief and trauma, as well as the importance of valuing others in life.

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771 Words | 4 Pages

The giver by Lois Lowry- Analytical essay ________________________________________________________ What if we lived in a world of peace and equality? What if we lived in a world with no differences? A world with no social classes and inequality. That sounds pretty amazing doesn’t it?

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1278 Words | 6 Pages

The novel The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky, is about a boy named Charlie who is a freshman in high school. He writes diary entrees of his daily life, and events that go on between him, his family, and friends. Charlie is a very quiet boy and keeps most things he sees and hears to himself. He talks to no one his age at school, but is friends with some seniors, and his English teacher, Bill. This book takes readers on an exciting yet risky journey with Charlie and his friends.

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