Melina Marchetta Explores the Idea of Changing Perspectives Through Her Characters in 'looking for Alibrandi'. How Does She Achieve This?

Changing perspectives is defined as the change of how an individual sees something or someone. Melina Marchetta uses changing perspectives in a variety of ways in her novel 'Looking for Alibrandi', highlighting that change is a lifelong process because no one is ever completely mature or knowledgeable, and that it can be unexpected and subtle or gradual and natural. Marchetta demonstrates this concept of change through her characters and certain events, experiences, perspectives and people they associate with. She enables readers to develop their own perspectives of each character as they mature and change by using literary techniques to intrigue the audience and provoke thought about the changing perspectives of the characters. Protagonist, Josephine Alibrandi experiences changing perspectives of herself and others, in particular Nonna and Michael.

Josie's changing perspective of Nonna has multiple positive outcomes; Josie learns to respect and accept her family and racial background. Josie first thinks of Nonna as an over protective, egocentric grandmother who is only worried about herself and what people think of her, she got on her nerves and hated her butting in. In chapter 1, Josie complains to her mother; "Maaaa, I groaned, she drives me crazy. She's starting to tell me all those boring Sicily stories. If she tells me one more time she was beautiful, I'll puke". In this quote Marchetta uses tone, repetition, hyperbole, and descriptive language to demonstrate Josie's attitude and feelings towards Nonna at the beginning of the novel. The repetition of the letter 'a' in Ma highlights Josie's irritation and frustration in her tone of voice, and the 'I groaned' justifies these feelings. "She drives me crazy," and "If she tells me one more time she was beautiful, I'll puke" are hyperboles deliberately used by Marchetta to further accentuate her irascibility towards Nonna. The word "boring" also describes how Josie feels when she is around Nonna, and the lack of respect she has for her.

However, when Josie was forced to listen to Nonna Katia narrate the difficult life she lived when she came to Australia, she as well as the readers learn that Nonna is nothing like Josephine had perceived in the beginning. Changes in perspective in terms of relationships within the novel are shaped by Marchetta's use of storytelling. After a spending a night listening to Nonna's stories Josie says "Another day when I would see the photos and look for that young seventeen-year-old, boy-crazy gypsy named Katia Torello". Marchetta uses internal monologue to interpret how Josie feels using her own words. This particular quote at the end of chapter 7 displays the changing perspective of Nonna. It displays Josie's interest in Nonna's life. Marchetta deliberately used a number of adjectives such as; young seventeen-year-old, boy-crazy gypsy to describe Nonna so the reader can distinctly see how much Nonna has changed and how Josie now understands her Nonna was once young and beautiful like Josie.

Towards the end of the novel, 'Looking For Alibrandi', Josie's perspective of Nonna Katia has completely turned around. Nonna went from being the most irritating person in Josie's life to someone she is proud to call her grandmother. Josie says in chapter twenty-six "Relief because I was beginning to feel free," after coming to terms with Nonna's affair and realising she is not angry with her. Marchetta uses alliteration in this quote; because and beginning, feel and free. This technique provides emphasis and aids in memory because it is catchy. The syntax in this quote is deliberately used by Marchetta to succinctly convey Josie's feelings and to represent the consequence of the change in perspective,