No. 6

Many subjects of history must stand as moments that must always be remembered, these moments must stand as testimonies of the destruction and death that had occurred. These subjects must never be tainted with humour for they must stay as a testament to the damage done in the past and the need to prevent such an event ever happening again.

Any event about the destruction of human life in no purpose such as the Holocaust which has become such a dark page in history and a pillar of death an ever ready reminder of cruelty human beings can possess against themselves. These events should never be made 'funny' with any form of satire. These events are needed to remind generations to come of the hatred humans can possess against themselves. Satire is used in events of history or politics to bring these events into a more funny light, satire is used to make fun of people, to make an event 'funny' and to tone down the news this should never be done for some subjects. These subjects such as the Holocaust where the deaths of millions should never be 'toned down' but should remain as the harsh truth of the extreme cruelty human beings possess. These events should never be satirised out of respect of the people effected and to the people fallen, to protect the future and the purity of the damage done upon each other and to protect the purity of the information.

As the generations after these dark pages in history we have the responsibility to protect the time before to deny the right to tone down the events by satire so future generations may learn from the past in an effort to protect the future. Satire can be used in events political events and current news but must never taint such subjects involving mass genocide or the deaths of millions in respect for the people effected. Satire is used to tone down current events but there are some subjects that must never be toned down but must remain the dark page of history as a testament to our dark history.

Analysis of Satirical Cartoons

1. The constant mass epidemics of diseases eg. Bird flu, Swine flu

2. A hypochondriac overreacting to a cold by comparing it to an unheard of disease

3. The use of tissues, thermometer, shaded nose represents general sickness

4. The cartoonist highlights the overreaction of hypochondriacs by having the character refer to an unusual disease.

5. I agree with the cartoonists opinion on hypochondriacs and the constant use of ever more 'deadlier' diseases, this is because of the constant overreactions on the constant new strands of diseases of swine flu and avian flu and the general response of people.

1. The constant issues with inspection of luggage and the amount of time taken up. Also the perception of time  experienced during the 'busy periods' when it seems every possible thing that could increase the time happens

2. The officers specifically training the dog to make the passenger's life as slow as possible during these busy periods.

3. The use of the plane in the background and uniforms of the characters implies the setting being in an airport and the characters being officers.

4. How the airport security is trained to make life as slow as possible for the passengers

5. I agree with the cartoonist's opinion about airport security being unnecessarily slow

Satire

8. The use of incongruity of the door labelled 'poofters' accompanied with the text "There's too much of this bloody political correctness these days, Norm." and the use of stereotypical Australian slang.
10. The use of incongruity and exaggeration of using report cards and examinations for prep schools and how unnecessary it truly is.
9. The use of incongruity and exaggeration highlighting the political debates on Australian's growing alliance with America
13. The use of exaggeration and replacement of a popular movie with political leaders to exaggerate how Australia has been taken over by America

Wei-Lei and Me (Aditi Gouvernel)

1. What word in the opening sentence means ‘short and flat’?
   The words in the opening sentence that means 'short and flat' are "pig nose" that compares Barry to having a pig like nose implying a short and pushed in nose.
    What is so ‘Australian’ about Barry West?
   In the opening paragraph the quote "the red stained face of Australian summers" which summarises Barry's appearance being very Australian
    What is the opening interaction between the two characters about?
   The opening interaction between the author and Barry are them arguing this argument shows the inherited racism Barry demonstrates to Indians
    What is the protagonist’s home country?
   The protagonist's home country is in India, Delhi.
    What word means “noble and splendid”? (p75)
   "Aristocratic"
    In what way is the protagonist’s home country “aristocratic”?
   The author then later describes the "the city filled with places, temples, gardens and tombs" all of these imply splendour and befitting of an aristocratic family.
    Where did the protagonist’s father move his family to? Why?
   The author describes "Delhi, with its eons of history, was not a place that could be 'added to.' Australia, on the other hand, large, spacious and full of gaps, would be a place where we could create a new identity" this quote explains how the family wanted to carve a new identity in Australia.
    What is the protagonist’s attitude towards the citizenship ceremony? (pp75-6)
   The protagonist does not describe the citizenship in detail but considers herself as being Australian.
    How is Barry West the antagonist?
   Barry West is considered the antagonist as conflict begins when he "told the world" that the author "wiped my butt with my hands".
   What is the irony of the comments made by Amy and Cris? (p76)
   The irony shown by Amy and Cris being how they describe her looking like "shit" when the were tormenting her.
   What is “you have to face the world” a metaphor for? (p76)
   "You have to face the world" is a metaphor how the author has to see the world and prove people wrong.
   What is the teacher’s hair compared to? Is this an example of a metaphor or simile? (p77)
   The teacher's hair is compared to "a halo of curly red hair" this is an example of a metaphor saying the teacher's hair was a halo.
   How is the children’s cruel creativity put into action once Wei-Lei arrives? (p77)
   The author describes the cruel creativity being "It took the class exactly thirty seconds to shorten his name to Wee".
   Explain the relevance of the ‘cat and toy’ metaphor. (p77)
   The relevance of the "cat and toy" metaphor extends throughout the chapter describing how cruel the children can be toying with Wei-Li.
   How does the children’s cruel creativity have a more sinister side?
   The children then start to hit, spank and kick Wei-Li and force him to pull down his pants.
   What does the protagonist mean by “the afternoon passed like a death sentence”? (p78)
   The author describes how slowly the afternoon passed comparing it to a death sentence full of anticipation.
   Why does the protagonist see everything Indian “lit by a spotlight”? (p78)
   The protagonist feels self-conscience about how Indian her family seemed to her and thus describes how it seemed out of place as if it was lit by a spotlight.
   How does the story build to a climax? (p79)
   The story begins to build to a climax as the tension builds when the author and Wei-Li hiding from Barry out of fear.
   What is the irony of Barry’s fate? (p80)
   Barry is forced to move to Jakarta a foreign country
   Explain what the protagonist means by “as our faces changed, so did Canberra” (p81).
   As time went on so Canberra changed like new buildings and roads becoming more mature with age.
   What do you think the protagonists’ definition of being Australian would be? (p81)
   Having a group of friends and enjoying time with each other by accepting each other.

