spirituality
Songs
Ash. “A Life less Ordinary”. [Watch the video clip at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3i10E7WKjlU] the thing that saves this from being just another love song is the imagery in the lyrics - the “goddess” referred to in the lyrics could be interpreted as part of a mystical experience (make sure you understand the concept of mysticism – check with Ms Carmyn or a Studies of Religion Teachers) if you are using this interpretation. Pay attention to the way the language becomes simpler as the song moves from metaphorical to literal, and link these changes to the harmony and instrumentation. If you’re writing about the video clip, think about what the cars may symbolise and discuss the clips that are cut between the car sequences. (Are they anything more than clichés? What pop culture references can you find?). Recommended for ESL or standard students.
Beatles, The. (1966). “Eleanor Rigby” [Listen to the original online at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51UH_u7WxCo] This song describes the loneliness of city dwellers who live side by side refusing to discovery anything about anyone else. It is a useful text for looking at what happens in society when people stagnate, unwilling to discover/engage with the world around them – “noone was saved”. Although the lyrics are simple there as some lovely surrealistic elements such as “wearing the face that she keeps in the jar by the door” which could be linked to techniques that convey alienation in other texts. Make sure you also discuss musical elements such as the impact of the lone cello in the instrumentation. You could also listen to the Godhead’s cover version at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=li580259YwU&feature=fvst . The video clip doesn’t add a lot, but you could discuss the costumes and setting and the alternation between the one singer and the crowd of “lonely people”. Does the change in musical style add or detract from the original song?
Muttonbirds. (). “Anchor me”. [Watch the Muttonbirds version online at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPIhhqM4b4s or the Greenpeace version at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQ99ouGxgkg]This song argues that a relationship can “anchor” the persona against the pain and horror of his life. Discuss the extended metaphor of the sea, the biblical and Shakespearean (The Tempest) allusions and the symbolism of the images in the video clip. This original video emphasises shifting blue light and floating images, but also literal images such as the boat, the shark, the car in the rain and people floating “up” and “down” while the Greenpeace video uses clichéd symbols such as a dove and rainbow juxtaposed with symbols of industrial pollution to give the song a far less personal context. If your argument discusses macro and micro processes of discovery, you could discuss the way the videos reinterpret the context of the song. Recommended for advanced students.
Coolio (). “Gangsta’s Paradise” [Watch it online at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFK6H_CcuX8] This is a gangster’s “re-discovery” or “re-evaluation” of his life when he dies – he defends his life choices, looking back with regrets for what he didn’t achieve and pride for how he protects his “ homies.” Discuss the biblical allusion at the beginning, the expert use of rhythm in the lyrics, the use of slang as an indicator of belonging to a “gangsta” subculture and the way the tone alternates between regretful and threatening. Match this to the choice of musical style, especially the alternation between recitative (spoken melody) and melodic/harmionic sections. If you’re writing about the video clip, discuss the props, costumes and settings, and pay attention to the way the story is told through closeups, cuts and fades into black – it’s a different story to the lyrics so you have to explain how they link together.
Poems
Dunbar, Paul Laurence. (1896). "We wear the Mask" was initially written about the way African-Americans appear to be happy participants in American religion and society but underneath they suffer exclusion and extreme pain. It links to the beginning of Life of Pi, the experiences of people encounted by the protagonists in Go back to where you came from and Motorcycle Diaries and a postcolonial interpretation of The Tempest. The poem and it's anaysis can be found at Schmoop [http://www.shmoop.com/we-wear-the-mask/].
Gregor, Debora. (1994). "Miranda's Drowned Book" online at Anna McHugh's blog [http://discoveryhsc.blogspot.com.au/2015/10/fascinating-related-text-dramatic.html] Rich in symbolism, this poem gives Miranda's perspective on her relationship with her father and the island landscape on which she was raised. Recommended for advanced students, especially if they are studying The Tempest (if you're not, read or watch the play so that you understand the context of Miranda's speech). You could interpret this poem from a spiritual perspective, as Miranda's examination of her relationship with a creator-being. This would like well to Life of Pi.
