The Boxer Rebellion and the Christian Response

The Boxer Rebellion was a vicious uprising against non-Chinese in China during the final years of the 19th century, from November 1899 to September 7, 1901. The areas of conflict included the commercial market, political domain, religious concerns and technological advancements. This extremely unique and glaring because in a very short span of time, thousands of Christians, both Chinese and foreign were killed as a result of the revolt and its suppression. Then ironically, the revolt itself was crushed by the very thing it stood against – foreign influence. About 20,000 troops came from outside to thwart this movement forever.â€Å"Thus as 1900 dawned, China was swept by a movement known as ‘Yao rebels’ who believed that they had been made invulnerable by sorcery and incantation. Screaming mobs, determined to kill every Westerner, were egged on by the Yao society whose title, â€Å"The Fist of Righteous Amity† was translated by Americans and English into B oxers† (Guy, 2006). It is not possible to highlight where this anti-western sentiment in China was actually born, but one may refer back to the opium war between Britain and China (1839-1842) for some indication. In 1839, the First Opium War broke out, and China cut a sorry figure in front of Britain.Eyeing the weakness of the Chinese, not only the British, but the Russians and the French as well started to exert their respective pressures upon the country. Due to their lack of power and ability to impose their will, China was forced into a number of treaties that subjugated its interest against others. These include: the Treaty of Nanking (1842), the Treaty of Aigun (1858), the Treaty of Tientsin (1858), the Convention of Peking (1860), the Treaty of Shimonoseki (1895), and the Second Convention of Peking (1898). Obviously, the public voice was against these treaties at large.Their ego was hurt badly, and their pride seemed to falter in front of the might of the foreigners. A s is common in such times, rumors also began to spread away. The foreigners were considered to be responsible for much crime and lawlessness that was prevalent. It was believed that the Church had started exercising more power than the state. It was also felt the Church had started to impose certain Christian practices, and had excluded certain tradition Chinese practices from the society. Thus in the late 19th century, feelings of unrest against the Chinese and the foreigners started to develop at a very rapid pace.Another major event was a row over a temple. The Catholics claimed that it was originally a church that had later been abandoned. The local court ultimately gave the verdict in favor of the Church. The locals could not tolerate this, as it was their place of worship and also a place to practice martial arts. To add to that, the colonization during the following decades did no good to boost up the morale of China. What was more, Asian powerhouses Russia and Japan also joi ned the rat-race for territorial supremacy. China came out as a good target for all those hungry to cut a slide of the earth’s map for their good.After the 1895 war of China with Japan, many European powers stepped forward to occupy Chinese territory. All of this mustered up into an intolerable feeling of hatred within the Chinese against their oppressors. â€Å"The conservatives then gave clandestine backing to the antiforeign and anti-Christian movement of secret societies known as Yihetuan (Society of Righteousness and Harmony). The movement has been better known in the West as the Boxers (from an earlier name–Yihequan, Righteousness and Harmony Boxers). In 1900 Boxer bands spread over the north China countryside, burning missionary facilities and killing Chinese Christians.Finally, in June 1900, the Boxers besieged the foreign concessions in Beijing and Tianjin, an action that provoked an allied relief expedition by the offended nations. The Qing declared war agai nst the invaders, who easily crushed their opposition and occupied north China. Under the Protocol of 1901, the court was made to consent to the execution of ten high officials and the punishment of hundreds of others, expansion of the Legation Quarter, payment of war reparations, stationing of foreign troops in China, and razing of some Chinese fortifications† (Onwar, 2000).While external forces were still contemplating a productive way out of the situation, the Chinese rulers came out with a message to the provinces. Given the circumstances and the options the rulers had, the message was by no means peaceful. It stated that the world was after Chinese resources and land, and that the time had come when the last resort should be adopted. Peace, therefore, was