Conversations with my Parents by Oanh Thi Tran

1. What is ironic about the way the author and the father become close? What has to happen to the father?

The irony seen in how the author and the father became close is through life threatening sickness is the only way the Author can become close to their father.

2. How would you characterise the conversation that the author has with her parents?

The conversation mainly revolves around the father asking about the well-being of the author while the author continuously asks how everyone is feeling but is constantly ignored.

3. What is it that worries the author most about these conversations?

How quick the conversation is and how all the conversations are "lacking sentiment" this can be seen in the conversation with the author's niece where she tells her that she doesn't miss her. The author also worries about how "the phone dies before I even say goodbye" and how they want to say that she loves her family.

4. There is a gap between the author’s need to express feelings common in western countries and her family’s lack of desire to express their feelings verbally. How does the family still express their feelings for their child, just not verbally?

The family expresses their feelings through little actions such as making the author's favourite foods, "you like to eat banh xeo so much . We will remember you".

The Relative Advantages of Learning my Language by Amy Choi

The Relative Advantages of Learning my Language by Amy Choi

1. The author opens the story with an anecdote. What is the anecdote and what effect does it have on the reader?
The anecdote in the opening of the story is intended to give a background to why the author is feeling the she is currently and why she is learning Chinese. The anecdote has a shock factor to how cruelly the author treats her grandfather and the regret she feels.

2. What is the author’s view of the Chinese language in the 2^nd paragraph?
The author found the language pointless because she lived in Australia where the main language at the time was English and found no reason to actively learn the language

3. What is symbolic about the house that the Grandfather mistakes for his own? What does it say about the assimilation of his family into Australian culture? What does it say about his understanding of Australian culture? What is ironic about the inhabitants of this house?
The assimilation into Australian culture can be seen when the Grandfather mistakes another house for his own this demonstrates how much the family has assimilated into Australian culture. This represents his lack of understanding to Australian culture and how he is finding it difficult to change.

4. What does the death of her grandfather inspire the author to do?
The death of her grandfather inspires the author to start to recover the language she once lost in an act to understand her grandfather a little bit more.

5. Why is she motivated to know Chinese? What is it she wants to ensure she is able to, regretting that she couldn't do it with her grandfather?

The author is motivated to learn Chinese so she can listen to another person's story because of her regret of never letting her grandfather tell his.

why does it matter? (Baked Beans and Burnt Toast)

 All of the short stories in 'Growing Up Asian in Australia' have the same motifs, this being belonging and identity.  "Baked Beans and Burnt Toast" displays the same major motifs represented throughout the whole book, the general outline of the story being about the author returning the Hong Kong after growing up in Australia being called a banana or ABC (Australian born Chinese). The author experiences Hong Kong for the first time and has flashbacks to how discriminatory people were in her childhood and this can be summed up in one quote "of all the Aussies who've enquired, 'Why don't you go back to where you came from?' down the years. Well, I'm back now. Back to a place I've never been to before. Happy?" this quote describes the disgust of prejudice the author despises from the many preconceived ideologies. This story represents the sense of identity second generation immigrants feel when making the transition between immigrant and Australian this can be seen in the discussion with Pete. This can be seen when the author describes the harsh differences Hong Kong is compared to Australia and how it's "like a slap in the face that makes you feel good" this describes how shocking Hong Kong is while exhilarating.

The title "Baked Beans and Burnt Toast" is juxtaposed to the strange country the author experiences highlighting how different she is compared to her 'home country'. This highlights the motif of belonging and sense of identity that is demonstrated throughout the book. Overall the story is describes the hardships of racism that the author experiences and how she feels that she is Australian rather than Chinese this can be seen when she describes herself as an ABC or banana, this can be seen through the extended anecdote describing her first day at school and the inherited racism the teacher has towards her asking whether she speaks English. Throughout the entire story an extended metaphor can be seen involving loyalty by using dogs, this can be seen when the author describes Peter "a stray dog that follows you around all day. You shoo it away, throw rocks at it, ignore it, but it would always be back" and "It's bit of a talking dog thing, isn't it?" these quotes use the stereotype of how dogs will always find their owner this is demonstrated when after many years the author finds Peter the "stray dog".