James Vance Marshall based his novel walkabout on this.In this novel Mary the eldest of the two children is a very complicated and interesting character

GCSE Religious Studies (Philosophy & Ethics)

Walkabout

Two American Children were stranded in the middle of the Australian desert due to an airplane crash.

The children were stranded all by themselves or so they thought.

The only reason they survived is because they met an aborigine boy.

James Vance Marshall based his novel walkabout on this.

In this novel Mary the eldest of the two children is a very complicated and interesting character. Throughout the novel we have very different reactions towards her and is one to whom we respond with a variety of different emotions.

Before Mary and Peter meet the bushboy, Mary is the leader. She decides where they are going and what they are doing. There is a lot of responsibility being passed on to Mary as at thirteen she has to look after young Peter.

I admire her for willingly taking control of both their fates. I feel this way because they are marooned in the middle of nowhere.

Mary and Peters luck picks up when they meet a bushboy. When this happens everything changes including Mary.

This is a preview of the whole essay

I admire her for willingly taking control of both their fates. I feel this way because they are marooned in the middle of nowhere.

Mary and Peters luck picks up when they meet a bushboy. When this happens everything changes including Mary.

Mary was quite scared of the bushboy because he was black and naked. She felt uncomfortable around the black boy and didn’t go anywhere near him. At this point in the story I am interested in the way Mary reacts to meeting the bushboy. She is very scared when the bushboy starts his inspection on her. I am interested in this because Mary’s whole character has been changed. For instance before the bushboy she was calm and didn’t show she was scared, bur when they met the bushboy it went the other way.

“He’s just got a cold Pete, like you had, nothing to fuss about if your immune system is used to it but the bushboys isn’t.” The bushboys cold wasn’t worse but he was still weak. Peter asked Mary if the bushboy could get her dress, she said no. Peter started calling her a meanie and cowardly girl. She put her head in her hands and said if he wasn’t such a young boy then maybe he would understand.

Right before the bushboy dies he tries to tell them how to build his death table. The bushboy can’t tell Peter because he is working, but Mary is only bathing. The bushboy goes over to speak to Mary but is gob smacked by Mary’s long golden hair and he stops and stares. Mary sees him and just about jumps out of her skin.

She brushes her hand against the side of the pool and picks up a fragment of rock and snarls at him. When he notices Mary’s’ snarl, he knows his table will never be built. When he dies Mary notices that heaven and the earth are one. It’s at this point in the story I feel sorry for Mary because she is only 13 and she has all these emotions going through her life blood.

After the death of the bushboy Peter is the first one to act and tells Mary what the bushboy told him.

Mary and Peter stop and start drawing pictures. Mary draws a picture of a house with one window, a chimney and a door.

Mary and Peter meet an aborigine family and they tell them. After they show the pictures the Dad is intrigued by the picture the girl drew. He calls his family over and they all notice the house as well. The Blackman gives Mary and Peter directions to this house when Mary hears about this she breaks down and cries.

Jonathan Paterson