New Boy Belonging Analysis

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Belonging Essay 2009 HSC- “Understanding nourishes belonging… a lack of understanding prevents it” Demonstrate how your prescribed text and ONE other related text of your own choosing represent this interpretation of belonging. When we begin to understand the world around us, the people in it and their values, one can begin to feel a sense of belonging. However, due to the fact that the concept of belonging is dynamic one can also possess a lack of understanding and this often becomes a barrier to becoming accepted in a group or community. In the Immigrant Chronicle by Feliks Skrzynecki the concept of migrants moving from one country to another is explored and thus when they arrive at their new country they lack a sense of understanding.…show more content…
Green’s short film, New Boy, portrays how Joseph starts a new school in Ireland after moving from Africa and how not only his lack of understanding but also others around him prevent him from gaining a sense of contentment in his new school environment. When Joseph first enters the class room Christian Kelly’s lack of understanding about how he can easily hurt ones’ feelings is illustrated through the intertextual reference to a LiveAid advertisement “Do they know it’s Christmas?”, this reinforces how he does not know how hurtful that reference could be to Joseph, as the advertisement is meant to be about helping people but he manipulates it by turning it into a selfish, racist insult. Joseph’s lack of understanding about his new school environment is also further conveyed when the audience views a camera shot from Joseph’s perspective, the class is all blurred further illustrating his isolation as a result of his lack of understanding. The fact that the audience can only see the back of Joseph’s head makes the viewer uncomfortable and reinforces exactly how he is feeling. The fact that Joseph’s coloured skin starkly contrasts the rest of the class in the shot also further reinforces his lack of knowledge and how this is going to make it difficult for him to
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