While most authors base their literature on current contextual events, some "go against the grain" and build their writing on past contextual events. Craig Silvey in his 2009 novel “Jasper Jones,” set in 1965, presents a coming-of-age story for protagonist Charlie Bucktin, as he gradually loses his adolescent innocence. It builds this coming-of-age story through the characterization of Jasper Jones to serve as a catalyst for Charlie's coming-of-age novel. Furthermore, Silvey presents symbolism to highlight to Charlie the injustice of the world throughout the novel and skillfully portrays Ruth Bucktin's characterization as an allegory of the protagonist's shocking naive perception of the world. Ultimately Silvey presents how Charlie's continued allusion to literature and past contextual references influence how he approaches his Bildungsroman in the novel. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Throughout our lives, we have relationships that can influence our behaviors and beliefs. Silvey constructs Jasper Jones' characterization to serve as a catalyst for Charlie's coming-of-age novel, as the relationship Charlie has with Jasper causes his behavior to change as well as losing his innocence. At the beginning of the novel, Jasper lures Charlie out of his room, which is described as "my falling out of the window is a little like the birth of a foal" even though Charlie wishes to "sit safe in the lap of my room." Silvey cleverly constructed this first interaction with Jasper to highlight how uncomfortable Charlie is with breaking the rules and how the act of sneaking out of his room is foreign to him. Also demonstrated through the use of zoomorphism, “like a colt,” which connotes how this action of breaking the rules symbolizes Charlie's rebirth into an adult world through this first act of losing his innocence. The image of a "colt" also portrays Charlie as he evolves into this weak creature who is led astray and also reflects how this weakness is his inability to understand the new perception of the world that Jasper serves as the catalyst for his discovery. The “womb” setting is also used to reinforce Charlie's metaphorical birth from a naïve perception of the world to a more acute understanding of its injustice. When Charlie leaves the “womb” it symbolizes that he is now without his former protection; leading him to lose his innocence and become the "man" he wishes to become. Silvey portrays Jasper as this 'man' that Charlie wants to become by constructing a positive semantic field of adjectives like 'strong', 'tall' and 'defined' to juxtapose how the town of 'Corrigan' views this boy as a 'truant ", “thief” and “criminal”. This juxtaposition of descriptions highlights how Charlie is different from the rest of the town as he sees the truth just like Jasper does and the fact that Jasper comes to his window and leads him down this path of discovery makes him see Jasper as his personal goal. Jasper's second act that leads Charlie to lose his adolescent innocence is when he takes him to see Laura Wishart's dead body which leads to "a bubble" that "bursts", "and everything changes" for Charlie. The metaphor of the “bubble” bursting symbolizes how he is again shedding this fragile naive perception he had of the world and evolving to have this stable perception of the world that he is shocked to know exists. Furthermore, the metaphor of“bubble” also reflects how he is leaving his childhood behind, how blowing bubbles is for children, and may also foreshadow how he will not enjoy the world he is discovering. Through this association with Jasper and this desire to become like him, Charlie becomes influenced by his actions and begins to change the way he behaves. From being this precocious, literate-minded kid who never puts a foot wrong and never antagonizes others, to being someone who asks Jasper if they have "any whiskey?" and standing up to "Warwick Trent", the school bully, when he proves his courage by stealing "more than four" of Mad Jack Lionel's "peaches". Silvey constructed this change in Charlie to convey how Jasper's impact throughout the novel led Charlie to evolve into this strong-minded boy who is no longer afraid, reinforcing the idea that Jasper Jones acted as a catalyst for Charlie's growth. Charlie. Jones, Silvey constructs events to symbolize how the deception and injustice of the world results in the protagonist's growth. When An Lu's garden is destroyed, Charlie's "bricks sink" and he begins to "tremble" and feel "afraid", this reaction conveys how the protagonist is scared due to the level of violence that has been used against the family of his best friends, who he knows did nothing to deserve this treatment. The injustice of the attack on the Vietnamese family symbolizes for Charlie how cold and merciless the world is; as they are attacked because they seek a better life after leaving Vietnam during the Vietnam War and also because An Lu is good at his job. The fact that they are being attacked for no real reason and that “something beautiful” has been “destroyed” conveys how the world is meaningless as terrible things can happen to people who don't deserve it from people who are simply “sharks in the world". darkness". The image that "something beautiful" has been "destroyed" also connotes the way in which the attackers are "uprooting" the stable foundations on which Charlie's perception of the world, equality and fairness, is built, leading them to destroy everything that is beautiful in Australia. This destruction of the foundation of Charlie's beliefs leads him to develop and grow even as he loses his innocence. The "brick" metaphor symbolizes how this event has burdened Charlie and how it makes his life heavy heart and soul witness this attack; as Charlie cannot understand why anyone would "destroy something beautiful." Charlie then questions his father: “Why would anyone do such a thing to An ?”, the repetitive questions symbolize Charlie’s confusion about why things happen and how he “understands nothing about this world.” The questions also push the reader to wonder why the world even works this way. His questions remain unanswered by his father, further deepening Charlie's state of confusion and disbelief, but it also means that the protagonist is left with the knowledge that things happen for no reason, a message he accepts and grows upon. Another message Charlie takes from this event is that he should not judge a book by its cover, as that in itself is an injustice. The protagonist has always seen his father as weak but during this attack on An Lu, he discovers that he is wrong as his father defends An Lu. He is described as “so tall. He’s so damn tall,” which through the use of anaphora portrays Charlie as shocked at how brave and strong his father is, connoting that he was doing his father an injustice by judging him. This development in his education about people Silvey is bringing Charlie and the reader meanswho grows into a more independent individual, who doesn't just refer to stereotypes as a judgment on people. Additionally, the moral of