Conceptual Analysis Flashcards
(23 cards)
What is Joe’s experience w/ the ocean?
A vessel for freedom
What is Miles’ experience w/ the ocean?
Place of beauty and gradeur
What is Harry’s experience w/ the ocean?
Place of fear and danger
How does PTS challenge assumptions about monstrosity?
- contrast between (traditional “loving” father) Steven and (ugly, mysterious man) George
- demonstrates that true monstrosity is not external but intrinsic
- despite George’s deformities, Harry finds a place of respite and protection in his home.
How is family depicted as paradoxical?
Family is supposed to represent safety and intimacy.
Steven subverts this expectation with his abuse.
Why does the novel resist a clean ending?
The novel purposefully does not have a clean ending.
This asserts that brotherhood cannot save the day and combat evil. Dad’s abuse destroys the Curren family.
What is the paradox of the ocean?
Both a source of life and death for humans.
We are not designed as aquatic creatures but have built our lives surrounded by water.
What are the symbols associated with the ocean?
Loneliness, exploration, collectiveness, unknowing, unpredictably, danger, beauty, cycles, isolation
What are the main themes of PTS?
Positive coping mechanisms in the face of grief
Negative coping mechanisms in the face of grief
Trauma’s enduring nature
The power of memory
Why Bruny Island?
- enhances emotional isolation (isolated setting)
- allows for a timeless encapsulation of the world for readers
- represents trauma. The sea is dangerous. How do you escape the island?
How does the description of the ocean in the prologue reflect dad’s human qualities?
“Black and cold and roaring”
Reflects Dad’s emotional distance, along with the danger he poses
What does PTS imply about family structures?
Feminist figures are important.
How does Steven appeal to social ideals?
He is a hard working father who supports his family.
What trauma has Steven experienced?
- the loss of his wife
- his wife’s infidelity
What are the implications of Steven’s trauma
Abuse and alcoholism as refuge.
An emotional denial. He tells his kids “you’re not my kids! I never wanted you.” Allowing himself to preserve himself as a victim rather than a villain.
What formulatic technique does Parrett use to depict Dad in the past?
Analepsis (flashbacks)
- illustrates the contrast of his behaviour in the past and present.
- allows for readers to emphasise with the characters complex relationship w Steven.
What is the atmosphere of the Curren household?
Uncomfortable
Unsafe
Unpredictable
Manic
Hostile
What is pathetic fallacy?
When the author gives human emotions to an object.
E.g. the sea was angry
What is focalised third person?
When third person is intertwined with the thoughts and feelings of characters.
Why would Parrett use focalised third person?
- to give the author more control over the portrayal of characters
- to see both perspective and context
Why is Miles afraid of abalone fishing?
Deconstructs masculine ideals of being strong.
He associates the Curren family with the sea and likely his treatment from his Dad has had an effect on his perspective.
Why does Parrett describe the ocean as omnipresent?
- the ocean is an ongoing symbol for Steven
- illustrates Steven’s physical inescapability and his emotional burden
- he is always biologically with them as their father
