It is truism to say that change occurs all around us, in many diverse forms. It is a step further to say that these changes are inevitable, something which is a part of our lives and cannot be stopped. The theme of reminiscence of past times is present in the story entitled Sky High by Hannah Robert. This anecdote retells a past experience of Hannah’s from when her grandfather came to stay. In contrast with her current situation she underlies the physical and psychological changes that have taken place. The reader is drawn into the scene by descriptive imagery such as “a struggling sapling, surrounded by the patchy lawn like spectators.” The use of alliteration gives a clearer picture of the landscape she is describing, and, combined with personification, the description of Hannah’s backyard comes alive in our minds.
At first, the washing line is said to have “silver skeletal arms”, and then through the passage of time, it has physically changed. In the present it is “an older, more age warped washing line” with “sagging wires.” Similarly, Hannah has also changed, overtime. As a young girl she would “swing upside down” on the washing line, yet now “it is unlikely that the washing line could support” her. She remarks “There are too many things tying me to the ground.” Hannah feels the weight of the ages upon her shoulders, she has changed, and the child-like innocence she once possessed is stunted and stagnant. Hannah accepts this physical change in her environment, which results in her understanding how she has personally changed through her reactions of this transformation. ‘In the park’ written by Gwen Harwood, has explored the changing of self due to life’s journey.
The beginning of the poem portrays the mother wearing clothes that are “out of date”, this emphasises how the mother has little time for personal care and happiness now that she has ‘bickering children’ to look after. The overall flatness in the poem emphasises the monotony in the mother’s life, and highlights the boredom of plodding through life. But, when she unexpectedly meets a past lover, the dialogue starts “How nice” et cetera… .” But for the Grace of God.” This religious reference is evidence that the man is thankful that he has not been part of this change, which has so obviously caused dramatic consequences in the women’s life. At the end of the poem, the women says, “they have eaten me alive” whilst she is comforting the young child and is evidently comforted in return. This is a strange use of irony as the mother is tied down by her responsibilities, but seems to have been content with change.
This contentment was only questioned by her reaction towards her past lover. Erin Brockovich, directed by Steven Soderbergh, has depicted change through the main character, Erin, like the women in ‘In the park’, her physical appearance also suggests that she is of low socio economic status. Erin is also a struggling, single mother due to two failed marriages. Her life changes when her neighbour George enters her life asking for her number.
She responds by saying “How bout this for a number, six, that’s the age of my daughter, eight, is the age of my son, two, is the number of times I’ve been divorced and sixteen is the number of dollars I have in my bank account.” Here Brockovich is trying to resist change in her life but later, when she accepts this change she learns that this change, in fact, reshaped her existence in a positive manner. The changes she underwent years previous to now aided her in her ability to connect with local citizens. This then lead to her being ‘respected’ for the first time in her life. The respect she gained gave her an emotional strength which not only helped her reinvent her own life but it helped her change the lives of others by triumphing over insurmountable odds. In conclusion it is fair to say that the composers of the texts have proven that the stages life goes through bring about great changes. It is the experiences and how one reacts to that experience that shapes their change..