Jasper Jones Moral Speech

Craig Silvey engages us with Jasper Jones in order to convey a certain moral message in hope to make us stop and think. No one in this novel is truly accepted into the community, which tells me as the responder, that in order for this society to succeed differences need to be tossed aside. Jasper Jones is a credible recollection of the injustice, racism and social exclusion that exists in the Australian society. It also tackles growing up, first love, family unity, and a sense of belonging in a community.

It is not hard for me to forget that this novel is set in 1965, in a rural town known as Corrigan. It is very similar to the one Silvey grew up in, although he denies writing the book purely on his personal experience, wanting to question a wider experience than his own. Corrigan is a town drenched in secrecy and mistrust, but it is also a landscape shaped by tragedy and loss. This theme is explored in the book through thoughts, emotions and exchanges between the two central characters, Charlie and Jasper. They share deep thoughts on their views of the world, and are clearly outsiders in this community. Indeed, no character appears to be a comfortable insider in the town, from Mad Jack Lionel, labelled as a dangerous 'village idiot', to the gang of egotistic teenagers who attempt to bully everyone else, the only effect of which being to highlight their own distance from the community center.

While the hostility is often visible, it is the potential for violence spread through the town that imparts a persistent tension throughout the text. Past actions can disturb the contemporary landscapes of the town to such a degree; through brittle relationships with families (Eliza and her parents for example), secrets that can possibly destroy the concept of love itself (such as Jack Lionel's and Charlie's mother's secrets), and the community's incapacity to accept differences. Together, this renders ideas of the shared redundant.

Silvey's novel was set during the Vietnam War era when racial issues were on the front page of every newspaper. Jeffrey and his parents, who are Vietnamese, are affected by this, as well as the Aboriginal Jasper. Jeffrey is regularly abused although he seems to accept this and overlooks it. In light of these issues, historical references are used throughout to remind us of the characters' significance to multicultural Australia. In chapter three, Charlie is found in the library reading about past crimes and interviews with murderers such as Eric Edgar Cooke. He feels empathy towards the victims, and anger towards the people who let the torture go on, never speaking up. This is what has been going on in Corrigan, and these historical references help us to feel the same emotions as Charlie does, as well as the novel being in first person.

Another way of getting this message across, are the allusions used quite frequently in Jasper Jones, including directly