Hey guys. Like a good chunk of you, I'm doing Skrzynecki's poems. I thought you might appreciate some help if you've left it to the last minute before your half yearlies, like me. I've only done it on the poems that i am going to use, so i apologise if the poems you intended to use are not here. 
the way i have done the quotes is the way i would do them in the exam, thus the elipsis. refer to your own copies of the poem or the copies posted in this board if you want to see the full poem/quotes. I'll update as i go.
one of the themes that i myself will be focusing on is the transition between journeys, as i believe that Skrzynecki's poems are especially apt for this. with this in mind, i have selected The Hobbit by JRR Tolkein as my ORT, as it has a particularly good quote about the beginnings and endings of journeys, and i will be usingan extract from The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame out of the Prescribed Stimulus Booklet.
Crossing the red sea – Peter Skrzynecki
"crossing the red sea" - a biblical allusion to the exodus of the Jews from Egypt, much in the same way many of these people are fleeing a war ravaged europe after their oppression under the brutal rule of the nazis and the oppressive ways of the communists.
“As we crossed a sea/and looked at red banners/that time was hoisting/in mock salute” – Alludes to the spread of communism in post-war Europe, possibly the reason WHY many of these migrants are migrating.
“or to watch a sunset/they would never see again” – representing the fact that these people were leaving home, and would be seeing sunsets on the other side of the equator from now on – Crossing from one world to the next.
“1949, and the war/now four years dead” – shows the era in which these people are making their journey, fleeing Europe and the post war depression in countries ravaged by 6 years of fighting.
“Patches and Shreds/of dialogue…From the interruption/ of passing waves” – This shows the beginning of the new life – leaving the fear and mistrust behind, and beginning to forge new friendships with other people, bound together by adversity and the decision to leave behind their old lives and loyalties in search of a better, brighter future.
“And the sea’s breath/touched the eyes…For miracles.” – Another biblical allusion to the sudden conversion of Lazarus after meeting Christ, this gives the impression that this character has only recently turned to Christianity and to god, and is praying thanks not only for escaping the horrors of the past few years, but for the fact that hostility and fear seem to be leaving the other passengers for every knot that they put between themselves and their old home, and the fact that they are not too war ravaged to learn to trust each other once more.
“All night/the kindness…Would never be disclosed” Further alludes to the beginning of a new life, and the forging of friendships amongst the migrants, that they trust each other enough to share parts of their life that they had walled away inside of themselves.
“But the gestures…As they beckoned towards/a sunlit horizon” Personification of darkness and starlight, possibly meaning that they were being encouraged by the celestial powers, the forces of nature on their way to their new homeland?
Migrant Hostel
“Arrivals of newcomers…Who would be coming next.” -This is an allusion to the disorder and chaos of the migrant hostel that Skrzynecki was in, and also a comparison to the concentration camps of Nazi Germany, which would no doubt be fresh in the minds of the European migrants. This is made especially strong by the reference to “Sudden departures from adjoining blocks”
“Nationalities sought/each other out instinctively” – This is a reference to the societal structures of the time, which, to an extent, still exist today, in that there is safety in numbers, and the preference of one’s ‘own kind’, or own nationality, over that of another. This also shows a reversal of the feelings on the previous poem mentioned, as, in crossing the red sea, we see an acceptance of others, whereas here people stick together only with those similar to themselves, who speak the same language and came from the same country.
“Like a homing pigeon/Circling to get it’s bearings;” This simile alludes to the fact that living in this hostel, the people resorted in many ways to the base instincts, animal instincts.
“A barrier at the main gate/sealed off the highway/from our doorstep” –this shows, in essence, that they were trapped in this hostel, obviously despite their wishes. Clearly not what they expected when coming to Australia.