not an option to be considered. Meanwhile, in the northern Shandong province, a distressing drought was pushing people to the edge of starvation.There were not many who were thinking about peace anyways. All this energy had to be vented out somewhere, and hence came the time of catharsis, but in a violent way. Anti-foreign feelings caused the quick outburst of a Chinese secret society that was previously more docile. It was known as the I Ho Ch’uan, meaning the Righteous Harmonious Fists; hence the name ‘Boxers’. Understandably, with their name and mission, the Boxers asked for the expulsion of the external parties, more casually referred to as the ‘foreign devils’, along with their Chinese Christian converts.This was the time when conventional Chinese arts and skills thrived, especially martial arts and the use of traditional Chinese weapons. â€Å"At first, the Boxers wanted to destroy the Ch'ing dynasty (which had ruled China for over 250 years) and wanted to rid China of all foreign influence (which they considered a threat to Chinese culture). When the Empress Dowager backed the Boxers, the Boxers turned solely to ridding China of foreigners. By late 1899, ban ds of Boxers were massacring Christian missionaries and Chinese Christians† (Rosenburg, 2006).The resentment towards foreigners, Christians and Chinese converts started to rise immensely, with a greater tinge of violence. The circumstances forced the external lobbies to join hands, and they lodged strong protests with the government of China. However, the then Empress, Tzu Hsi’s response surprised many, when she declared that the Boxers were actually a part of the Chinese society, and hence should not be condemned as such. The reaction was also unexpected because it actually went against the local Chinese army, which was striving against the rebellion, and directed in favor of the Boxers.This made it inevitable for the external forces to make a show of military might close to China’s borders. â€Å"The empress dowager publicly opposed the Boxers, but her ministers quietly convinced them to join forces in order to drive foreigners from China. In the early months of 1900, thousands of Boxers roamed the countryside, attacking Christians. When an international force of 2,100 soldiers attempted to land in China, the empress dowager ordered her imperial army to stop the foreign troops.Throughout the summer of 1900 the Boxers burned churches and foreign residences and killed Chinese Christians on sight† (Dowling, 2001). Gradually, the Boxers started to gain autonomy over their beliefs and actions. The government was not ready to curb them, and their views were supported by many in the masses. The only effort that were going were in the direction of strengthening forces against the external attack. Finally, when the pressure was too much, the foreign elements inside started vocally seeking help from outside. It was then that the eight-country attack came into operation upon China.There were multiple operations, many of them fierce; gradually the Chinese rebellion started to weaken. Over the next several months, the forces from outside starte d to grow within China. They overtook Beijing (then Peking) and expanded into the country. Ultimately, the Boxers just a local might were no match for the military power of the industrial nations. Ultimately, in early 1901, the Chinese government gave in, and agreed to abolish the Boxer movement completely. Needless to mention, it was not merely an attack on the territory of China, but also on its ego.Succumbing to the demand of the external powers was worse than actually loosing a battle. Subsequently, due to its recent weakening in the region, China could do nothing in the war of Russia and Japan a couple of years later, and stood watching while Japan proclaimed supremacy in the East. In the entire episode, the United States played a very significant role. This is because it had a tactical advantage, having a major portion of its navy already established around the Philippines during the Spanish American War (1898) and the subsequent Philippine insurgent activity.This was actually a reinforcer for those policy makers in the US who were of the opinion that the US should maintain control in the Far East. It was a very unique time in the history of China, repeatedly, it had to face occasions when foreign invaders came in and took control of her land and might. The emperors were just too weak to make any resistance to this offer. An additional reason was that the foreign armies were far better equipped with warfare technologies and tactics than China was at that point in time. It was a time when the Empress began to reconsider her option regarding removal of these elements from her soil.