Hardy, Thomas. (). "Afterwards" online at
Hopkins, Gerard Manly. "God's Grandeur" describes the vision of God through nature. The poem available here [http://www.poets.org/poetsorg/poem/gods-grandeur] and Schmoop has a detailed analysis. It would work very well with Life of Pi. You might also want to look at some of his other pomes such as The Windhover [http://www.shmoop.com/the-windhover/]...
Mokobe, Lee. (2015) "What it Feels like to be Transgender" (2015 International Slam Poetry Winner). Vivid imagery tells the experience of a "girl" in growing up in South Africa and discovering that she can become anything she wants - except a man. You can listen to this poem/speech on Ted Talks [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S8DwxjDrNNM] and contact him at Twitter ( Please don't Troll - it's hard enough being transsexual!). Pay careful attention to the use of religious symbolism and powerful emotive language, and the careful control of tone and rhythm to manipulate the listener. As this is a performance poem you can also analyse his use of expression and body language - what was it that made this the winning poem?
Philips, Katherine. (1678). "To Mrs M A at Parting" online at The Illuminarium [http://www.luminarium.org/sevenlit/philips/parting.htm]. Katherine Philips was the highly-educated leader of an important women's art group in the C17th. She brought many women together to write poems, discuss literature and philosophy and put on plays. They often wrote to each other using the langauge of male love poems to describe the powwer of their friendship. This poem elevates friendship to a spiritual level allowing the freindship between the writer and Mrs M A to be compared to the relationship between between Pi and the tiger. Look carefully at her language choices, especailly words with a spiritual dimension. You should also mention the tight rhythm and rhyme scheme typical of poetry in her era and how this might be interpreted to fit her themes.
Short Stories
Zuzik, Emily, (2000). “Going without at Ramadan” in A woman’s path: women’s best spiritual travel writing. (Belonging folder at 820.9) When travelling in Morroco, the author decides to keep Ramadan even though she isn’t Muslim – a way of discovering the reality of livign in a foreign country. Discuss the features of a travel article -sumptuous sensory description of settings, explanatory sequences – eg about Ramadan – as well as the more personal description of how she feels about not eating all day, and the ironies she notices in Morrocan society.
Johanabas bin Rosli, Fadslishah, (2010). “Act of Faith” in Cosmos VOL??? (Belonging folder at 820.9) When Ahmad is too old to take care of himself, his son (who works on the moon) buys an android (robot) to help him out. Over time, the robot becomes like a son to Ahmad and even helps out in the mosque by giving the call to prayer. Then the problem arises: if the robot has begun to believe in god, can he become a Muslim? Discuss the usual features of science fiction such as jargon and new types of technology, but focus on the way that the robot discovers his place in the human world – by calling Ahmad “Abah” (father), by learning Arabic, by developing his emotion software, by helping out in Ahmad’s community, by trying to adopt Ahmad’s religion. Don’t forget the metaphors used to depict the symbolism of the storm.
Chernin, Kim, (2000). “Initiation” in A woman’s path: women’s best spiritual travel writing. (Belonging folder at 820.9) When the Jewish-American writer goes to Israel to work on a Kibbutz, she does not expect that her most profound sense of discovery will be with a group of Morrocan villagers with whose language she cannot speak. Discuss the rich sensory imagery (sights, smalls, sounds) that depict her connection to the land (and the goddess she feels is embodied in the land).
Speeches
Mokobe, Lee. (2015) "What it Feels like to be Transgender" (2015 International Slam Poetry Winner). Vivid imagery tells the experience of a "girl" in growing up in South Africa and discovering that she can become anything she wants - except a man. You can listen to this poem/speech on Ted Talks [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S8DwxjDrNNM] and contact him at Twitter ( Please don't Troll - it's hard enough being transsexual!). Pay careful attention to the use of religious symbolism and powerful emotive language, and the careful control of tone and rhythm to manipulate the listener. As this is a performance poem you can also analyse his use of expression and body language - what was it that made this the winning poem?
