One of my many hybrid text ideas for Section B. Would like to know your thoughts on the piece. It is a personal monologue blended with a general argumentative essay. If you want me to post a few more I am happy to do so.
We cannot escape the world that others create. Text - A Streetcar Named Desire
As I sit here in the VCAA English exam for the last time, my thoughts have turned to how I have ended up here, sitting at a desk putting pen on paper for the next three hours. For the past 13 years of my life, I have spent the majority of each year attending classes at schools which my parents have chosen for me to attend. Outside of class, I have attended an ethnic language school on weekends, and learned how to play chess, volleyball, tennis, the piano and the clarinet. I realise now that my family and circumstances have created the world that I exist in, and that I cannot escape it.
The time and place in which we are born greatly determine who we are and our present circumstances. This notion is exemplified in Tennessee Williams' play 'A Streetcar Named Desire', where protagonist Blanche Dubois' and antagonist Stanley Kowalski's character and world are associated with their upbringings. Blanche Dubois still wishes to be a beautiful, 'cultivated', young woman who is married to a 'gentleman' because she was born and raised in the privileged society of Laurel. On the other hand, Stanley Kowalski, the son of Polish immigrant parents, was raised in the working-class America and is thus accustomed to the hard-working, harsh lifestyle that New Orleans brings. Similarly in society, the time and place of our upbringings has major implications on our lives. If I wasn't born and raised here in Australia but instead born and raised in Afghanistan today, I wouldn't be sitting here putting pen on paper; instead I could be amidst fleeing from a bomb-desecrated city at the heart of war. And there would be no escape. Likewise, I cannot escape completing this exam because I was raised here in Australia, and attend a school which follows VCAA's strict rules. Although I cannot release myself from this existence others have paved for me, I can manage and adapt to my surrounding environment so I can cope and thrive in it. However this is not always the case.
Many individuals are unable to cope within a world created by others because they have been forced into it. Drawing on 'A Streetcar Named Desire' again, Blanche Dubois is unable to cope with her move to New Orleans because she cannot endure the reality of her life with Stanley and Stella in New Orleans. Her world is tainted by the nightmare of her husband Allan Grey's suicide and haunted by the Varsouviana polka dot tune which causes her to slip into a fragile, innocent and vulnerable state. She is unable to find a 'gentleman' amongst the 'animal(s)' in the city. Even Mitch, who she is hopeful of settling down with, cannot accept her delusions and decides she 'is not clean enough' for him. Essentially, she has been forced into a situation which contrasts so drastically with what she's been accustomed to that she is unable to fend for herself; she falls into an abyss of mental delusion. Likewise, asylum seekers who are stuck in a detention centre as they wait for offshore processing to finish will slip into a poor mental state. They too have no escape from the world created by the Department of Immigration, and cannot cope with the putrid conditions they find themselves in. Overall, these are examples of where people's circumstances have changed significantly in a short period of time, and these new circumstances have not treated them well.
On the contrary, there are many individuals who bloom in their world created by others. Whilst Blanche is unable to adapt, Stella flourishes in New Orleans. She loves how everything is so close, and ravishes her new found independence from Belle Reve. She has the support of a loving husband Stanley whom she loves dearly despite his at times egregiously monstrous behaviour. After the climax in the conflict between Stanley and Blanche is reached which results in the annihilation of Blanche's mental health, Stella wonders whether to 'go on' with Stanley. However, eventually Stella decides that she never wants to 'know' what truly happened with Stanley and Blanche, and forgives Stanley. In essence, this shows that in an inescapable world filled with sin, forgiveness is required to cope within. Furthermore, many immigrants in modern society are able to thrive in a world created by others despite facing various obstacles. For example, Anh Do, now a successful comedian and author, moved to Australia as a young child as his parents fled from war-torn Vietnam in the 1970's. As he grew up, he faced an endless barrage of bullying due to his ethnicity. However, his sense of humour and loving family allowed him to look beyond those who attempted to bring him down; he was able to forget about the hard-times and succeed in circumstances he had zero control over. Thus, in order to bloom in an inescapable world controlled by others, we need the support of loved ones.
As I reflect back on my life and how it has turned out to be so far, it's clear to me how time, place and my family have controlled my existence so far. I wonder where I would be now if I was born somewhere else, or in a different time. Maybe I'd be married already. Maybe I wouldn't be at school. Maybe I wouldn't be here at all any more. This I will never know. What I do know is that I cannot escape this world created for me by others, and I can flourish if I have the support of others and the ability to forgive and forget.
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