Limitations of Man's Moral Capacities and Role of Political Order Research Paper

Limitations of Man's Moral Capacities and Role of Political Order - Research Paper Example The adoption of federal constitution perhaps had presented a challenge in that many political philosophers did not immediately know the extent to which the application of the new constitution will sustain what had become the order of the day or to what extent was it going to effect changes and to whose favor or disfavor. In the understanding of crucial role that the constitution was going to play, the most respected constitution architects of that time had carefully observed the situations, and agreed as leaders of the most fundamental states then that it was permissible that the many should have perfect representation, both being afraid of Monarchy and aristocracy as had been witnessed from continental Europe. Federalists’ essays, though not having a lot of public support, had begun exploring the nature of citizens in line with the provisions in the constitution that could have been perceived as inappropriate then. This is just to introduce the very rise of federalists. Quest ioning of Mans Moral Capacities One of the most fundamental concerns in federal constitution was the institution of the presidency. ... However we find Publius crafting another complex system in Electoral College and sufficiently argues out that anyone who passes grilling of the Electoral College will definitely be a man of good morals. Besides, we can also observe that this goes hand in hand with the creation of the senate whose joint power supersedes that of the institution of presidency in critical aspects. Publius draws a comparison of political institutions then and justifies that people’s concerns are well taken care of. By crafting the duties and obligations of the president to give him a parliamentary status of membership, morality of office bearer is further monitored through provision of impeachment by the house so as to protect the interest of the majority in the event that there is questionable abuse of office. Although giving so much power to this institution, Publius cannot entrust political governance of the people without checks and balances (Carey and MacClellan, 231). Equally important is the realization by Publius that if morality of the judiciary remains at a political stake, then the whole concept of moral justice will be lost. It becomes apparent that separation of powers and independence of each institution takes center stage. Publius notices that for a judiciary to be legitimate, it must have trust of the people from whose mandate it was created through the constitution. Abuse of powers and political influence on judicial decisions were very common then. The first fundamental step that Publius takes is to insulate the morality of office bearers by providing for life tenure. We realize that by possessing neither will nor force but only judgment, it was really vital to have a satisfied judiciary that cannot

Organizational Communication Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Organizational Communication - Assignment Example In addition, he used a leadership style that was transactional as its entailed management through enhancing compliance via punishment and rewards. The committee had been given powers to make decisions, but Gassner had the final say in every decision they made. Gassner made sure that each execute committee member headed different regions of that company (Hill, 1995). Gassner had a strategic vision which he ensured was met. He made sure BMG international became successful. He ensured that he was involved in every decision (Hill, 1995). Gassner was tough on ensuring his decisions are followed to the later. In systems theory, there is the issue of interdependence in any organization. Rudi acknowledged this fact and hence created an executive team that was in charge of various regions. He acknowledged interdependence since the regions which they operated differed on the basis of external environment that dealt with customers, competitors, suppliers, financial markets and world economy. In addition, they also differed in complex issues related to external relations, internal operations, strategic decision making plus institutional leadership (Hill, 1995). Gassner’s management style was transactional. He ensured that he established compliance of the workers through coming up with reward and punishment systems. Gassner had been hand-picked by the given CEO, Dornermann. Gassner was an expertise from Polygram and had a good track record on the basis of management. He had his own style of management and involved ‘push’ and ‘pull’ strategies. That ensured high level of awareness existed and resulted in accurate perception of his role and vision (Hill,

Open Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Open - Term Paper Example Capital punishment has been abolished in many US states with others passing bills to abolish it in the near future. There was a lapse of four years in handing out capital punishment in the United States of America in 1972. The practice resumed in 1976 and is still being carried out. Considering both sides of the argument and weighing pros against cons, it is better to do away with capital punishment once and for all from the justice system of the United States of America. In our present legal system, there are chances of false falsely convicting individuals. The strongest argument against the death penalty puts forth the hypothesis of an individual being falsely convicted and sentenced to death. Research shows that this hypothesis has come to pass in several cases such as a case in Illinois in 1983 where two men were falsely accused of murder of a 10 year old. After having spent 10 years on the death row waiting for the date of execution, their innocence was proved by defense when DN A evidence cleared them of