not judging a book by its cover is explored when Silvey introduces the sergeant who beats Jasper shortly after Laura Wishart's disappearance. The beating leads Jasper to have a "left eye like a cricket ball" and although Charlie trusts Jasper, he himself says that "If I hadn't seen the cuts and bruises... in person, I wouldn't have suspected this man was to be the monster he was.” This initial uncertainty on Charlie's part was constructed by Silvey to connote how this new idea of ​​the world is shocking to the protagonist as he further loses his innocence. of Corrigan's deception and racism is a vital part of his growth as it makes him realize what kind of person doesn't want him to be racist. When he realizes this, his morality changes as he goes from associating "Sergeant" with help and justice to being a “monster.” By creating people in authority to take advantage of innocent children, Silvey challenges the reader to consider the amount of injustice in the world today as, even though the novel was set in 1965, it is still a current issue. . As modern readers, we can still identify with this situation since in America there are still constantly racist attacks by the police. Therefore Silvey encourages readers to rise up and fight against injustice as it could save many lives and many lost childhoods. Silvey cleverly constructs Ruth Bucktin's characterization as an allegory for Charlie's growth in the novel, shattering his naive and innocent perception of the world, as he matures, the more strained their relationship becomes until it reaches breaking point: the discovery of his affair. Ruth is a "brusque and impatient" mother who always has a harsh "sarcastic" tone with Charlie, which is perceived due to her resentment towards her husband and son for trapping her in Corrigan, a small town. This harsh tone symbolizes the lack of love and respect she has for each family member and challenges stereotypes that mothers are the source of care and affection in their children's lives. It also shatters Charlie's perfect perception of the world as not being as it should be, as Silvey constructed Ruth to convey how in the mid-1960s in Australia women began to behave in a more liberated and feminist manner. Because the protagonist loses some of his innocence by sneaking out of the house and observing injustice in the world, his behavior with this tone changes from not responding, "I don't argue," to retorting. An example of this change in behavior is found in chapter 3, when Charlie has to dig a hole in the garden and when he is told to fill it, he says "No" "I won't fill it!", this initial change in their relationship conveys that gradually that Charlie is growing up, becoming more independent, something his mother doesn't know how to deal with, resulting in more arguments occurring and them having a distant relationship. This distance between them increases when Charlie discovers that she is having an affair when he catches her "grappling and grabbing" with another man. Immediately, this betrayal leads Ruth to lose her moral high ground as she falls from grace, causing the power she had to shift from her to Charlie. This power shifting dynamic between them means that Charlie is now in charge and this is demonstrated when he states "I don't have to do what you say anymore." He feels he has the right to say this because the perfect image he had of his parents has been shattered, so he no longer wants to please her because he is destroyed by her betrayal.This disbelief and pain at her betrayal is presented through the metaphor "The brick falls lower than it has ever been" and the simile "I hate her like poison." These negative descriptions convey how painful this betrayal is for the protagonist as it connotes that his heart is hurt more than it has ever been before. In addition to this, when Charlie catches them performing a sexual act it is another loss of childhood innocence as it makes him grow up and also makes him stop being a child. What we read can impact and influence our lives greatly, knowing this Silvey presents how Charlie's constant allusion to literature and past contextual references influence how he approaches his Bildungsroman in the novel. Charlie is a precocious, literacy-conscious boy, who is beaten by Warwick Trent for saying "too clever" words, who communicates his ideas and feelings in the novel by referencing literature he has previously read, such as when he expresses how MarkTwain inspired him. To Kill a Mockingbird is also referenced several times as Silvey invites us to explore the parallels between the two novels as Charlie surmises that Jasper perceives him as "Atticus Finch", who is brave and uptight. She believes Jasper “must have assumed I was genuine and right. Like Atticus Finch: dignified, reasonable and wise.”, this comparison between the two characters suggests a strong intertextuality between them and also connotes the way in which Charlie wishes to be like this character when he grows up. This reference to his future describes how he communicates his future aspirations through literature as he grows and matures in the text. The inclusion of 'To Kill a Mockingbird' highlights how Silvey was also inspired by the novel during his childhood and thinks this was a pivotal moment in his progression and reflected this on Charlie. The parallel between the two characters also connotes how Charlie reflects on Atticus Finch's actions for inspiration and then mirrors these actions to make himself "like Atticus Finch." The inspiring actions are when Atticus says that he does his “best to love everyone,” that justice can be “ugly,” and that these are just “facts of life.” These actions that Charlie was inspired to do can be seen in himself when he doesn't understand "why would anyone do such a thing to An?", this connotes his idea of ​​equality which he observed in the character of Atticus Finch. This moral of equality is communicated by Charlie throughout the novel as he believes that there is inequality and racism in the town of Corrigan, a reason that has led him to lose his childhood innocence several times. The protagonist also comments on past crimes that have taken place including Eric Edgar Cooke, Western Australia's first serial killer who committed a total of 22 violent crimes. Eric Edgar Cooke was a self-employed serial killer who "shot a man between the eyes" and "stabbed a woman" between 1959 and 1963. Being the first serial killer in Western Australia, this meant that he state has lost its innocence, this is reflected in the town of Corrigan by the disappearance of Laura Wishart. Since both Corrigan and W.A. have lost their innocence, Charlie can relate to Eric Edgar Cooke's story, so he knows what to expect after Laura's disappearance. Furthermore, in the Eric Edgar Cooke saga, two men were wrongly convicted for his crimes which represents injustice to Corrigan as Jasper Jones is also wrongly suspected of being responsible for Laura's disappearance. Through the repetition of these events, Charlie learns that these events that seem so shocking are actually true.