I denne study guide kan du få hjælp til at analysere novellen “Going Home” af Archie Weller. Udover analysehjælpen kan du finde et summary af teksten samt idéer til fortolkning og perspektivering.
Præsentation af teksten
Titel: “Going Home” (1986)
Forfatter: Archie Weller
Genre: Short story
Archie Weller (f. 1957) er en australsk forfatter med aboriginsk afstamning. Han har udgivet romanerne Day of the Dog (1981) og Land of the Golden Clouds (1998), samt et antal noveller, digte og skuespil. Wellers værker har ofte fokus på den aboriginske kulturs svære vilkår i det moderne australske samfund.
“Going Home” blev udgivet i 1986 i en novellesamling af samme navn.
Uddrag
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Title
The title of the short story “Going Home” by Archie Weller has both a literal and a symbolic meaning. The literal meaning is revealed at the beginning of the story, and refers to the main character, Billy, who is travelling home to see his family after a long absence: “Now, on his twenty-first birthday, he is going home.” (p. 108, ll. 15-16).
The details presented about Billy and the last five years of his life hint that the symbolic meaning of the title refers to him trying to reconnect with his family and his Aboriginal roots. Billy left his family’s camp at 16 and went to college, where he worked hard to become an artist and athlete. During this time, Billy disconnected from his culture and the life he led before college (p. 108, ll. 36-37). He also changed his appearance to look more like a white man (p. 109, ll. 24-25). Billy’s disconnection from Aboriginal culture turned into contempt and rejection, which is suggested, for example, in his attitude towards his aunt: “He was bitter that she was of his blood” (p. 110, l. 9).
However, after seeing another half-Aboriginal man being picked up by his family after a football game, Billy began to miss home. The title, therefore, is a symbol of Billy’s wish to reconnect with his family, as he is reminded of the good aspects of this relationship: “So Billy was going home, because he had been reminded of home (with all its carefree joys) at that last match.” (p. 110, l. 24-25)
