Jasper Jones Poetic Techniques

English speech

The marginalised Australian experience traps groups and individuals based on one or many aspects of their life. Both the poem ‘capital letters’ by Omar Musa and Craig Silvey’s novel ‘Jasper Jones’ explore the Australian Experience of marginalisation. They share many aspects of marginalisation including racism, injustice, resilience, consequences and life on the margin. Marginalisation can have negative psychological and emotional responses, however in capital letters and jasper jones, the consequences of overcoming marginalisation and the build-up of resilience are emphasised. Omar Musa’s poem capital letters looks into his own life and experiences growing up on the margin in Queanbeyan, Australia. The poem displays both the harsh consequence, as well as the

humbling reactions of Musa as he began his journey as a slam poet, educating the people of Australia what really goes on behind closed doors. ‘Jasper Jones’ explores the troublesome life of the half-caste of the same name, ‘Jasper Jones’. The novel shows the contrast between life from jaspers perspective, being an outcast resulting from racism and scapegoating, and from the perspective of Charlie Bucktin- the protagonist- being an outcast for being insecure and intellectual rather than athletic.

The Australian Experience of marginalisation is discovered in ‘Capital Letters’ by the use of metaphorical references to poverty, discrimination and street culture. The entrapment of people due to living life on the margin is a generational problem that cannot be solved easily. However, because these people know no different, they begin to see the beauty and normality in dangerous, desperate and sometimes violent aspects of life on the streets. Marginalisation is not experienced by only one or two societal groups, but is encountered by many people from different backgrounds, cultures and social situations and also anyone who doesn’t ‘fit in’ to the stereotypical Australian life. This can be seen in ‘Capital Letters’ when Musa uses the term ‘Alphabet of exiles’ which basically means non-Australians, including immigrants, who because of their situation, are treated as a group and are pushed to live and survive with the are minimums and with whatever job opportunities or welfare they are capable of utilising. This is a cycle that over generations becomes harder and harder for the family members to escape from. This transpires because of lack of opportunity and education for both children and adults living on the fringes. Although experiencing these --, the people in the poem build up a resilience to all the bad in life and can appreciate and be thankful for what they do have. They use what they have, their talents and passions for music and art in this case, to construct their own culture. Musa says, “Yet somehow, somehow, I found that something, like a key connecting ancient and new, I found it on beats, breaks and acetate” describing how he discovered music and he had to do this to stop himself from ruining his life and “leaping in to the whirlpool”. He then goes on to talk about other artists who have done similar things. Overall, the text shows that if marginalised people can stick together and build up each other’s resilience, they can overcome marginalisation.

Similarly, in Craig Silvey’s ‘Jasper Jones’, subtexts such as youth street culture, what it is like to be an outcast and racism and scapegoating and are explored.

In the 1960’swhen the novel is set, black people were shunned and despised, and since he is a half-caste, Jones is immediately rejected. Also, because of his aboriginal relations, he is blamed for all wrongdoings in Corrigan (the town in which the novel takes place). The fact that he is an outcast attracts Charlie Bucktin to him as he is seen as an outsider too, due to him being more intellectual than sporty in a town where athleticism is highly valued. Charlie idealizes Jasper and his way of life and he seems to find a lot that they have in common as rejects- even though he doesn’t have to experience any form of racial prejudice nor any financial difficulties, and he doesn’t have to live on the streets. This goes to show that even people that look as though they fit in on the outside, may feel marginalised within society. Throughout the novel Silvey makes it clear that racism towards Jasper and to other characters is prejudicial and simply a result of people’s ignorance and their lack of empathy and understanding. These

characters