Hi, my name is Mark. I did my VCE in 2016 and since then i've been writing study guides with LSG
strategy from LSG’s How To Write A Killer
Comparative and at how ideas are developed
in similar or different thematic directions
in these texts.
CONVERGENT ideas lead to similar conclusions
and messages, while DIVERGENT ideas take us
to different conclusions.
If you’d like to learn more about this strategy
which can help you build more insightful discussions
of the text by finding unique points of comparison,
then I’d recommend you check out the LSG’s
How To Write A Killer Comparative study guide.
In the meantime, let’s start with some CONVERGENT
ideas.
Power, Race and Oppression
In both texts, we see racial systems that
take power away from Bla(c)k people.
In the play, settler-colonialism is a big
one.
It’s depicted as a home invasion, a ship
taking up a whole harbour, and as a process
of devaluing land and ignoring its custodians.
This trickles into contemporary institutions
(widely understood patterns, rules or structures
within society) which perpetuate these dynamics
of race and power, such as the police and
the media.
Oppression is similarly maintained in The
Longest Memory, where physical violence, and
even just the threat of possible physical
violence, is used to enslave African Americans.
Plus, all of this racial violence was justified
by the socio-economic interests of enslavers.
Both texts see Bla(c)k people disempowered
by a range of white institutions.
Family and Community
On the other hand, family and the wider community
are depicted as a galvanising or healing force
in both texts.
In The 7 Stages of Grieving, we see how death
can bring together entire communities to commiserate,
dance and mourn collectively, drawing on one
another’s strength.
Depictions of families in projections of photographs
also outline how joy and solidarity can be
drawn from community.
In the novel, family ties are also important.
Whitechapel and Cook build a committed relationship
to one another; she even says, “he proves
he loves me every day.”
At the same time, Cook also provides her unconditional
love and support to Chapel, whose education
and eventual relationship with Lydia are facilitated
by her.
Memory and Grief
Both texts show how memory and grief are significant
burdens for Bla(c)k people and operate at
multiple dimensions.
The play is sort of built around the five
stages of grief but demonstrates how First
Nations grief isn’t neat or linear.
It can go from highly expressive to numb in
moments.
It also has roots in Australia’s genocidal
history such that the death of any First Nations
person—but especially elders—is felt widely.
In The Longest Memory, there’s a physical
dimension to Whitechapel’s grief.
He earns the name “Sour-face” because
of the worry lines that developed after Chapel’s
death.
He feels extremely guilty and only after Chapel
dies does he realise why Chapel disagreed
with him so stubbornly in life.
He actually learned the tough lesson that
he’d been hoping to teach Chapel.
What about divergent ideas?
Let’s break down two now.
Struggle and Resistance
Both texts offer ideas about what the fight
against racism might look like, but at times
these ideas are more different than similar.
In The 7 Stages of Grieving, the main struggle
is to be heard and understood.
In the play and in real life even, we can
see how the media is stacked against First
Nations peoples, so their fight is about cutting
through the bias and making sure they are
fairly represented.
In The Longest Memory, the fight against slavery
is portrayed quite differently.
In a scenario where physical violence was
used the way it was in order to oppress, self-emancipation
was seen by many as the only path out.
Enslaved workers weren’t fighting to be
heard, they were fighting to survive.
It’s also worth bearing in mind the history
of abolition, which happened in Northern states
first.
This gave them a destination, as well as hope.
The Generation Gap
The other thing that the texts diverge on
is the relationship between parents and children.
In the play, family is consistently shown
to provide support and community.
As the woman speaks about her father and brother,
the unconditional love and support between
them is palpable.
However, the novel depicts a bit more conflict—
Whitechapel argued with Chapel based on his
lived experience, and the many young people
he had seen be killed for trying to free themselves.
However, Chapel was far more committed to
freedom than to survival.
There isn’t necessarily a ‘right’ answer
either way, but this definitely isn’t a
tension that we see in the play.
