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Writer's pictureBen Taylor

How Location Impacts Identity in Brooklyn & Reckoning

The factors leading to emigration and the experience of those who emigrate to countries are concepts shared by either text. Where readers can take these ideas further is in how the physical location that a person inhabits can have tremendous impact on their behaviour and outlook.


Toibin outlines the lack of opportunity in Ireland and the distress this causes within communities and families. The absence of Eilis and Rose’s brothers, coupled with the limited employment options available to Eilis lead to a sense of quiet desperation in her household and the harsh reality for her mother that her children’s futures rely on their leaving Enniscorthy. It is believed that “no one who went to America missed home. Instead, they were happy there and proud.” However, Eilis is reluctant to move to Brooklyn as she holds a deep concern over her identity and ability to find contentment and purpose in the United States. Toibin describes the rooms of her house on Friary Street “belong[ing” to her, that she was “really there” when moving through them. Such a description lends itself to the idea that Eilis’ surroundings are a part of her identity and provide her with a certainty in how she feels about herself. This is further examined through Eilis’ struggle with homesickness as she feels that “nothing here was part of her. It was false, empty”. Toibin describes her as a “ghost” in her early days in Brooklyn, drawing a link between one’s identity and sense of themselves in regards to the spaces they inhabit.


The overwhelming power of one’s location or place is also exhibited through the experience of the Szubanskis as they settle in Croydon North. Whilst Magda still feels “culturally British”, her parents are able to move away from their cultural ties to home and stand passively, watching as their family “rituals gradually shrivelled in the heat.” Szubanski links her father to quintessential Australian objects and experiences such as “mowing the lawn in his terry-towelling hat”. Through his experience, Szubanski outlines how Australia provided a space for her father to reinvent himself as a man and to attempt to leave the traumas of his past behind him. Magda herself acknowledges that once Peter made his home in Australia “he refused to look back”, whilst she, even at the age of twenty-one, “didn’t feel Australian”. Thus, the place they inhabit does not easily hold the same meaning or purpose to father or daughter, rather it provides a sanctuary for Peter, whilst cementing Magda’s view of herself as an outsider.



Comparison can be drawn between Eilis’ identity being so interwoven with her hometown, feeling like a “ghost” in Brooklyn and the manner in which Magda remains unsettled in her childhood. Whilst Eilis is intimidated by new surroundings initially, she grows as a person and is perceived differently upon her return to Ireland. Despite only having few memories of her time in the United Kingdom and having never lived in Poland as her father had, Magda feels that Europe can “provide [a] sense of home” that she “crave[s]”. How one sees themselves is therefore inextricably linked with their surroundings. Further to this, one’s personal growth can depend greatly upon the location that they find themselves in. In order to compare the texts in greater depth, it is worth remembering that Peter Szubansky adds a further dimension to this idea in that, in contrast to Eilis, his new home is an opportunity for him to escape his past and something that he embraces wholeheartedly. The conclusion of Brooklyn also adds further cause for thought in regards to this idea that, whilst she can’t fully appreciate it in the moment, Eilis understands that her return to the United States is a moment that will hold great significance later in her life.


Both Brooklyn and Reckoning inspire questions regarding the meaning of ‘home’ and the role this plays in how a person sees themselves and builds a sense of identity. Home provides a comfort for some characters; a constant that provides them with security and a stronger sense of their character. However, Magda’s story is one of feeling as an outsider, despite Croydon being her ‘home’ for her formative years. When this is considered in relation to Eilis’ experience, readers can see how the absence of a home, in regards to it’s emotional function rather than physical, can create anxiety and conflict within a person as they desperately search for a grounding influence from which they can feel more secure about themselves. As different characters across the texts leave, search for and find a sense of ‘home’, the impacts of one’s physical location upon their character are laid bare. Without the secure sense of home, Eilis and Magda are able to exhibit growth as they come to rely on cementing their identity. Whether he shows growth or merely looks to escape, Peter Szubansky seeks a sense of reinvention and understands the crucial role that location will play in this endeavour. Ultimately, how a person is shaped and how they become more secure in their identity is shown to be a case of not just what happens to someone, but also the places which they inhabit.

 

Our Reading and Creating workshops have finished for this term, but are still available as webinar replays. Two hours of great PD in your own time, at your own pace for $120!


Head to the resources section to purchase the booklet and receive the link for the webinar recording.


Here’s what some of our attendees of the live webinars had to say:


"A really practical-based session, provision of effective strategies and teacher support on how to implement these to get the best out of every student. This has to be the best Comparative PD yet! Highly recommend it!"


- Caitlin, Elisabeth Murdoch College


"These resources feel immediately useful, and collated in a meaningful sequence...I feel as thought I could confidently give the the workbook to use as the 'unit plan'. It's a huge weight off my shoulders and a wonderful way to begin a unit."


"Being in a regional area meant being able to access this online was actually a real bonus. I also really appreciate the fact that I can go back over the presentation again as I need to."


- Kath, King's College


In this presentation, teachers will be provided with a booklet of resources which push students to think about the texts in a conceptual manner. You'll be introduced to new ideas and points of comparison, before being taken through worked examples which utilise lessons about writing succinct, insightful and comparative pieces.






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