Would anyone be down to mark my english draft (1 Viewer)

[fatman69]

I am doing a practice essay on MOD A on asian australian poetry if anyone is down to read my essay and give me feedback that will be great thanks!!!

 

[ImagineDragin]

might not be the best but shoot me a dm

 

[fatman69]

might not be the best but shoot me a dm

To what extent does your prescribed text disrupt assumptions about culture?
In your response, make close reference to your prescribed text.

Merlinda Bobis, Vuong Pham, and Ouyang Yu poetries challenge the assumptions about Asians only having a homogenous identity and trying to convey their readers by challenging the audience and showing that their identities are diverse. All three poems: “This is where it begins,” by Merlinda Bobis, “Mother” by Vuong Pham and “New accents' ' by Ouyang Yu use the form of storytelling allowing them to connect with their memories culturally even when they are not physically there (DISPLACEMENT OF MEMORIES). In addition to this, all three poems express their views on the sacrifice of migrating into Australia. Another assumption that is prevalent in all three poems about culture is the assumption that refugees/ children of refugees have a broken accent which diminishes their belonging in Australia. All three poets challenge the cultural assumptions to convince the readers that the migrants of Asian Australians can be diverse.


It is the storytelling that shapes an individual identity by connecting them to our culture origins and ourselves.

“This is where it begins,” by Merlinda Bobis is a poem that celebrates the power of storytelling which connects Asian Australians to their ancestral and cultural heritage. The title, “This is where it begins” is repeated throughout the poem as the speaker tries to work out where the desire to tell the stories came from. Bobis rejects the idea of the cliche sitting alone in the dark room and writing stories. In the same manner as “This is where it begins”, the poem, “Mother,” is about the necessary sacrifice that the mother had to make in order to have a better future for herself and her kids. This poem was during the time of The American War in the 1975 which resulted in many Vietnamese refugees being settled in Australia. However Australia was very divided at that time about their involvement in the war and this resulted in varied public opinions on whether or not Vietnamese asylum seekers should be allowed to settle in Australia.


Poems such as “Mother” and “This is where it begins,'' explore the idea of memories through the form of storytelling. In the poem, “This is where it begins,” by Merlinda Bobis, the first three stanzas in the poems reveal her cultural background as an Asian Australian. The allusion to fairy tales that Merlinda Bobis started off with, “Once upon a time in Bikol, Pilipino, English '' is to emphasise her fondness and allow her own selves to connect back to her past even if she is not physically present. This creates a sense of nostalgia, and warmth between the poem and the place that is attached to them. Throughout her storytelling she emphasises the power of storytelling through, “Eyes, lips, hands conjoined: the umbilical cord restored.” The “Eyes, lips, hands conjoined,” is a symbolism of connecting with our ancestral heritage to our present selves, and the metaphor of “umbilical cord” connects back to the central origin/ life force. The maternal/motherly image reflects the poet's reverence for her historical background which also represents how storytelling continues to help individuals endure beyond time by reminiscing nostalgic moments. Much like “Mother” by Vuong Pham, Pham shows how he uses the form of storytelling to connect with his culture through the heavy use of imagery. It is through visual imagery that is used to clearly paint a picture in reader’s mind through, “water buffalo, ploughing the flooded paddies from cloud to cloud; each one picturesque from her classroom window; and all of which was the city she will no longer call home.” At the start of the quote, “ water buffalo, ploughing the flooded paddies from cloud to cloud;” shows quite a light hearted romanticised description of her homeland which she truly cherishes. However there is a sudden tone shift in “and all of which was the city she will no longer call home,” which depicts the sorrow and pity as she can no longer call it home. The power of storytelling helps us connect the Asian Australian to their heritage and cultural roots, thus allowing them to show that they do have hybrid identities and are not entitled just to one identity.



The sacrifice of one commodity when migrating to another place is always relevant.
“New Accents” by Ouyang Yu and “This is where it begins” by Merlinda Bobis both explored the idea of sacrifices in their poem. For Ouyang Yu back in his country he was a lecturer and when migrating to another country he sacrificed his own role of a lecturer. This can be seen in, “They tried to fool me around because I couldn’t speak Anguish” which evokes the empathy within the readers. The bitter and resentful tones, as well as the purposefully juxtaposing pronouns, are used to create a clear divide between him and the English speakers, thereby disproving the notion that Australia is a country that values diversity. Yu also criticises Australia's attitude towards those with foreign accents in "Because I Created "ee-sense" in "Essence" And they, the Professors, rightly lost a genius in me" and explains how this subtle racism restricts various minorities. This text criticises the controlling viewpoint's worldview, which holds that IQ directly correlates with English proficiency. Yu uses traditional English metalanguage extensively throughout his poem to satirically refute the notion that English fluidity defines knowledge and potential. However in the poem, “This is where it begins,” sacrifice is different to the poem “New Accents.” This is seen in, “Mother reviewing for her college Spanish exams,” where this tells us the hybridisation of Spanish and Philippines. This happens during the Spanish invasion which colonises the Philippines and thus, the power structures still impact the present identity of the colonised. It is through the sacrifices that have to be made along the way to diverse our identities and show that it's just not a homogeneous identity.


The ability to speak the English language properly is inevitable as an Asian Australian.
“New Accents” by Ouyang Yu critiques the assumptions that Australia is an egalitarian accepting nation while simultaneously arguing the mocking against the migrants those with foreign accents and less fluidity of English. Ouyang Yu is an Asian Australian poet who has a Master in Arts and Literature degree in his country, yet when he migrated to Australia he got denied from his profession just because of his broken accent. Yu has written his frustration about the Australian egalitarian society in his poem “New Accents.” On the other hand Vuong Pham who is an Asian Australian teacher in Brisbane expressed his view of Australia through his poem “Mother.”Throughout his poem he expressed it in a reflective way of his mother's sacrifice throughout his lives, how she has nurtured him and sacrificed her dreams of being a teacher back in Vietnam.

Through the irony, “What a wonderful Anguish that I’ve spent all these years, Labouring on, with myself with my students” explores the idea of how Asians who migrated to the foreign countries get treated less to those that are born from the country. This creates a barrier between the cultural language and the English language as itself. Yu further criticised the Australian attitude towards those with foreign accents in, “And I myself, unashamedly, once pronounced “whore” as “whorl”. This depicts the idea of exploitation, ‘prostituting’ and gravitas in his profession. Yu is expressing his feelings towards the Australian community that he is sick of trying to please them. Similarly in “Mother” by Vuong Pham, the assumption of an Asian migrant not being able to speak English properly is represented in, “she smiles remembering with excitement the moment I arrived home from school with a certificate of improved literacy” which Pham challenges that he has strong literacy skills and English skills. We know that he is now an English teacher as he is reflecting on his life in his poem. The cultural assumptions of Asian Australians having a broken accent is evident in our lives and it is through these Asian Australians poets that express their views which allows them to convince their audience that they do not stick to one homogenous identity but are diverse as a person.

Overall, all three poems connect to the notion of the assumption of cultural identity where Asian Australians only have one homogeneous identity and are not actually diverse. However it is through these three poems that challenges the assumptions, through the form of storytelling and how it impacts ourselves to connect with nostalgic moments, the ability to speak proper English even if you migrate from another country and the sacrifices that have to be made along the way for a greater good. This convinces the audience that Asian Australians are not just one homogenous identity but it's actually diverse.