Australian Identit in Piper’s Son by Dominic Finch-Mackee

Identity. It’s a broad and difficult concept. As Australians, our identity is multi-faceted, having various different expressions. One aspect of my sense of Australian identity is masculinity and the idea of the “Aussie Battler.” An Aussie Battler is a man from the working class, a person who has pride in the country they live in. An Aussie battler is a patriarchal figure who works hard to support their family, often spending their spare time with the family or at the pub. The Piper’s Son, an Australian novel by Melina Marchetta, reflects my sense of Australian identity through it’s representation of Australian masculinity in the depiction of Dominic Finch-Mackee as the archetypal “Aussie Battler.”

The “Aussie Battler” is a facet of my sense of Australian identity. In the Piper’s son, Dominic Finch-Mackee exemplifies an Aussie Battler. Dominic works for the Australian Council of Trade Unions - representing the small guy or the disadvantaged. Dominic unifies with his fellow workers to ensure they have a fair-go — an ideal the working class strongly believe in. This is seen when Dominic protests along with the wharf workers in the 1998 protest on the waterfront, over the unfair dismissal of their entire workforce as a threat against unionism. Dominic exhibits the patriarchal figure as the people of the community said “If Dom’s going, we’ll go too.” Dominic is paid no more than the rest of the people in the community but his father-like figure unites the rest of the community together to fight for their people - the working class. Dominic has a large and close family that he supported, prior to the death of his brother and best friend, Joe. The family all lived together at some stage in an impractical situation and their furniture a...

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...eads to violence and sexual aggression in men if the drinking becomes out of control. In First Dance, Roy and his group of mates hang out outside the local surf club, drinking beer in a controlled environment until Chrissie and Toni show up, too drunk to control themselves. This causes the men to take advantage Toni and as a consequence, rape and kill her as a result of sexual aggression. This action is reflects alcoholism and sexual aggression in Australian adolescent men.

My sense of Australian identity is that it is multi-faceted and there are multiple incarnations of Australian identity. This is reflected in my reading of Australian masculinity in The Piper’s Son, where Australian identity is depicted as the archetypal “Aussie Battler” and in First Dance, where alcohol, sexual violence and a “pack mentality” are elements of Australian adolescent masculinity.