Belonging is basically the sense when you feel a connection with your surroundings and share similarities with those around you. When an individual does not belong, they feel a sense of disconnection and isolation from their surroundings. The notion of belonging or not belonging allows individuals to understand their identity with a deeper understanding of who they are. This is due to the fact that if you belong, you tend to develop a positive attitude towards the world, and you discover your true identity based on social circumstances, and how your characteristics have allowed you to adapt, while if you don't they do, Not having that sense of belonging, they are left alone to reflect on who they are and what has distanced their souls from the outside world. Peter Skrzynecki expresses the themes of belonging and not belonging in great depth in his poems Feliks Skrzynecki and Migrant Hostel. These poems express how the poet's life experiences of belonging and not belonging helped shape him into who he is today. Blind Date by Janette Turner is a novel that deeply commemorates the character's experience with her father, losing him at a young age, only to realize that he was the reason her father left. Therefore, society has come to a stage where they discover their identity in two ways, whether they belong or not. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay It is a natural human instinct to feel the desire to belong, and family is the primary area where every individual desires that connection. When you don't feel this attachment to your family, you tend to feel disconnected from many aspects of life around you and may try to discover your identity elsewhere. Peter Skrzynecki expresses this idea in his poem Feliks Skrzynecki, in which the poet felt a disconnection with his father Feliks due to the difficulties they encountered while emigrating to a new land. Feliks is portrayed as a busy man whose main goal is to work and earn money for his family to survive in this foreign land he now calls home. He is so focused on trying to belong to this alien society rather than maintaining familial ties within his family. “He loved his garden like an only child,” Peter uses a simile to express the bond between Feliks and his garden. It is highlighting the concept of belonging and the sense of ownership that Feliks has in his garden. The poet has come to recognize the happiness and connection his father feels in this place of belonging he has created for himself; although the child feels the desire to be part of that happiness with his father, he has the feeling that he will always remain distant. On the other hand, even if the child feels distant and has no sense of connection with his father, he recognizes the agony and pain that his father goes through daily to build his family's future in the new home. “Never once did I hear him complain about work, time, or pain,” this indicates that the narrator is attentive to his father's experiences and respects his father's persistence in continuing to work to earn a living. The audience realizes that the poet's admiration and love for his father is great, but at times he feels distant. The concept of belonging to a family is understood through Feliks and his son in the poem Feliks Skrzynecki. The poem basically refers to the love that the child feels towards his father, as well as the desire he feels forreceive the same kind of love in return. This portrayal allows the audience to connect with the individuals in the poem, as they may realize that there may be children in this society who may have the same feelings towards their parents. Children may feel disconnected from their parents as they may feel that their parents are always too busy to create that attachment within the family. This may lead them to search for their own identity and discover aspects of life on their own, rather than being taught by their family. Therefore, belonging within a family is an important aspect of understanding one's individual identity and making the right decisions at different stages of one's life. The idea of ​​belonging exists in every aspect of one's life, however it can manifest itself in a way that they belong but at the same time there is a sense of disconnection. It is human nature to immediately begin the search for belonging wherever an individual is, however, only some individuals have the benefit of finding connection. This is evident in the poem Migrant Hostel by Peter Skrzynecki, as all the individuals feel alienated in this foreign land they have entered, yet they seek comfort and refuge in each other as they are all overcoming the same experiences. The Skrzyneckis feel a sense of unease in this new place they find themselves in now, without even being introduced, they are expected to adapt to a new way of life, and this has been applied to the majority of migrants who have arrived here with them. It is a human necessity to feel some sort of connection wherever an individual is, as it distances them from feelings of isolation and depression, feeling as if they have a place in the world. If an individual truly seeks to belong, he or she will find a place everywhere that has something in common with his or her personal characteristics. Peter Skrzynecki says in his poem "nationalities seek each other instinctively", this underlines the fact that individuals feel the desire to belong to the people around them and therefore automatically recognize those of their own ethnic origin. However, although these individuals have found comfort in each other, they are all struggling to belong in this new environment, as it is not what they are used to being exposed to. “Newcomer arrivals” are not even recognized by their individual names or anything to do with their identity, but are instead defined as the majority of anonymous individuals newly entering the country. All of these individuals in the poem are not recognized by anything other than a collection of migrants, so they feel alienated from Australian society, yet they still manage to comfort each other and build an attachment within the group. Audiences relate to this idea in the sense that it is a natural human instinct to find a sense of belonging wherever we are, they will come to the realization that although our context may not always meet needs, we will always find a place of comfort, even if it might not be anything important. Belonging to a family plays a productive role in shaping one's identity, as they base their preferences on family traditions and what their ethnicity allows. It is family history that allows individuals to develop a better understanding of who they truly are. If an individual cannot maintain a strong bond of connection within their family, they will struggle to find comfort elsewhere, even if it is possible. Blind Date by Janette Turner explains the importance of honesty and good relationships between families, because without them the truth will be revealed later and the outcome could.