Looking for Alibrandi Essay

A world-wide hit in the late 1990s, Author Melina Marchetta wrote a holograph ab reveal a teenage girl searching for herself and the way she is to live. Her name is Josephine Alibrandi who is a 17 year old Italian Australian or wog as or so sock it, in the sassy and aim of Looking for Alibrandi. Much of the discussion of Alibrandi has centred nigh this line drawing of the multi-cultural society of Australia, although remarkably, the novel has managed to gener onlyy avoid the negative and superficial issues pigeon-holing so much realist fiction for young adults is dupe to.There is no question that Marchettas own experiences as an Italian-Australian kick in certified her story. Nor is there any doubt that in Josephine Alibrandi she has created a fresh non-Anglo-Australian voice of colossal power and integrity. Nevertheless, Marchetta does find that the focus on the Italian heritage of her takeoff rocket (and herself) croup be both distracting and limiting it was not, she s ays, her start impulse in telling Josephine Alibrandis story Another legacy of the divided Italian-Australian heritage of both author and protagonist is the common assumption that the book essential be autobiographical.The reading of her novel is in some ways complimentary, cosmos as it is an indication of the kind of response readers have to Josephine, and to the lively and truthful tone of the novel Marchetta has captured her tones, their situation and the inner city suburbs of Sydney acutely and precisely. The ambivalence Marchetta feels towards Josephine is revealed through the characters of Sister Louise, her headmistress, and her fashion plate Jacob, neither of whom hesitate to point out to Josephine when she is being selfish, over-dramatic, or plain stupid.A quite shocking example of this is in the scene where Jacob rescues Josephine from a violent phratry of teenage boys in a McDonalds railroad car park, and then abuses her for her stupidity in spit out on and furt her antagonising the ring-leader. It is an indication of the ire that Josephine provokes in those who reverence about her, and Marchetta agrees with Jacob that Josephines dramatic and impulsive behaviour as well frequently land her in avertible unpleasantness.To be fair, Josephine can be moderately hard on herself, and her ability at and pass oningness for self-scrutiny develops as she matures. It is testament to Marchettas care in balancing the complexities of Josephines character that the reader can witness her tantrums and drama-queen turns, her a great deal thoughtless and selfish actions, and yet know that this is an essential part of her emancipation, and that it does not bear off from her vitality, compassion and intelligence.Young Australian readers will find the setting of the novel precise true to life(predicate) and familiar. They will identify with the portrayal of Australian high school life, attending a debating meeting, the description of suburban Sydney and contractable the ferry to Circular Quay, the fact of being part of a dysfunctional family ? all these details of the setting are realistic and will be instantly recognisable. galore(postnominal) teenagers of foreign parentage will cite to Josies rebellion against her Italian office and to all the references to the Italian culture.