Lesson one
Introduction of the students and myself
Start to introduce the text( The Lieutenant)
a.
Author — Kate Grenville;
b.
Text type: historical fiction Bildungsroman from third person omniscient narration (terra
nullius, gardigal people)
c.
overall summary of the text
List of themes
a.
Language
b.
Knowledge and science
c.
obligation vs conscience
d.
Cruelty and violence
e.
British colonial culture
Character analysis+brief quotes
Daniel Rooke
Analysis
 Lieutenant
and navigator on the first fleet
 Socially awkward and solitude “ most dimly corner of the room” — the building location
of his observatory.
 Struggles
to articulate his thoughts and emotions as he is afraid of being “out
of step with the world”— hide his cleverness/ intelligence
 From
a young age, Rooke’s interactions with others has made it clear to him
that he is different. As such this dictates his response to conflict: blaming
himself or withdrawing. His connection to Tagaran through mutual empathy
demonstrates his ability to overcome conflict through mutual respect
 Rooke is
bound by duty to Her Majesty yet finds his missions in conflict with
his innate instinct for moral righteousness
Supporting quotes
 “quiet,
moody, a man of few words”
 “he had
no memories other than of being an outsider”
 “The service to
 “A gear
 “If
humanity and service to his majesty is not congruent”
of the mighty imperial machine”
you were part of the machine, you were part of it’s evil.”
Silk
Analysis
 Captain
 Stands
on the first fleet
in contrast to Rooke in every respect— character foil
 Storyteller
that is obsessed with his narrative “until a pebble was transformed
into a gem”,
 Ignores
the cruelty and violence of the Imperialist expedition in favour of an
interesting story “Merely a piece of theatre”—Silk’s description of punitive
expedition.
 Blinding opportunism
that undermines his integrity
 His tendency to gloss over the violence committed in the name of Her Majesty
reflects his loyalty to the expedition—“impartial, blind and noble”—justice
Supporting quotes
 “man
 “a
whose narrative was so important to him”
storyteller who could turn the most commonplace event into something
entertaining”
Tagaran
Analysis
 Connects
 Tagaran
with Rooke through their mutual love for learning and language
voluntarily engages with Rooke in his quest to understand their
language, this surpasses the clumsy and mandatory lessons imposed on Boinbar
and Warungin.
Supporting quotes
 “Forthright,
ferless, sure of herself, she looked to him like a girl who had
already mastered whatever social skills her world might demand”
 “a clever child like Tagaran was the perfect choice: quick to learn, but innocent.
Curious, full of questions but only a child”
Gardiner
Analysis
 Gardiner acts as a foil character to both Silk and Rooke, sharing the same trials
and tribulations as Rooke however responding differently than Silk
 Rooke’s
friendship with Gardiner establishes the grounds for their later
discussions on language, the treatment of the natives and the imperialist
machine as Gardiner sets an example of the consequences of going against the
duties required of him
 “Oh god. They may be savages. We call them savages. But their feelings are no
different from ours.” religious allusion.
Brugden
Analysis
 Brugden
is portrayed as an essential element of colonising and the survival of
the British fleet. As an embodiment of violence, Grenville suggests that integral
to the operation of imperialism is crude and unwavering violence
 “Brugden,
out there in the woods, that powerful chest… He would be an
efficient killer”
Supporting quotes
 “Something
had happened out there in the woods about which Brudgen was
remaining silent”
 “The
prisoner, taller than anyone else, his powerful frame half bursting out of
its thread bare check shirt…”
 Mister darkies
 “The
gun is the only language the buggers will understand“ self assigned
British superiority.
Symbolism
Guns are a symbol of power and destruction in The Lieutenant. Although Rooke finds
guns to be satisfying examples of physics at work, he soon learns what guns can do
to human bodies. The violence he sees in his first battle (in the American
Revolutionary War) is horrific, and follows him for the rest of his life—though rather
than disengage from the military, Rooke simply tries to never put himself in
situations where he might have to use his gun. Rooke in turn applies this manner of
thinking to his involvement in the military as a whole. By considering both the
military and guns as simple machines—potentially harmless if handled right—Rooke
ignores his own complicity in the violence that the military (and its guns) promotes.
In this way, guns represent Rooke's uneasy relationship with violence, and his own
conflicted feelings about his involvement in the military.