the charges (Donohue, and Shavell x). If the American legal system had not been slow, two innocent men would have lost their lives for a crime they did not commit at the same time allowing the real culprit to roam free. And if the discovery came after the sentence was carried out, how would the state go about posthumous redress? More than 130 similar cases have come to light in the past 37 years where 130 individuals were found innocent after having spent time on death row (DPIC FactSheet). Questions and incidents such as this one shake the resolve of those in favor because, once death penalty is carried out, the executed cannot be brought back to life. In case of time served, some sort of financial redress can be offered. Capital punishment provides room for abuse. Another argument that is loosely connected to the preceding one is the conviction of the mentally disabled. There are several mental conditions, psychological disorders amongst them, that make individuals who are suffering from them commit acts of violence. It can be argued that these people, whether because of depression, delusion or under the influence of medication that they take to treat these ailments, may commit murder. Though there is a consensus that such people should not be awarded capital punishment, however, as long as capital punishment remains a viable option, there is no way to ensure that such verdicts are not passed. For instance, in the State of Virginia a borderline mentally challenged woman, Teresa Lewis, was awarded the capital punishment (Szkotak). Lewis, despite being mentally retarded and despite not being the actual perpetrator was executed just because the option was available. If capital punishment is abolished, the option would not be present to be taken into consideration in the first place. Death by legal injection is seen by many as cruel and unusual punishment. The current method of execution, the lethal injection is a mixture of deadly sub stances with potassium chloride being the active ingredient. It is introduced intravenously into the human body. If not in the correct ratio or if not administered properly, the lethal injection can cause a slow and agonizing death. In most cases, potassium chloride merely causes paralysis and the poor individual is painfully aware of every sensation till his or her last breath. This may also happen varying on a person to person basis e.g. in

Reflection and Evaluation Paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Reflection and Evaluation Paper - Essay Example Reflection and evaluation enables the communication practitioners understand whether the communication has attained its objectives of ensuring attitudes and behaviour changes of the stakeholders in the organization (Bryman, 2001). Accordingly, reflection will enable the management to identify any gaps and omissions in their communication strategies and especially in the design of the messages (Bryman, 2001). The results of evaluation will be used by the hospital in determining the further course of action in order to ensure further messages contain the required content and are suitable for the audience. Accordingly, evaluation is necessarily in order to understand whether interpersonal conflicts have been solved and how power needs to be managed in the company (Reddy & Sinha, 1991). The reflection will enable the management understand the best approaches in ensuring intercultural communication and tools that are necessary to continuous assess the systems, tasks and people in order to prevent future crisis in the company (Bryman, 2001). The organization will be capable to assess whether there is a open communication climate that encourages cultural diversity and interpersonal relationships in order to facilitate communication within the organization. The evaluation will enable the management assess the management of press releases and press conferences during the critical event and identify any sources of misleading information and the impact of using several media such as interviews, press releases and electronic media (Bryman, 2001). There are several things that should be done differently next time in order to ensure timely resolution of the interpersonal conflicts and power struggles at Patton-Fuller Community hospital. I believe the first step would have been to understand the sources of the interpersonal conflicts at the

Active Duty Military Pregnant Mother Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Active Duty Military Pregnant Mother - Essay Example In a normal pregnancy changes taking place in the woman’s body may include simple ramping of the uterus, nausea, vomiting, bowel habit changes, abdominal girth increase, growing urination frequency, higher heartbeat rates, ankle swellings and palpitations among other simple but inconvenient changes. Fatigue is normal thing early in the pregnancy. Given that the pregnancy is developing and many changes taking place, many women experience increased fatigue and the need to sleep increase. Many factors including hormonal changes, changes in metabolism, low blood sugar levels, physiological anaemia and low blood pressure among others contribute to fatigue throughout the pregnancy. Caregivers in prenatal clinics can help women to determine the appropriate workout programmes, vitamins and mineral supplements that can help keep fatigue away. From a health viewpoint, there are serious challenges that come with pregnancy, which can make it hard for expectant women to be actively involve d in normal work activities. Diabetes in pregnancy, otherwise referred to as gestation pregnancy is a common occurrence that requires specialized advice. Having guided training exercises is one of the ways through which pregnant mothers can maintain a blood sugar insulin balance. This is a great challenge for a military woman taking up night shifts since it requires regular and close monitoring. .

