1. There
is a stark contrast created in the opening of this story between what the
narrator had been doing before entering school and what will be expected at
school? What
is this contrast and what does it immediately create in the story? The contrast that is created
at the beginning of the story is that which is juxtaposed with the true
reality. The authors intensions and thoughts of school is to learn what he
wants to learn when in reality it is to be obedient and to learn what is being taught.
2. The
author continues this theme of contrast at the start of the story. How does he
do this in his description of his experience of Sydney’s North Shore? He describes the North
Shore as being very different based on location. There is areas which are full
of leafy green and solid brick houses which he doesn't like. His whole world
revolves around this and the highway with is juxtaposed with the positives such
as the library, the back lane and the park.
3. What
was the father’s background in business before he opened the fruit shop? What
has helped him become successful? The
fathers background in business was non-existent, he had no background when he
moved to Australia. To overcome this he used his personality and greeted all
customer with a wide smile, asking them what they want and being very friendly
and chatty.
4. The
narrator’s description of his father is complex. What makes the father a
complex character? The
narrator's description of the father is very complex because the father has
many different aspects about him. He is a happy, chatty, friendly man who
strives to make people feel welcome in his shop. He also is a very hard
diligent worker, having started a successful business in Australia with no
english or business skills, and is very motivated as seen through the checking
of account every night in order to make sure everything is good. This shows
that he has many different character traits which make him a very complex
person.
5. (91)
How does the author describe his role in doing ‘things that counted’? His purpose within the
family was to listen and watch what his siblings had to say about school in
order to learn for himself what is acceptable and what isn't within schooling
life. This to him was the only way of learning because he couldn't ask
questions because they would be seen as insignificant.
6. What
experience does the author have at school while keeping to himself? What does
he learn from this experience? The
author experiences a bad situation at school by trying to keep to himself. He
is centred out because of not only his difference is race (an asian in an
australian environment) but because he keeps to himself and doesn't talk. He
learns not to be afraid of the people around him but be nice and friendly.
7. How
would you characterise the narrator’s tone in regards to the events that are
occurring around him? The
narrator would use a rather mono tone, that of a single note. He is seeing the
world in one major way, that it is horrible. His expectations are very
different to reality and this sets in a negative mood and a very one-sided
view.
8. How
does the narrator characterise the ways that one could ‘get the strap’ and ways
that one could avoid it? The
narrator characterises the way that one could 'get the strap' as being very
easy to get and very hard to avoid it. Simple things that happen daily would
get the strap such as mis-spelling a word in a spelling bee, getting an answer
wrong, walking to fast or to slow, etc. There was very few ways to avoid the
strap.
9. What
event evokes a racist speech to the class by the teacher? The boy in the story could
not swim and therefore, his sister wrote a note to excuse him from the swimming
carnival. The teacher than reads it to the whole class, that stating "we
all know these chinese people never contribute to anything".
10. What
effect did the author’s experience with ‘Strap Happy Jack’ have on him? It made him think about
the minority of the chinese people within the area and the fact that racist
comments like "chinese people never contribute" not meaning much and
having little effect on the population.
11. What
was the one advantage school provided the author? One advantage that the
author found was that as he went on through high school, some teachers noticed
talents in him and one teacher for example told him that his test scores
indicated a very valuable future for him.
12. What
did the author do at his school? What was his motivation for doing it? What did
he feel was lacking at school? The
author started a workshop program, something that interested him and was
something that he enjoyed. He was motivated to do something that he enjoyed
(the motivation coming from interest that he set the boundaries for the
program), and he felt that the school was lacking the ability for him to choose
his own future.
13. What
did the parents want their son to do at school? What did the author fear would
happen by obeying his parents? The
parents (mostly the mother) wanted their son to be a specific profession. The
mother wanted her son to be a doctor, something that he feared and hated to do.
She chose this because of her culture and her wanting of a doctor in the
family. The author feared that he would end up having to follow a path that was
based on the teachers decision, because he mother told him to learn what is
begin taught and learn what you want after, which to him sounded like he would
miss the opportunity to learn what he wants.
14. At school, what did the
author learn about his own type of thinking and how to use it? He learn, by being at
school, that his own type of thinking is very different to the next persons and
that he has to follow his style in order to use it to its full potential.
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