Throughout history, it is known that Aboriginal people have faced cruelty, racism and poverty due to the way people have treated them. It is believed that Aboriginal people do not have knowledge, and they are unsuccessful people who take the pathway to failure. Stereotypes that Aboriginal people have to cope with lowers their self esteem and makes them feel less of a person. Is it fair that a certain race should be treated differently, because of how a group of individuals represented their people? Should these Aborginals feel ashamed?Young females who grow up to feel ashamed become the ones who live a lifestyle where they are afraid, and feel unsure of who they are inside.
The book April Raintree and the movie “Rabbit-Proof Fence” both have storylines that expose the readers and watchers to the reality they are surrounded by. Therefore, it is evident that in April Raintree and “Rabbit-Proof Fence”, they portray the struggles of self-definition of young females who come from Aboriginal heritage. Firstly, racism and stereotypes play a large role in the loss of identity in a child who comes from an Aboriginal background.The children of Aboriginal race are exposed to Caucasian children around them in both of these stories. Caucasian children are taught by their parents to believe that Aboriginal children have no knowledge at all, and have no dreams or future.
Racist comments are uttered out of the mouths of people, and the Aboriginal youth feel degraded and ashamed of who they truly are. In the storylines of April Raintree and “Rabbit-Proof Fence”, April and Molly both experience the same struggles.Firstly, they experience the racism and stereotypes that they cannot run away from, and it continues to lower their self esteem as they feel they cannot be accepted by society. Secondly, the two girls must face the hardships of separation from their families, as the must cope through struggles by themselves without support.
Lastly, both girls have sisterly love, while they are on their journey to search for their inner identity. Therefore, April and Molly may have similar traits, but they also have differences in their personality, and reacting to the way the Caucasian people treat them as Aboriginal children.For example, in April Raintree, April is a female with low self esteem because of the stereotypes associated with her people. April feels degraded and she believes in the views the Caucasian people have placed upon her and the Aboriginal people.
Since she feels this way it has made her grow to hate herself and her own heritage. As April states: I didn’t want Cheryl at the Academy because of the lie I had told about my parents and because I was white as far as the other girls were concerned. I anted to keep it that way as long as I could (Culleton, 69) Through April’s eyes she sees the life as a Caucasian female to be normal, and to be her ideal image. It seems as if April has no confidence and no pride from the background she comes from. April has thrown away her identity and forces herself to become someone she is not, because she feels shame.
However, Molly has never felt any shame in her people. For example, in “Rabbit-Proof Fence” Molly was asked to see Mr. Neville so he could “determine if she was able to go to school or not“. The way he based his final decision was on skin pigment.Light-skin children were known to be “clever”, as Molly’s skin tone was dark.
Molly never fought back towards the way the white people treated her, because she was strong and she was able to accept what they had to say. All of this persuasion to make her become someone she is not, had made her refuse to do so. Therefore, it is proven April on the other hand, cannot handle animosity and bitterness and it makes her relentless and weak towards herself. Secondly, “Rabbit-Proof Fence” and April Raintree reveal the reality and experience of what the Aboriginal race must suffer from.
The two stories do follow the storyline similarities of endurance, but they also have differences found in the plot of the stories. However, April Raintree is based on two Metis sisters who go through a hard time in their life, from being separated from their alcoholic parents. Through this process, they felt unwanted and abandoned without a part of identity. In chapter three April says: You told us soon, April, soon, Cheryl. We’ll take you back home as soon As we got better.
Well you lied to us. You never intended to get better. You never cared about us. You made Cheryl cry and you don’t even care.And because of you, I’m stuck here.
I hate you both for lying to us (Culleton, 33) In this chapter April expresses the hatred and anger she feels towards the separation from her parents. April is upset because she feels that her parents are like any ordinary drunk Aboriginal. However, in “Rabbit-Proof Fence” Molly as the main character is taken away, as well as her sister and cousin by Mr. Neville. In this case, Molly’s mother had no consent to whether her children could be taken away or not.
Molly and the two younger girls are devastated by the decision as Mr.Neville believes he can help the Aboriginals. Molly decides to escape from the institution as she believes the people there try to make her adjust to the white culture. Molly has self courage and believes in herself, which is how she was able to escape from the institution with strategic tactics.
Once Molly had done this it proved how much of a woman she was, and it helped her build character. Molly felt responsibility as she ran home to tell her mother, “I’m sorry, I lost one”. However, between April and Molly their lifestyles are completely different.April comes from an unstable family and Molly comes from a stable family.
Another difference found between the two is the different reasoning for the loss of their family. In conclusion, there may be differences but endurance and malice, is something these young females share. Thirdly, April Raintree and “Rabbit-Proof Fence” both encountered the theme of reconciliation. Cheryl as another protagonist from April Raintree has been through the tragic loss of her parents, and she decides to go on a search to find them again. Hence, a connection can be made here by Molly as a protagonist from “Rabbit-Proof Fence”.
Molly was facing a similar situation as Cheryl, and now she was on a journey to finally be reunited with her family. Molly has been through many obstacles to meet her family again, where she was relieved and happy to find a part of her identity again. However, in Cheryl’s situation she went on a search for years to finally meet them again. Once she found her family, it wasn’t an outcome she had expected. She had found out that her mother committed suicide because of her depression from the guilt of giving her children up, and her father was a typical alcoholic.Instead of a happy ending, Cheryl was mournful and ashamed of the people who were supposedly called her parents.
Cheryl expresses her anger while she is drunk. She begins to speak about her thoughts through a sober mind: Dear mother? She jumped off the Louise bridge, is what she did. Committed suicide. You know why she stopped seeing us? Because she Couldn’t bear the pain. Dad took all that money from me. He didn’t care Where it came from.
Your baby sister. Pardon me. There was another one After me. Baby Anna. Did you know about her?Well, she died when she Was a baby. She was the luckiest one of us (Culleton, 159-160) Therefore, Cheryl and Molly got the chance of reconciliation, but with different outcomes.
Reconciliation plays a big role because it shaped a pathway for these young females, where their goals were to finally be reunited with their parents as well as finally being able to find their self identity. In conclusion of this essay, April Raintree and “Rabbit-Proof Fence” contains content that has similar storyline, which referring to the discrimination against Aboriginals.Both females go through similar situations where they suffer the loss of their family, and from there they attempt to find their pathway home. On their journey home, the girls soon discover their true inner identity, and on this journey they picked up character traits that turned them into the person they are. In Molly’s case, she found her true inner self as a determined and strong young female who is willing to go through any sorts of obstacles to reach her goal; arrive home to her family.However, April and Cheryl Raintree go on a journey to find their family and their home, but it turns out their home has fallen apart.
April resulted to learn more about herself and her self identity, as Cheryl couldn’t live without her home and she decided to commit suicide. After her death, April decided to finally accept her identity for who she is. In the last chapter April states: I had used the words, “my people, our people,” and I meant them. The denial had been lifted from my spirit.It was tragic that it had taken Cheryl’s death to bring me to accept my identity. But no, Cheryl had once said, “All life dies to give new life.
” Cheryl had died. But for Henry Liberty and me, there would be a tomorrow. And it would be better. I would strive for it.
For my sister and her son. For my parents. For my people (Culleton 184) Therefore, these females show great struggles that women in reality have to face. So we shall appreciate them and praise these young females for their accomplishments, and inspiring stories that are filled with courage and perseverance.