Deadly Unna Film Essay Example for Free

Deadly Unna Film Essay Australian Rules A comparative review by Anita Jetnikoff (QUT) for Australian Screen Education. Published as: Jetnikoff, Anita (2003) Australian Rules: a comparative review. Australian Screen Education(30):36-38. The title may mislead some viewers, as this is not a film about a football code, anymore than Bend it with Beckham is about soccer. This powerful, brave and rather brutal feature is the debut of Paul Goldman, who co-wrote the screenplay with the novelist Phillip Gwynne. Both the storylines and characters from Gwynne’s awardwinning novel Deadly Unna? nd its sequel Nukkin Ya, have been combined in the film, which was commissioned by South Australian Film Corporation for the Adelaide Festival of Arts 2002, and caused a furore with the local Aboriginal community. The film was screened after much deliberation over the objections against depictions of a character resembling a member of the Penninsular community. This certainly suggests collaboration with Indigenous communities could have been sought at earlier stages of the project. In my reading of the film, however, it is the white community who emerge the more brutal, bigoted and shameful. The Aboriginal community, on the other hand, represent solidarity, and sharing. The film was released and promoted by Palace, with the slogan ‘live by the rules play by the rules’. There is, however, an almost apartheid divide between the black [Nunga) and white [Goonya) communities in this film and the central character’s personal navigating between the two, means he must break unwritten rules. The film is based on aspects of two novels, the partly autobiographical novel Deadly Unna, and its sequel, Nukkin Ya, Nunga expressions for ‘Great hey’ and ‘See you later’. Both novels were easy to read and full of humour in spite of the serious subject matter of racism, interracial relationships, adolescent angst, death and revenge. The novels belong to the adolescent problem or coming-of-age genre and are being studied in secondary schools. The film has little of the novels’ lightness and the narrator’s ability to laugh at himself and his community’s foibles. This sometimes disturbing film’s tone is brutal, the landscape stark, sordid and in decay. Most of the characters occupying the saline, arid coastal town are nasty. The adult men are barflies, maggot breeders, fornicators and losers and the women are victims or sluts. This hopeless adult world offers nothing for the young in this fishing town. Viewers are invited to identify with the young, for whom hope lies in escape. The central figure of Blacky (Nathan Phillips), is an intelligent 14 year old caught between the literary world of his imagination and the literal world of his small towns’ bigotry. His mother, who encourages him to play football and to do well at school, is a battler, a victim of his father’s brutality. The dilapidated house the Black family occupy oozes poverty and neglect. These are white fringe dwellers. In the novel Blacky refers to what kind of chops the family will consume as indicative of the ‘pov metre’. They shop at the local op shop. Like many small rural Australian towns, this coastal community struggles to survive. The black and white communities in the region are divided, separated physically by a stretch of coastline, whites at the port and blacks at the point. Even the local pub segregates the Aboriginal drinkers from the white ones. The irony is that the local football team is only viable when the Aboriginal boys come over from the point to play. The sporting fixture allows the communities to merge, but the union stops there. Blacky crosses the racial divide to befriend Dumby Red (Luke Carroll) a talented Aboriginal Australian Rules Player from the Point and to romance Dumby’s sister Clarence (Lisa Flanagan). Whereas book built up the friendship through Blacky’s doubt and hesitation about Dumby, this is not dealt with in the film. The film opens with the two characters already mates, sitting together in the dilapidated shed of the red dirt football field, commiserating over the ineffectiveness of their coach, Arks (Kevin Harrington). Dumby’s spectacular football prowess has been spotted by a city talent scout, which sets up the need for him to win best Player in the final against a much stronger team. A contract to a city football team would mean a possible escape from the bigotry and emptiness of the Penninsular—his chance to be a sporting success. Blacky finds himself an unwitting hero and awarded best team man for winning the premiership game. He unwittingly collides with the toughest star player on the opposing team and is knocked unconscious, along with his gigantic opponent. The shooting sequences of the match were not especially riveting, but this was in keeping with the importance of the game to the story. The film is not about winning or losing, but the personal integrity of the play or the journey in the ongoing process of discovering identity. The medal for ‘Best on the Ground’, rightly belonged to Dumby Red. His ticket out of the hopeless community, however, was denied to him, because rather than kicking a sure goal, he had passed a ball to a cousin who had not handled the ball all day. The cultural code of sharing was stronger than the competitive need to win. In the film, the loss of the award to the coach’s son paves the way for Dumby’s tragic demise. He joins Pretty (Tony Briggs) in an armed robbery of the pub, perhaps to extract an alternative prize to the one he’d been denied. The publican, Mac, laid out in a drunken stupor on the pool table, is beaten even more senseless by Pretty. The noise rouses Blacky’s father (Simon Westaway) who shoots and kills his son’s friend Dumby Red in revenge for the publican’s beating. In the novel the publican was the murderer, but the film’s central villain is Blacky’s father, Bob, who represents fear, loathing and menace. His violent rages left his own family in fear of