An Anzac Tale by Ruth Starke & Greg Holfeld+The Assignment (due next Thursday)

This week and next week we will be doing a small focus on ANZAC day. I purchased this recently-released graphic novel (March 2013) in the hope to inspire the students with something new and a bit different. For me, it is  reminiscent of Art Spiegelman's Pulitzer Prize winning  graphic novel Maus, but not nearly so hard-hitting. The Australians are represented by kangaroos and koalas, emus, magpies and wombats,  the officers by cockatoos, Kitchener as a lion,  the Egyptians as cats, the Turkish as lynxes,  there is even a Tasmanian devil! We will be viewing and reading this text using the Smart Board.

When Australia pledges it's support to mother country, Great Britain, at the outbreak of World War 1, mates Roy Martin and Wally Cardwell enthusiastically enlist. However, what they believed would be one of the greatest adventures in their lives, very quickly becomes a nightmare. Following the first day of the landing at Anzac Cove on April 25th, already more than 2000 of their fellow Anzacs have been gunned down or drowned.  As the campaign drags on, life for friends Ray and Wally and their new-found friend, Tom, not only becomes a battle against the courageous Turkish enemy, but also one against the impossible landscape, the relentless flies, fleas, cold and diseases. In fact this book reminds me of Peter Weir's ground-breaking anti-war film Galipolli which we viewed and did a film report on last year. It is basically a story of the Galipolli campaign, including the battle of Lone Pine interspersed with scenes of Australians at home. It begins in Australia, continues on to the training camps in Egypt, and then... finally, the lads find themselves at Galipolli.  However, unlike the film, it shows the shift from popular support of the Empire to the disillusionment as the huge numbers of casualties start to mount. This book is aimed at the upper primary and secondary high school market and offers something a little bit different to what students have previously been exposed to.

Here is the first page:

This interview with the author and illustrator is worth listening to:

https://radio.adelaide.edu.au/an-anzac-tale/

Before we view this  graphic novel in it's entirety, students each have a term, place, or concept to "unpack" in their writer's notebook. These were randomly distributed and students have glued the "seed" into their books and have chosen a tool to use to unpack it with. students have chose things like a PMI (pluses, minuses, interesting, a see think wonder, thinking hats, describing wheels etc. These tools are in the back part of their notebooks. This will be Wednesday night's homework. Time will be given Wednesday afternoon in class, though some music students who are out nearly all afternoon may well have to bring a bit more home to do. Students also have to give a two minute speech about their topic or word. They can use books in the room or the internet to look for further information. Some of the topics include: Empire, hun, currency, nurses at Galipolli, The Dardanelles, The landing at ANZAC Cove, "The Landing" by George Lambert, Bully beef, biscuits, water duty, Shrapnell Gully, the Kaiser,  swimming, The May Armistice, the periscope rifle, jam-tin bombs, sickness, The Battle of Lone Pine, white feathers, Victoria Cross, winter on Galipolli, The water-drip rifles, The significance of Anzac Day. It is important students have a basic understanding of these words and topics in order to fully understand and appreciate the graphic novel.

Last year I visited the Australian War Memorial in Canberra to place a poppy next to my uncle Brian's (Stevens) plaque on The Roll of Honour, and I will be sharing some of the photographs I took whilst I was there. It seems that not one student in the class has had the opportunity to visit this amazing Australian War Memorial.

In memory of Brian Stevens

Roll of Honour, well one section

                                                                                    

Each student was given a copy of this on the morning of Friday the 12th April. Students will be given time in the normal spelling lesson slot to make a big start on this assignment. A big thank you to Erin Wamala from whose study notes this was adapted.

The Anzac Tale Assignment based on the graphic novel An Anzac Tale

Due Thursday 18^th April

Choose two of the themes below to think deeply about and address the questions.

Choose one activity to do.

Duty

From the very beginning of the story, the characters show a great sense of duty towards their country and The Empire (Britain), ‘Gotta stand shoulder to shoulder with the Mother Country’ (p.6). Roy’s parents, however, feel that his duty is to his family and looking after the farm.

What are Roy and Wally’s reasons for signing up to go to war?

Why do they feel such a strong sense of duty to The Empire? Were Britain to go to war today, would Australian’s feel the same?

Which do you think should be greater – a sense of duty to The Empire or to your family?

Do the characters still feel this same sense of duty at the end of the story? How have their attitudes changed?

In the end, many people felt that The Empire failed the soldiers by placing them in an unwinnable situation, yet Australia still supported Britain throughout WWI and WWII. Why? Do we have a choice? On p.24 we see that although the Anzacs recommend an evacuation, the British still insist that the soldiers remain, somewhat in denial about the situation, ’No evacuation. You’ve got through the difficult business’.

Bravery

The Anzac legend is one often told with reference to the bravery shown by soldiers. Roy and Wally are shown time and again running into the heart of battle, despite their fears and reservations. On page 21, for example, after landing on the beach at Gallipoli and losing hundreds of soldiers already, Wally, Roy and their fellow soldiers continue up the ridge despite being in grave danger.

How do you think the soldiers must have been feeling behind their bravado?

Do you think you could have shown such bravery?

Is there any shame in wanting to turn around and go home?

Did the soldiers have any choice but to be brave?

On p.43, Roy is clearly ill and in need of the hospital yet he continues to fight. Why? Do you consider this to be brave?

The War at Home

Throughout the story, we are given intermittent views of life at home while the soldiers are fighting a world away. Reports in the papers were somewhat different from the reality of war (p.26).

Why might this be?

Would it have been right to misrepresent the situation in order to give the families at home some positive news?

