challengeing change
Section III
Challenges of Change
By Marvin David
Change in our lives is accompanied by challenges and there are lots of texts composed to discuss these thoroughly. Now, we all know that change can take place in many contexts and composers use a variety of techniques in order to express the concept of change. Such text include the novel ‘Looking for Alibrandi’ by Melina Marchetta, ‘Sky High’ from the Stimulus Booklet by Hannah Robert and
In the text ‘Looking for Alibrandi’, Josephine struggles on her last year of high school. She is a scholarship student in a catholic school dominated by wealthy and higher class individuals.
Melina Marchetta demonstrates the changes that occurred to Josie in the novel. She also shows the challenges accompanied by these changes and looking at the themes of the novel, we can easily portray the obstacles that Josephine Alibrandi will come across. For example, family values: Josie barely visits her grandmother because she thinks she’s intolerant and should have respect for her daughter and granddaughter’s feelings. However, she both loves and dislikes her grandmother. Josie eventually discovers her past, her secret affair with Marcus Sandford and realizes how harsh her life had been. A break between them occurred after this episode at the same time discovers the background of her mother’s birth. We can perceive this change as a positive one, because it strengthens the love surrounding the two Alibrandis. Josie at the same time has to adapt to a reincarnated relationship. It’s a completely new world for her now. So what is she going to do now? She may have to start to behave in a way that her relationship with Nonna remains firm and get rid of her worst aspects - selfishness, immaturity and unreasonable nature. And of course, there is that promise not to tell her mother about her true father.
Melina Marchetta revealed the change with the discussion between Josie and her Nonna. Nonna Katia explains her actions more detailed than any other grandmother would. Josie respectably understood her grandmother’s side of the story and realized how much of a great woman her Nonna is. What we have to ask ourselves is how much Josie has changed and matured and consider that big step that she took after discovering her grandmother’s past. That feat of accepting her Nonna’s apology despite all the criticisms she had made in the past about Christina regarding family values.
When we grow up and reach adulthood, there are times when we feel like reminiscing about our childhood. The text ‘Sky High’ depicts this affection effectively. Sky High is a text composed by Hannah Robert from the Stimulus Booklet and it is a short story as the narrator remembers her childhood experience. We notice how a composer so young could have such a nostalgic tone. The central image of her reminiscence, the washing line, is the first thing that she remembers. Anyway, the challenge being expressed [next page]