him. In one memorable scene they escape his menacing torment of their mother behind closed doors by escaping through the window and sleeping in the chicken coop. The feeling is that this experience was not new to them. Blacky is torn in the novel between his initial attraction to Clarence in Deadly Unna, which he conceals from his white ‘friends’ in order to attract the attention of a rich white ‘camper’ girl. In the sequel this relationship between Blacky and Clarence and Blacky and his father represent two kinds of coming of age. His masculinity is tested early on in a storm at sea and later when he was caught in the shed stealing paint to cover a racist slogan in the local boatshed. His intelligence means little to his father, and his good grades and scholarship to Kings College in Adelaide are ignored. In the sequel Nukkin Ya, the filial relationship seems almost mended when his father takes on the renovation of a ‘windjammer’ to bring potential tourism to the town. His father’s project becomes obsessive at the expense of putting food on the family’s table, but the male relationship seems to be temporarily repaired along with the boat, which becomes symbolic of rebuilding strength, unity and hope around the fantasy of the future. In the novels we experience Blacky’s angst at discovering his father’s infidelity to his mother. Blacky and his friend Pickles, stumble upon their adulterous fathers visiting the Aboriginal women at the point. The irony of this is that the entire community seemed set gainst the burgeoning love relationship between Blacky and Dumby’s sister Clarence. The fact that the cross-race relationship of the father is not dealt with in the film makes his violent reaction to finding Clarence innocently sleeping alongside Blacky in his bedroom connected more with his hatred of Aboriginal people, than it is to do with his guilt over murdering Dumby Red. It is a response reduced to racism alone, rather than his own guilt and hypocrisy, which in the novels is built up subtly through the two volumes. The antagonist in the second novel, having moved away from the father, is embodied by the figure of Lovely (Pretty, in the film) who menaces Blacky over his relationship with Clarence. Lovely sports a hate tattoo on his fingers and is a violent instigator in both book and film. The disclosure of the white men’s infidelity at the expense of the black women, who remain nameless and faceless, leads to the climax of the second novel. The boat is set alight, which symbolizes the death of the relationships between Blacky and his father and his community. Lovely is framed, Blacky absolves Lovely in court by taking the blame, but Pickles (Tom Budge ) was the real arsonist. This false confession, leads to Blacky becoming a cipher in his own town, where boats and the sea are peoples workplaces. He becomes a ‘boat burner’ in the cultural imaginary and is forced to leave. In the film this purging is less powerful and seems to emerge from some kind of corporate malice rather than revenge. Pickles manically sets alight rival maggot breeder Darcy’s breeding drums, which has less symbolic poignancy than the boat burning in the novel. Blacky’s central challenge in the film is to reaffirm his masculinity by standing up to his father, through the relationship with Clarence. Blacky is constructed by his father as a ‘gutless wonder. ’ Blacky’s painful journey to manhood, is much harsher in the film than the book. In the novel the father is a violent adulterer, but in the film, he kills Blacky’s best friend. Blacky’s attendance at Dumby’s funeral represents a betrayal of familial solidarity in the eyes of the father. The relationship was not strong enough however, for Blacky to take his father’s side. At this point, Blacky abdicates from identifying with his father. He has begun to flee the emasculated self constructed by his father, towards a more potent, sexual self, embodied by his attraction and identification with the other through the literal ‘body’ of Dumby and the physical, sexual body of Clarence. What is morally worrisome is that the father, who both Blacky and the viewer see as a murderer, continues to live in the community with impugnity, the ‘common sense’ gap we fill is that he claims he shot Dumby in selfdefense. Blacky courageously resists his father’s imperative to stay away from the funeral. In the film’s powerful and moving climax, the battered, but united family in the background witnesses the final stand off between father and son. Blacky literally stands up to his father, not by competing in battle of fists, but resisting by sheer will and strength of character. The father leaves in a vicious rage and we can’t help feeling that the family will be better off with him gone. The second novel Nukkin Ya begins with hope of Blacky taking a scholarship at Kings in Adelaide. His girlfriend Clarence achieves a scholarship to art school and Blacky has a reason to follow her. The film ends with the two young lovers romantically swimming in the clear waters, symbolically cleansing themselves of the grime and grease of prejudice, which had tainted their relationship until that point. The film treats the romance in a much lighter way than the books. There is no stand off between the characters; in fact Clarence becomes Blacky’s bridge between the two cultures. In the film it is Clarence who stands up to Bob Black in Blacky’s bedroom with dignity and silent resistance. Lisa Flanagan’s performance was elegant and dignified. It was Clarence who gently cut through the wall of hostility from the Nunga boys at her brother’s funeral- allowing Blacky to mourn his friend’s death. It was Clarence who understood Blacky’s poetic allusions to dying stars- these two are cosmically connected and there is an almost Shakespearean sense of their fate. The love scenes provide the film’s only softness and the resolution, although moving, is not sentimental. The young people must leave the still-divided community, to survive together.