Could it be that no-one, not even the reporters, knew the reality of the situation?

In this day and age of social media, how would the reports be different? Could the public be misled?

Attitudes to War

The attitude to war has changed dramatically over the last century. Many people attribute this to Vietnam, the first war to be seen on television. During WWI and WWII young men seemed keen to sign up and fight for their country, some men even fought in both.

P.2 Wally and Roy are excited by the prospect of war. Why might this be? People were celebrating in the streets and ringing the church bells. Knowing what we know now, how could they be excited?

How do their attitudes to the war change over the course of the story? Consider the first page and then the last, what is the difference?

Wally and Roy’s parents are sad to see their boys leave, but proud of them all the same. How would your parents react if you were to join the army?

The Enemy

The soldiers knew very little about the enemy (in this case, the Turkish) when they went into battle. For much of the battle, the enemy were a faceless mass shooting from above. However, there are several instances where the Anzacs and the Turkish must come face to face.

P.15 ‘You’ll be landing on an open plain, facing an inferior enemy’. Compare this line to the one on p.37, ‘Johnny Turk’s not so bad though. They’re good clean fighters. And it is their country after all’. How has the attitude to the enemy changed? Why? Do you think there is a new found respect? Did the Turkish not have a right to defend their country?

On p.49, the soldiers come face to face with the enemy in the close quarters of the trenches. Why might this make it more difficult to fight? Is it easier to fight a faceless enemy?

On p.36 we see the Australians trading with the Turkish. How is it possible to be fighting one day, and trading amiably the next?

The reality is that today, many of the Turkish and Anzac soldiers are buried together.

Conditions of War

Conditions in the trenches were disgraceful with many, many soldiers dying of disease and cold (see end notes).

See what you can find out about the conditions endured by soldiers in other parts of the war, France and Germany for example. How did the conditions compare?

Can we expect our soldiers to fight at their best when they are living in conditions such as these? Is there any way to avoid it?

Food rations for the soldiers were minimal and not particularly nutritious (see endnotes for a description).

Find out what today’s Australian soldiers receive in their ration packs. How is it different? What improvements have been made?

Compare the amount of food and water you consume in a day to what the soldiers received during WWI. Do you think you could survive?

The Lasting Legacy

At the end of the story, Roy can’t understand why anyone in the future would want to go back to Gallipoli. However, every year, thousands of young Australians and New Zealanders commemorate the battle on the anniversary of the Gallipoli landing.

Why do you think this is?

Why is the Gallipoli campaign still so important to Australians?

Do you think people will still be visiting on Anzac Day in 100 years to come? Why/why not?

Characters: The “Typical” Aussie Soldier

Wally and Roy represent the “typical Aussie soldier”, the everyday young man who signed up to go to war. They are straight-talking lads, with little education and a longing for adventure.

How might these men have been changed by war? Would they have come home so carefree, should they have come home at all?

Many of the young men who signed up had little or no world knowledge and were excited about traveling to exotic places. They also had the opportunity to earn a decent wage, more than they would earn at home (see end notes). Is this not something to be excited about? Is it worth the risk?

A typical Australian man is often described as a “larrikin”. The Oxford English Dictionary defines a “larrikin” as ‘a boisterous, often badly behaved young man’, yet it is often a term used with affection. Do you think Wally and Roy fit this description?

How do Wally and Roy compare to young men today? How might their lives be different?

Women at Home

Throughout Australia’s war history, women have played important roles. During WWI, their role was mainly at home, supporting the soldiers on farms, in the workforce and through charity efforts.

Roy’s younger sister is desperate to join the war effort as a nurse, yet she is at home knitting socks (p27). Would it have been possible for women to join the war at this time?

In what other ways did women help during the war effort? Read Diane Wolfer’s The Lighthouse Girl for a different perspective.

Ellie is also seen collecting white feathers to give to men who did not join the war effort (p.56). What did the white feathers mean? Was this fair?

Activities:

1.  Find images of WWI propaganda posters. How are the enemy represented (frightening, almost like inhuman monsters)? How are British and Australian soldiers represented (brave, strong, the protectors)? How are young men convinced to sign up and go to war? Now consider the current drive to recruit people into the Australian Defence Force, http://www.youtube.com/user/defencejobsaustralia. How have things changed? Create your own poster for today, how would you convince your classmates to sign up?

2.   Consider the point of view of the Turkish soldiers. Pretend you are a Turkish soldier. Write a letter home to your family detailing the battle you are involved in. What are your thoughts on the Australian soldiers?

3.  Use http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper?q to find newspaper articles about the Gallipoli landing. What is being reported? Follow the reports over the next 12 months, do they change?

4.     Write your own newspaper article based on the information you gather from the book.

5.     Consider how Holfeld, as the illustrator, has represented the story. How has he used colour? Does the palette change throughout the story? For example, compare the first and last scenes? What are the differences between the representation of Australia and of Turkey? Pay particular attention to pages 50-51. How do they stand out? Holfeld has used very deliberate images, lines and colours. What is he drawing your attention to? Why do you think he has chosen these particular images? How does he represent the violence of war with very little gore throughout the story?

6.     View George Lambert’s painting Anzac: The Landing on the National Gallery of Australia’s website, http://nga.gov.au/Exhibition/Lambert/Detail.cfm?IRN=144768. How has Holfeld used this to help him capture the essence of Gallipoli? Can you find the panel within the story that references this painting? What are the similarities?

7.    Using all you have learned about the Gallipoli campaign and the soldiers, find 5 or 6 images, from newspapers, paintings, posters etc., that represent your feelings about the story. You may also like to create your own images.