Plays
Shaw, Bernard. Saint Joan (822.9 SHA) This play rediscovers the life of famous military leader Joan of Arc from the first moment she reveals that God sent her to save France from the evil English through military victories to her trial before the English inquisition and eventual canonisation by the Catholic church. Focus on the alternation of Joan’s acceptance and rejection by other characters and the way the author satirises the fact that she was made into a saint. Look for irony in the plot and the dialogue. Ms Carmyn has an (old) film version.
Wright, Nicholaus. His Dark Materials (822 WRI). Based on Phillip Pullman’s best selling fantasy trilogy, this play is set in a world where people’s souls are manifest externally as companion animals called ‘daemons’. Although the characters are children, the play is written for a wide audience and contains interesting philosophical ideas about discovering one’s identity. Recommended for standard students who enjoy fantasy and advanced students who are willing to investigate the literary, religious and scientific references (look online – there are lots of analyses).
Novels
Abdel-Fattah. Randa. Does My Head Look Big in This? Traces the experiences of a year 12 Muslim student, Amal, after she decides to wear the hijab to her local (and very Anglo) high school. There’s lots to discuss here - Amal, Simone and Layla have very different experiences Islam. Focus on cultural symbols, the colloquial and very perceptive first person narration, the way the dialogue characterises different experiences of belonging, and the use of humour to include the reader. The review at http://www.theblurb.com.au/Issue57/DMHLBIT.htm shows and Anglo reader’s response. http://epress.lib.uts.edu.au/ojs/index.php/TfC/article/view/598/559 has an interesting academic essay which analyses the novel from feminist and postcolonial perspectives. This could be useful for advanced students who want to develop a more complex argument about spiritual discovery. (see Ms Carmyn or your English teacher if you want to know more about these theories).
Baum, L. Frank. The Wizard of Oz. the famous story of four misfits on a journey to discover the qualities that will help them belong. Analyse the way each character symbolises a particular human fault and how overcoming these faults connects them so that they can defeat the wicked witch. Recommended for standard students only.
Blake, Bronwyn. Rock Dancer. Leah is an elite gymnast who failed to catch her friend Morgan in the training accident which put her in a coma. Her family has moved to a country high school where Leah is sent on a rock climbing camp. Discuss the way internal monologue allows the reader into Leah’s head and the way sensory imagery of the landscape (which is almost a character on it’s own!) shows her progress from isolation, through tentative connections with other students, to deal with her feelings of guilt and the discovery of her place in this new context. The author’s view can be found at http://www.bronwynblake.com.au/rockdancer.html.
Higgins, Simon. Thunderfish. After her father dies, heiress Kira hides from the media on a world cruise. Along the way she encounters a brutal attack on a refugee ship, and decides to do something about it. She buys a submarine and attacks the boats that prey on vulnerable craft, and discover a renewed purpose in her new ‘job’. Focus on the structural device of celebrity newspaper clippings about Kira and her real life as a vigilante as well as the many literary allusions to “40, 000 leagues under the sea”.
Laurie Halse Anderson. Speak. After an event in the summer break, Melinda becomes an outcaste at school and stops talking. Focus on the interior monologue (her ‘brain voice’) that depicts her growing maturity when dealing with the event, and the way the structure slowly allows the reader to discover the cause of her silence. NB – it’s pretty intense so don’t read it if you’re already feeling depressed!
Pullman, Phillip. Northern Lights. The strongest sense of self in the His Dark Materials universe is the bond between a person and their soul/daemon (in the shape of an animal). When children start to disappear, Lyra decides to investigate and discovers that this link is in danger. This text could be used by standard students on a simple level to discuss the role of daemons as a parallel to the tiger in a spiritual interpretation of Life of Pi or by advanced students who could analyse the author’s use of literary references to the biblical stories and Milton’s Paradise Lost.
