The Rabbits
Written by John Marsden and illustrated by Shaun Tan, 'The Rabbits' is an allegorical tale of colonisation. First published in 2000 by Lothian Books, the book parallels the real life happenings of the British invasion and colonisation of Australia and the effects on the Indigenous Australians.
Tan's illustrations open his audience's eyes with his peculiar, bold, semi-abstract style that conveys the anxiety and bewilderment of the possums as they bear witness to the mass destruction that follows along with the rabbits.
Already in the beginning, the text from Opening One "The rabbits came many grandparents ago." sets the story into a different time, generations ago. You can see that the image depicts the land to be natural and unharmed; …show more content…
The top of the opening refers to the scene under it, with possums resting in a tree the text says "The didn't live in the trees, like we did". The background also includes other signs of the rabbits' take over such as their flag and a ship. The sentence "We couldn't understand the way they talked." shows that the possums are confused to as why the rabbits are not like them, and without the communication there is no way to voice their confusion about what is happening.
As the story progresses things become even more drastic and worse. A big part of the consequences of the colonisation is revealed in Opening 14. Attention is first focused onto the large pipes excreting pollution that loom over a wall that seems to continue forever. The focus then shifts over to the full image, a dull, eerie and dead landscape; dreary colours make the scene seem irreversible and done for.
A rabbit in the wall looks out into the empty barren land whilst a lone possum is balled up in despair; this can symbolise the possum's grieve and loss of hope because the rabbits have taken everything it one knew away from it. The text "The land is bare and brown and the wind blows empty across the plains." sum up the message of the scene without having to explain further, leaving the audience to properly take in the
Written by John Marsden and illustrated by Shaun Tan, 'The Rabbits' is an allegorical tale of colonisation. First published in 2000 by Lothian Books, the book parallels the real life happenings of the British invasion and colonisation of Australia and the effects on the Indigenous Australians.
Tan's illustrations open his audience's eyes with his peculiar, bold, semi-abstract style that conveys the anxiety and bewilderment of the possums as they bear witness to the mass destruction that follows along with the rabbits.
Already in the beginning, the text from Opening One "The rabbits came many grandparents ago." sets the story into a different time, generations ago. You can see that the image depicts the land to be natural and unharmed; …show more content…
The top of the opening refers to the scene under it, with possums resting in a tree the text says "The didn't live in the trees, like we did". The background also includes other signs of the rabbits' take over such as their flag and a ship. The sentence "We couldn't understand the way they talked." shows that the possums are confused to as why the rabbits are not like them, and without the communication there is no way to voice their confusion about what is happening.
As the story progresses things become even more drastic and worse. A big part of the consequences of the colonisation is revealed in Opening 14. Attention is first focused onto the large pipes excreting pollution that loom over a wall that seems to continue forever. The focus then shifts over to the full image, a dull, eerie and dead landscape; dreary colours make the scene seem irreversible and done for.
A rabbit in the wall looks out into the empty barren land whilst a lone possum is balled up in despair; this can symbolise the possum's grieve and loss of hope because the rabbits have taken everything it one knew away from it. The text "The land is bare and brown and the wind blows empty across the plains." sum up the message of the scene without having to explain further, leaving the audience to properly take in the