The Simple Gift free essay sample

The Simple Gift The Simple Gift is a free verse novel by Steven Herrick told from the perspectives of three main characters Billy, Caitlin and Old Bill. The main character Billy feels that he doesn’t feel comfortable living with his dad so he goes and ventures off on his own. The Story of Tom Brennan is a novel by J. C Burke. It’s a story about an accident that changes Tom and his family’s life forever and because of this the family leaves their town because they are no longer welcomed. Both texts represent Belonging through relationships, acceptance, understanding and identity. Through poetic techniques in The Simple Gift and through themes of family relationships and friendships. In the Simple Gift, Billy would rather be by himself and live homeless then live with his abusive, alcoholic father. This is shown through poetic techniques such as sarcastic tone and colloquial language: â€Å"See ya Dad. We will write a custom essay sample on The Simple Gift or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page I’ve taken the alcohol. Drink this instead to celebrate your son leaving home† Descriptive language and tone with negative connotations is also used: â€Å"The old bastard will have a fit! And me? I’ll be long gone. † In The Story of Tom Brennan, Tom and his family leave Mumbilli and move to Coghill because they felt discriminated and felt the anger of their small community. This is shown through a flashback reflecting on the past. ‘. past the ugly words that told us we were no longer wanted. ’ In The Simple Gift Caitlin’s relationship with Billy starts when she meets him in McDonalds picking up scraps off other people’s meals. She finds him attractive and who seems to be at a disadvantage in comparison to her. She is privileged and he isn’t. She wants to accept him and have a relationship with him despite his identity. She discovers that there is real value in her relationship with Billy. This is reflected in her simple, confident and determined tone at the end of the novel ‘I’ll walk into mum and dad’s questions and I’ll answer them truthfully its time. ’ In The Story of Tom Brennan Chrissie’s relationship first starts out with her and Tom being really good friends and she helps him go through his hard time. She becomes very understanding and it is through her persistence that her relationship with Tom goes from friendship to a meaningful relationship. This helps Tom feel optimistic for the future and his desire to move forward. ‘That was the morning we swam and loved each other and that was the morning Tom Brennan came back, forever. ’ In the Simple Gift Old Bill’s tone changes as his friendship with Billy develops and he starts to confront the events of his past. The repletion of ‘this’ is powerful: â€Å"And this pub, this beer, their clothes, this is where I landed. † By the end of the novel Old Bill develops a more content attitude to life. This is shown in his caring tone as he looked at Billy: â€Å"When I saw (Billy) I felt something I hadn’t felt in many years. I felt pride. † In the Story of Tom Brennan the relationship between Tom and his Gran isn’t really close when they first move in due to her bad cooking, religious beliefs and her relentless ways. She creates a feeling of hostility in Tom and Kylie and they dislike her intensely. Their relationship changes due to Tom recognising her stoicism and the sacrifices that his grandmother has made for his family including the significant offer to share her home. Tom shows his appreciation through the construction of a new chook shed. Tom understands her generosity and strength is captured in his willingness to listen to and converse meaningfully with his Gran. ‘At least she likes watching The Footy Show. We’d have a good laugh over that. Sometimes she wasn’t too bad. ’ Both The Simple Gift and The Story of Tom Brennan through its poetic techniques and themes represented belonging through the characters, relationships and friendships