Winton, Tim. Blueback. Abel lives with his mother by the beach where he meets the giant fish, Blueback. When his mother is approached by developers they fight to save the bay where they belong. Focus on Winton’s sumptuous language as well as the relationships between people and place which exist on a spiritual level. The author’s views on Blueback and the writing process can be found at http://users.tpg.com.au/waldrenm/winton.html
Coelho, Paulo, Aleph
Non fiction
Coming of Age: Growing up Muslim in Australia
Critical essays Anderson, Wendy Love. “Prophecy Girl and the Powers that be: the philosophy of religion in the Buffyverse” in Buffy the Vampires Slayer and Philosophy ed. James B South. (2003). (Ms Carmyn has a copy). This article explores the various Christian tropes used in BTVS, with particular focus on the episode “Amends”. This text is a good example of one way to examine the (Christian) religious symbolism in texts, particularly for students focusing on spiritual discovery in Life of Pi or The Tempest.
Bremer, Krista, (2011). “My daughter’s Choice” in Marie Claire, April 2011. (Belonging folder at 820.9) When Krista’s half-Lybian daughter, Aliya, chooses to wear hijab her mother does not “recognise” her. Look particularly at the constant contrast between the clothes Krista wore and the clothes her daughter has chosen and the metaphors which depict her alienation from her daughter. Why has aliya chosen to wear hijab? What do the different types of clothes symbolise to the mother? The daughter? What changes to make Krista discover that her daughter is expressing herself with the same freedom that she had at this age?Fouts, Joshua. (2010). “Al-Andalus 2.0”, Saudi Aramco World, July/August 2010. Also online at http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/201004/al-andalus.2.0.htm Where do you go if you’re a Muslim online? Second Life now has an online mosque where Muslims all over the world can discover their religion in a virtual community. Look at layout features like the “hook” and “sidebars”. Discuss the structure of the article and analyse the language describing the virtual space (making it’real’). Consider which ‘experts’ he chose to interview and why he included particular quotes.
Poems Rilke, Rainer Maria. “Going Blind” in The Rose Window, trans. M D Herter Norton, 1938 or “Buddha”trans. Stephen Cohn, 1992 or “Adam and “Eve” trans. M D Herter Norton, 1938. These poems all deal with mystical nature of(Christian) religion and would s work well with an analysis of the spiritual journey represented in Life of Pi. They focus on the way mystical religious experience enables one to overcome immense difficulties.
Films
Little Mosque on the Prairie (coming soon). View (or order from) website here: http://www.cbc.ca/littlemosque/cast.php . This is a sitcom about Christians and Muslims living together in a Canadian country town. Check out the character and storylines on the website or check an interview with the writer (which could also be a related text) here: http://www.altmuslim.com/a/a/a/comedy_has_to_come_from_a_good_place/ .
Piznarski, Mark. (2004). Veronica Mars 1.02 “Credit Where Credit's Due". [Ms Carmyn has a copy]. Virtually any episode of this teen detective series deals with belonging. This episode deals with racial stereotyping and class distinctions, as well as the beginning of the bond between Veronica and the school ‘bad boy’. Focus on the way mise en scene is used to differentiate the “haves” from the “have nots” and the witty dialogue that links Veronica with the heroes of the episode. For the purposes of HSC English, ignore the season arc about Veronica’s dead best friend.
Barmak, Siddikq. Osama. Under the Taliban a young girl disguises herself as a boy to support her family and is drafted into the army where her life depends on her ability to discover an alterative identity in a man’s world. Focus on the use of colour and setting to symbolise the harsh reality of life in pre-invasion Afghanistan, where non-compliant women were persecuted to the point of death. Useful reviews can be found at http://www.offoffoff.com/film/2004/osama.php or http://qafilm.qataracademy.wikispaces.net/message/view/home/7184581 .
The Darkside This is a horror film with a difference – it compiles real-life ghost stories collected from indigenous Australians, enabling the viewer to explore what lies beyond mundane reality and also to discover a uniquely Aboriginal perspective on the supernatural. You could choose to focus on one story or the way the stories are interwoven. Pay particular attention to the use of voiceover, lighting and camera angles to position the viewer. This film could work well with either Life of Pi or The Tempest, if you are focusing on the spiritual/supernatural aspects of your set text.