The Multiculturalism, Culture, and Landscape Beauty of Australia - Essay Example

Theme: The theme for the assignment is Australian Identity and the terms are multiculturalism, culture and landscape beauty. Introduction Various kinds of texts have been used by different people to show the uniqueness of the country and the theme of being Australian. These texts include movies, short stories, books and poems among others through which artists praise their country and show its identity. In this essay three different types of texts on being Australian will be analyzed. The analysis will feature the film “adventures of Priscilla Queen of the desert”, a poem called “my country” by Dorothea Mackellar and a paper written jointly by Gary Yia Lee and Charles Koo on multiculturalism in Australia from an Asian perspective. From these, the sense of being Australian will be brought to the surface. The Adventures of Priscilla Queen of the Desert The popular culture of Australia has a historically hardened view of masculinity. In the movie this is clearly brought out. The landscape of Australia with the long dirt roads, the desert towns, local casino, indigenous Australia’s around fires, a gang with tough guys, the local pubs, and the fantastic costume could not have been left out of the movie. The movie embraces and supports the best qualities of the traditional male psyche in Australia, the humor, identity and history. The movie signifies the identity of the minority culture clashing with the traditions (Elliot 1994, p. 66). The brand of Australian masculinity is of being brave, facing your fears and being tough. This is part of the national identity displayed in the movie. It shows two groups trying to be on sides that are opposite to each other. One side has willingness for change and fights to get change but the other side fights never to change. Masculinity in the new age is all about adapting and living with other cultures. The best moment in the movie comes between the relationship of Hugo weaving and his son. Australia therefore is shown as a land with much space and various kinds of people living together (Elliot 1994, p. 23). My country by Dorothea Mackellar In “my country” Dorothea Mackellar describes the natural landscape of Australia. The poem tells of the wondrous splendor in Australia. The identity of Australia that is portrayed in the poem is that of patriotism and the respect that Australians have for their country and the things found in the country. The poet makes illustrations of images via descriptive colors. The reader of the poem feels how vivid, unpredictable and colorful Australia is through the description given. Personification in the poem shows the meaning of Australia (Mackellar 2010 p. 12). Descriptions like "opal"tm, and "Sapphire"tm, show how unique the land is. The national identity of Australia can be found in the natural landscape which is unique only to Australia and no other place. The author uses words of emotion like “my country” to show how beautiful and attractive the land is. The words she has chosen display some romance in them for example “I like her jewel like sea.” With this she means to praise the sea that Australia is identified with as something that is unique to it and makes it beautiful. The land is pitiless and rugged but this is the uniqueness in it that gives it an identity. In being Australian the description of the country through this poem is enough to evoke feelings of pride and love for Australia. The author mentions both the negative and positive aspects. Drought, fire and the rugged landscape would not appear useful to certain people but they add to value to the natural landscape (Mackellar 2010 p. 17) Multiculturalism in Australia: An Asian perspective by Gary Yia Lee and Charles Koo The paper digs into history to bring to us the origin of the migration of Asians into Australia. Immigration of people from Asia and the rest of the world has brought an array of cultures to the country. Australia is a multicultural country with many races living together in peace. Multiculturalism has come out to be one of the features that Australia is identified with. It is a national identity and a way through which being Australian can be described (Lee & Koo 1994 p. 14). Australia has the European immigrants, Asian immigrants, the indigenous people and other people belonging to other races. This paints a picture of a rich cultural diversity for the country. Immigration can also be identified with Australia since many people in the country have come from outside the continent. Australian identity according to the author can be seen through immigration which is an important phenomenon in the history of the country as well as the multicultural outlook. According to the authors, initially there were many issues since the Europeans wanted to maintain their prominent presence in the country with other races being subject to them. However with time things changed, more immigrants were allowed in and the country is still on the path of integrating all the different cultures in all aspects of life (Lee & Koo 1994, p. 22). In the three texts that have been analyzed in this essay the authors have done a good job in displaying the theme of being Australian. However there are many other things that the country has that can display its identity and make people have a feeling of being Australian. Apart from the things such as masculinity, climate and landscape and the various cultures and different types of people, they could also talk about the peace, unity and freedom that the country enjoys, the economic prosperity, the political stability and the fame won for the country through sporting activities (Robinson & Loughran 2000 p. 30). All these things can be identified with Australia and one would boast of being Australian because of them. These are things that will bring pride to anybody coming from any country if that country had them. Australia is rich in many aspects. It has good infrastructural development which should be a source of pride to its citizens also. In the country, one can find various tourist attraction sites which would pull people from all over the world to come a visit. Among them is the rich history of the country and the minerals and natural resources within Australia (Robinson & Loughran 2000 p. 30). Annotated Bibliography Elliot S. 1994, The Adventures of Priscilla Queen of the Desert currency press; Stephan Elliot has directed and written many films of international renown. The movie is based on the journey made by three queens who meet many individuals and groups on the way. The movie was intended for the general public. The film was instrumental in giving a lot of information about the culture of the people of Australia. Lee G. Y & Koo C. 1994, Multiculturalism in Australian; An Asian perspective, (Asian-Australian Resource Centre, Sydney, Australia. Paper submitted to State of the Nation Report (Sydney: Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission) The authors are recognized for doing a lot of work on the topic of culture. The paper provided the information used in the report in one of the three articles. It was critical for provision of information on the multicultural nature of Australia. Mackellar D. 2010, My Country, Scholastic Australia; Mackellar was a seasoned author who got over four of her works published. She had a bias for poems and novels. The poem “my country” was aimed at giving praise to Australia for its beauty and spectacular landscape. The poem is fantastic and it won the hearts of many Australians since she describes the country with a lot of love and longing. Robinson G., Loughran R.J, and Tranter P.J (2000) Australia and New Zealand: economy, society and environment. London: Arnold; NY: OUP; The book is good since it carries information on the natural landscape of Australia, its environment and society. The authors are recognized in the literary field since they have a number of other popular publications. The work is meant for the general population since the authors have no particular audience in mind. Speck B. 2008, Collaborative writing: An annotated bibliography IAP; The author is known for collecting collaborating writing annotations for a long time. This work was meant to show researchers and students how to write their papers with annotated bibliographies. The book is full of the methods and illustrations on how to write annotated bibliographies. Tsiolkas C. 2008, The slap; Allen and Unwin; The author has 4 novels to his credit some of which have won awards. He won the commonwealth writers prize for best book overall in 2009. The purpose of this work is to show that personal morality and multiculturalism in Australia. The author targets the general population of readers. He has a bias for culture and morality. The novel is centered on Hector who is unlikable although physically mesmeric. The novel was useful on provision of information especially about multiculturalism. Winton, T. 2008 Breath, Penguin; Winton is a prominent novelist from Australia having won several awards for his books an “open swimmer”, “shallows” and “Scission.” The author targets an audience of young people who are transitioning into adult hood from teenage. The purpose of the novel was to warn young people of dangerous adventures. The novel was useful since it provided information about the natural landscape of Australia. Read More