Helen Keller Perspective On Belonging Analysis

Perspectives. Always shifting. Always changing. Our world is full of differing perspectives. Whether it be political, religious, ethical, economical, or, perhaps, perspectives of others and themselves. In particular, we feel shifting perspectives towards belonging. Belonging is like almost a stream of acceptance and self-worth which can flow freely, or be frozen by the icy cold of alterity. We feel belonging or we feel we are different, or altered, because the actions of those around us reflect these feelings. The changing nature of our state of belonging and how we think of it is due to the ever shifting social chemistry of the world around us. Our identity, and the reversal of it, makes us the emotional beings we have become.
Our feeling …show more content…
He stood in comparison to the common, uncultured people of Darwin who sought only a cold beer on a hot day. Keller was alienated even from those who were alienated by the rest of society. But why did he do this to himself? Keller had been hurt by something he had held on to previously in his life. Keller’s perspective on belonging. His acceptance of the Nazi Party and his complacency had killed his Jewish wife and child in his mind. To Hitler, only the beautiful was necessary in our world. He collected art, and removed the world of that which he deemed ugly. Jews, Homosexuals, anything that stood out to him. Throughout the novel, Keller states things such as ‘Never trust the beautiful’ or ‘We must be on our guard against beauty always.’, and is constant about his feelings for beautiful things. This motif of beauty and the dangers that come with it emphasise that Keller has had issues in the past with beautiful things. It becomes evident that Keller believes he is at fault for trusting the beauty that the Nazi party offered. His punishment in response to the destruction of his feelings of belonging, was to alter himself, and to remove his previous life from existence. Darwin represented all that Keller hated in his previous life. He had given up his season changes, and the complexity of European art, literature, music. He created this hell for himself because he no longer …show more content…
And for one man, it can literally alienate him. In the movie District 9, Wikus van der mere acts originally as someone unaware to the horrors surrounding him, and acts without regard to them. His brutal and uncaring treatment of the ‘Prawn’ is a reflection of his nets of belonging in place. He feels no remorse because the people in his life are there to support him through his actions. But as his transition takes place and he becomes a literally altered human, his viewpoint changes. Wikus says to Cristopher,’ You don’t wanna go to the tents…Actually more like a concentration camp’ about moving to the new and ‘better’ place for the aliens. This simile exemplifies the horrible ways the aliens are being dealt with. It compares Wikus’ original treatment of the Aliens, which comprised of rudely and abruptly handing out eviction notices, to realising the injustice towards them. As Wikus’ state become more and more altered, and he undergoes the prejudice faced by the Aliens his sense of belonging with the actions of Humans is shifted. His alteration had created a different perspective on his sense of