The Story of Tom Brennan
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The story of Tom Brennan
The story of Tom Brennan by J.C. Burke explores a number of themes which revolve around the central concept of transition and the unpredictably of change of which you have no control. Burke transcribes how these transitions affect the characters attitudes ,beliefs and views of the world. The themes of guilt ,fear ,depression are explored through the lives of the Brennan family ,primarily through the eyes of Tom Brennan ,the central character of the novel. The notion of change and guilt is also conveyed through the visual poster ‘Tattoo’ ,an RTA advertisement, which explores the implications of a forced change and how that irrevocably changes your life forever. Forced change through a catastrophic event is similarly reflected in the film ‘Looking for Alibrandi ‘which explores the journey of Josie Alibrandi, a young Italian girl, who struggles with cultural and family expectations and how she matures and adapts to change, ultimately finding her self- identity.
The story of Tom Brennan begins with the Brennan family leaving the town of Mumbilli shrouded in secrecy ‘in a couple of hours they would wake and find us gone, far away,so as to not remind them of their pain and what our family meant to this town’. This quote clearly illuminates the guilt and shame that the Brennans ,once respected and cherished family in the community of Mumbilli were now experiencing .Through the tragic accident where 2 teenagers died and Fin (cousin ) caused by Daniel ,the Brennan’s lives had been changed forever. Deep emotions of guilt, grief, anger and resentment were building within the family and community. In the RTA advertisement ‘Tattoo’ ,the image of a man with the tattoo across his forehead “killing someone on a pedestrian crossing stays with you forever”.This visual metonym conveys the idea that your life will irrevocably change forever and that the images and sounds are indelibly imprinted on your brain, just like a tattoo. The direct...
The story of Tom Brennan by J.C. Burke explores a number of themes which revolve around the central concept of transition and the unpredictably of change of which you have no control. Burke transcribes how these transitions affect the characters attitudes ,beliefs and views of the world. The themes of guilt ,fear ,depression are explored through the lives of the Brennan family ,primarily through the eyes of Tom Brennan ,the central character of the novel. The notion of change and guilt is also conveyed through the visual poster ‘Tattoo’ ,an RTA advertisement, which explores the implications of a forced change and how that irrevocably changes your life forever. Forced change through a catastrophic event is similarly reflected in the film ‘Looking for Alibrandi ‘which explores the journey of Josie Alibrandi, a young Italian girl, who struggles with cultural and family expectations and how she matures and adapts to change, ultimately finding her self- identity.
The story of Tom Brennan begins with the Brennan family leaving the town of Mumbilli shrouded in secrecy ‘in a couple of hours they would wake and find us gone, far away,so as to not remind them of their pain and what our family meant to this town’. This quote clearly illuminates the guilt and shame that the Brennans ,once respected and cherished family in the community of Mumbilli were now experiencing .Through the tragic accident where 2 teenagers died and Fin (cousin ) caused by Daniel ,the Brennan’s lives had been changed forever. Deep emotions of guilt, grief, anger and resentment were building within the family and community. In the RTA advertisement ‘Tattoo’ ,the image of a man with the tattoo across his forehead “killing someone on a pedestrian crossing stays with you forever”.This visual metonym conveys the idea that your life will irrevocably change forever and that the images and sounds are indelibly imprinted on your brain, just like a tattoo. The direct...