Strictly Ballroom Essay- Belonging

Belonging means different things to different people. The most common definition is feeling a sense of connectedness to a person, place or thing. Understanding nourishes belonging while a lack of understanding can prevent people from belonging. This is shown through Peter Skrzynecki’s poem ‘Migrant hostel’ which is about the challenges faced by travelers on their journey, and the hardships they have to overcome by exchanging their old world for the unfamiliar and unwelcoming new world in which they don’t understand anything. Skrzynecki’s poem ‘Feliks Skryznecki’ explores a relationship between father and son, and their contrasting experiences of belonging to a new place. The related text, ‘The Red Tree,’ by Shaun Tan also shows that a lack

Rick Bragg’s “French Quarter’s Black Tapping Feet” takes place in New Orleans in the year 1998. The story talks about young children and their tap dancing feet. Many of the children come from very little and they have learned how to make a living by tap dancing to support their families. People think that it is a way to exploit children and have them work at such a young age for so little, but others think that it is a way that the children enjoy themselves and it is another way to keep the French Quarter tradition alive. Rick Bragg wanted to shed light on the children and stories about having to do such a grown-up thing like supporting their families at a very young age. The author uses personal stories from the children, including how they feel about tap dancing and the backgrounds in which the children were brought up, to educate people on the subculture and tradition, and he brings in professors from two different schools to get professional views of the children tap dancing to support their families.

An individual’s sense of belonging stems from their notions of identity, personal context, and place. A lack in any of these areas may result in a thorough sense of alienation and pose as a barrier, which prevents belonging and facilitates an individual’s decision to exclude themselves from their surroundings. However, ironically, these barriers that present hardship can truly liberate an individual and help them in finding a more fulfilled state of belonging. These ideas are explored in Shakespeare’s play, As You Like It and Khaled Hosseini’s novel, The Kite Runner.

Our identity is comprised of inner qualities and outer representations of self. It consists of innumerable defining characteristics that make up the whole of who we are in any given moment. These fragments of self include our sexuality, gender, and sense of belonging to a particular culture, nation, religion, family, or some other group. Our identity includes our looks, personality, beliefs and fears. Each individual in society assigns themselves a particular role, whether it be as a mother, brother, retiree, performer, sportsman or as a part of their occupation, a doctor or lawyer. Often one’s entire sense of self is consumed by

As we grow as develop as individuals we begin to make choices about where we want to find belonging. This can be seen in choices as minor as belonging to a football club or friendship group, to more life-altering choices such as being a member of a political party or protest group such as Green peace. As individuals make such choices they do not sacrifice their identities, but rather work to increase and from their ever-changing sense of self. Such choices can also be made after life-altering circumstances, such as when people feel a need to join victim’s group or support groups when they or a loved one contract a chronic or terminal illness.

Both Strictly Ballroom and Nineteen Minutes have used similar techniques of portraying ‘belonging’ and ‘not belonging’.

This is symbolised by the members of the federation and the ballroom community disregarding the rules that were previously important to them and dancing together as one. This symbolises the ballroom world accepting Fran and Scott and embracing change.

An individual 's sense of belonging is determined not only by their own choices but also attitudes of others.

Belonging can be defined as the process of the association with the human race as socially active characters. It is part of the human condition which represents the need for security, safety and acceptance. An aspect of belonging such as isolation can be associated with the concept of belonging, as not belonging is a reciprocal process of belonging. Belonging allows for the authentication of characters through the formation of identity and connections.

An individual’s sense of belonging is determined not only by their own choices but also by the attitudes of others.

Belonging is primarily about acceptance and developing a connection and identity. Belonging implies an understanding of the needs of the individual and the group and negotiating a way towards acceptance of those needs. Conversely, exclusion emerges when the individual and the group fail to understand each other. Steven Herrick’s “The Simple Gift” is the story of three protagonists who develop friendships and ultimately change their perceptions of self. Comparatively, John Duigan’s “The Year My Voice Broke” explores how the relationships

"To feel a sense of belonging, you need to accept yourself and be accepted by others."

There are many cultural values expressed in the story “The Sound of Dancing”. The value of family sacrifice is shown throughout the entire story. The story is based upon a grandfather who sacrifices his life for his grandson in order for him to pass on the knowledge he had given him. During a conversation between the grandfather and grandson, Wolfe writes, “My grandson, the time has come for you to go. I have kept my promise for I have kept you as long as I could. Now you must leave. But

Concurrently, a full sense of belonging is therefore achieved. This is evident in ‘Neighbours’ by one incident which requires a thorough deconstruction and full understanding of the text to see that there is a sense of acceptance within the community. Belonging in this story is achieved when the young man evolves and understands the generosity of the neighbours. ‘On

In “Strictly Ballroom” the beginning scenes of the film Baz established the conventional, elegant atmosphere of the ballroom dancing world. Using a combination of techniques such as graceful music, the