Themes
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_C
TZrEt81U&eurl=http://community.indig
o.ca/posts/Videos-and-trailers/group201/319308.html
 One
of the devices that causes tension in
the book is the theme of learning. Mr Watts
represents formal Western education;
Dolores is the strongest proponent of island
“wisdom”.
 Read pp. 27, 32-33, 35-40, 48, 51-57 and
73-77. Ponder the following:
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What is Mr Watts’ motivation for these lessons?
How do the lessons accelerate the culture
clash?
What do you think the author is saying about
learning?
 Tropical
islands such as Bougainville are
often referred to as “a Paradise on Earth”
in tourist guides. Yet the island has been
fraught with conflict for years.
 Read pp. 8, 20, 34, 46, 104-5, 179, 184.
Think of the following questions and report
back:
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Matilda’s voice is clinical in her narration of
both the horror and the beauty. Why?
The beauty of the island is deliberately
juxtaposed with the horrific things done by
people. Is the author trying to say something
here? What?
 Pp.
183-188. Cleansing force; renewal.
 Allows Matilda to escape following the
atrocities
 Circularity with island stories – Matilda
learned to swim by her father throwing her
in the water
 Suicidal thoughts – Matilda’s strength
 “Mr Jaggers” – the log that saves Matilda’s
life (intertextuality).
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GENERAL TOPICS
You can use one of these topics to write about ANY type of extended text (including
non-fiction).
1. Readers are often challenged by controversial or difficult issues or ideas.
Analyse how an issue or idea in a text you have studied challenged you to alter or
develop your ideas.
2. Readers will often think about characters long after a text has been finished.
Analyse how the writer made a character or characters memorable for you in a
text you have studied.
3. Readers often respond to texts by comparing the time and place in which the
text is set with their own society. Analyse how the setting of a text you have
studied caused you to examine aspects of your own society.
4. Readers need to make a connection with a text for the reading experience to
be satisfactory. Analyse how your experience of reading a text you have studied
was either satisfying or unsatisfying.
5. Many writers set out to explore the nature of human experiences, such as
love, grief, revenge, or racism. Analyse how a text you have studied explores an
aspect of human experience.
6. The structure of a text is important in controlling the rise and fall in
tension.Analyse how a text you have studied has been structured to achieve
impact.