“Belonging doesn’t just happen; it involves many factors and experiences in order to feel that you truly belong.”
How has your study of your core text and at least one support text highlighted the importance of belonging?
Belonging is the concept of acceptance and understanding which is eminent within the human condition but many factors and experiences affect how this sensation of belonging can prosper within each individual. This concept of acceptance and understanding is represented in Raimond Gaita’s memoir, Romulus, My Father through the exploration of Australian migrant life. The concerns of cultural difference and empathy is mirrored in Hanif Kureishi’s short story, My Son the Fanatic, where Parvez undertakes a metaphysical journey to realise the importance of belonging and how this sense of belonging involves many factors and experiences. Through the character’s responses to the challenges posed upon them, acceptance and understanding is developed as a uniting force in bringing individuals together.
An individuals’s acceptance towards his environment greatly influences their ability to form strong links with it. For example in Romulus, My Father, Raimond, having the advantage of being young when he migrated forms his experiences in Australia grows up acknowledging Australia as his home. This is shown when Gaita metaphorically describes the landscape outside the hospital to be “the back of [God’s] workshop”, where he recognises the significance of the land in his life and has come to accept the environment and hence develops a sense of home. The concept of acceptance is further maintained within My Son the Fanatic where Parvez, a Pakistani migrant in England has accepted the values of the new land. His realisation of how the practicing of Islam has “sparked many disputes” in England drives him into giving up his religion, and symbolically enjoys a “pork pie”, which is against the teachings of the Koran. The metaphysical journeys which are influenced by the experiences in a physical journeys which these characters have undertaken hence illustrates how acceptance is a force that acts as a uniting force in bringing individuals together, thus, emphasising the importance of belonging.
Acceptance and understanding from the environment around is also a factor to one’s sense of belonging which is explored in through character of Romulus in Romulus, My Father, through an exploration in how the passage of time can alter one’s sense of belonging. When Romulus had just successfully migrated to Australia, he was not aware of the dry environment of Australia and “set fire” to kill a snake, which earned him a label by the society as a “new Australian”. The labelling is symbolic of how his lack of understanding of the environment has led to a lack of acceptance by the society. Through time Romulus has adapted himself to the Australian culture as he symbolically sings “Waltzing Matilda”. This parallels with My Son the Fanatic as Parvez starts off as an outsider within the group of taxi drivers that he works and associates with. Through the passage of time, Parvez conforms to the drivers, preferring to “work at night when roads are clearer and sleep at day to avoid the wives”. This is a significant point in the story as the audience can see that Parvez loses his bonds with his family but understands the other drivers’ point of view and is accepted into the group. Hence by observing how the passing of time can affect the metaphysical journey for an individual, it is seen that it can further their ability to accept and understand, thus highlighting its importance as a uniting force.
Furthermore, both texts explore how an individual’s lack of acceptance and understanding can isolate one’s self from a group which they have belonged to before. In Romulus, My Father, Christine is an example of an individual who fails to accept and understand her situation in a positive manner. Described by Romulus as a “social creature,” metaphorical of the human’s instinctive yearning to form relationships, “[Australia] provided the wrong conceptual environment for her to find herself and for others to understand her”. Her inability to be accepted into a new society leaves her to suffer from her mental illness and ultimately her suicide. The consequences of unacceptance and non-understanding are also evident within My Son the Fanatic between Parvez and his son, Ali. Though the father-son relationship was strong to begin with, the two characters chose different physical paths which affect their metaphysical journey. By leading different lifestyles, the two develop in ways which the other does not understand, which ultimately leads to unacceptance of each other. The opening sentence of the short story, “The father surreptitiously began going through his son’s bedroom” is powerful in showing the misunderstanding between the father and son. The action being “surreptitiously” emphasises how the father is not being accepted by the son, yet seeking clues to understand the situation more. Eventually Parvez realises that his son has been practicing the religion that he has struggled to give up and accuses him of wasting his efforts, which leads to the breaking of the father and son relationship. Through the misunderstanding and lack of acceptance, the two texts cautions the responders of the consequences of not belonging, which highlights the importance of belonging to individuals.
Thus through the study of the core text, Romulus, My Father, and My Son the Fanatic, it is evident that through experiences in metaphysical journeys, acceptance and understanding is important to how one’s sense of belonging can prosper.
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