“As it rose and fell like a finger…Or were dying.”- This rather long quote shows us the conditions which they lived. The simile and personification of the gate gives the impression that it judges them, and, being the main way out, they can only escape the camp with its approval. This is further shown by the way that the migrants “need it’s sanction/to pass in and out of lives”. This also shows that they clearly saw this as a transitional point between the new life (“That had only begun”) and the old life(“or were dying.”)
the way i have done the quotes is the way i would do them in the exam, thus the elipsis. refer to your own copies of the poem or the copies posted in this board if you want to see the full poem/quotes. I'll update as i go. one of the themes that i myself will be focusing on is the transition between journeys, as i believe that Skrzynecki's poems are especially apt for this. with this in mind, i have selected The Hobbit by JRR Tolkein as my ORT, as it has a particularly good quote about the beginnings and endings of journeys, and i will be usingan extract from The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame out of the Prescribed Stimulus Booklet.
Crossing the red sea – Peter Skrzynecki
"crossing the red sea" - a biblical allusion to the exodus of the Jews from Egypt, much in the same way many of these people are fleeing a war ravaged europe after their oppression under the brutal rule of the nazis and the oppressive ways of the communists.
“As we crossed a sea/and looked at red banners/that time was hoisting/in mock salute” – Alludes to the spread of communism in post-war Europe, possibly the reason WHY many of these migrants are migrating.
“or to watch a sunset/they would never see again” – representing the fact that these people were leaving home, and would be seeing sunsets on the other side of the equator from now on – Crossing from one world to the next.
“1949, and the war/now four years dead” – shows the era in which these people are making their journey, fleeing Europe and the post war depression in countries ravaged by 6 years of fighting.
“Patches and Shreds/of dialogue…From the interruption/ of passing waves” – This shows the beginning of the new life – leaving the fear and mistrust behind, and beginning to forge new friendships with other people, bound together by adversity and the decision to leave behind their old lives and loyalties in search of a better, brighter future.
“And the sea’s breath/touched the eyes…For miracles.” – Another biblical allusion to the sudden conversion of Lazarus after meeting Christ, this gives the impression that this character has only recently turned to Christianity and to god, and is praying thanks not only for escaping the horrors of the past few years, but for the fact that hostility and fear seem to be leaving the other passengers for every knot that they put between themselves and their old home, and the fact that they are not too war ravaged to learn to trust each other once more.
“All night/the kindness…Would never be disclosed” Further alludes to the beginning of a new life, and the forging of friendships amongst the migrants, that they trust each other enough to share parts of their life that they had walled away inside of themselves.
“But the gestures…As they beckoned towards/a sunlit horizon” Personification of darkness and starlight, possibly meaning that they were being encouraged by the celestial powers, the forces of nature on their way to their new homeland?
Migrant Hostel
“Arrivals of newcomers…Who would be coming next.” -This is an allusion to the disorder and chaos of the migrant hostel that Skrzynecki was in, and also a comparison to the concentration camps of Nazi Germany, which would no doubt be fresh in the minds of the European migrants. This is made especially strong by the reference to “Sudden departures from adjoining blocks”
“Nationalities sought/each other out instinctively” – This is a reference to the societal structures of the time, which, to an extent, still exist today, in that there is safety in numbers, and the preference of one’s ‘own kind’, or own nationality, over that of another. This also shows a reversal of the feelings on the previous poem mentioned, as, in crossing the red sea, we see an acceptance of others, whereas here people stick together only with those similar to themselves, who speak the same language and came from the same country.
“Like a homing pigeon/Circling to get it’s bearings;” This simile alludes to the fact that living in this hostel, the people resorted in many ways to the base instincts, animal instincts.
“A barrier at the main gate/sealed off the highway/from our doorstep” –this shows, in essence, that they were trapped in this hostel, obviously despite their wishes. Clearly not what they expected when coming to Australia.
“As it rose and fell like a finger…Or were dying.”- This rather long quote shows us the conditions which they lived. The simile and personification of the gate gives the impression that it judges them, and, being the main way out, they can only escape the camp with its approval. This is further shown by the way that the migrants “need it’s sanction/to pass in and out of lives”. This also shows that they clearly saw this as a transitional point between the new life (“That had only begun”) and the old life(“or were dying.”)
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