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About Author
Tim Winton is a renowned Australian author known for his novels that explore the human experience and the landscapes of his homeland. He has received recognition for his work, winning the Australian Literary Award for the best-unpublished novel manuscript in 1982 with his manuscript An Open Swimmer. His notable novels include That Eye, the Sky (1986), Dirt Music (2001), and Breath (2008), in addition to several children’s books. The story ‘Neighbours’ features a recently married couple who move into a multicultural and multilingual neighborhood and highlights how cultural and linguistic barriers are not obstacles to showing love and compassion. The story follows the couple’s journey in adjusting to living in a neighborhood with European migrants and how they eventually form relationships with their Neighbours despite the language barriers and cultural differences.
Summary
The story “Neighbours” was written by Tim Winton, an Austrian novelist. His full name is Timothy John Winton. Winton’s story neighbours is about a newly married couple living in a multicultural and multilingual neighbourhood. The story shows that cultural and linguistic barriers cannot stop people from presenting love and compassion. Every member of society is like a part of the same family. This story also tells us that how much neighbours are important for us, no matter what their culture, tradition, and ethics. They all become like a part of the same family when they live together in the same society.
This story starts, when a new-married young couple first comes to their new home. They felt strange like a foreign land because of the new place and neighbourhood. Perhaps due to new culture, dress and language. The street was full of European migrants. On their left, Macedonia family lived, and on the right, a widow from Poland was living. A new couple’s house was small but it had a high ceiling and paned window which gave them the feel of the stylish cottage. The neighbours seemed careful about the young man.
Before coming to a new home, the young man and woman used to live in the outer residence where good neighbours were seldom seen and never heard. So, they assumed their new neighbours were the same. Macedonia family made shouted, screamed and spoke angrily. The sounds of washing, spitting and watering were disturbing them. It took six months for a young couple to understand their neighbour only talking, not more than that. The old Polish man spent most of his day hammering the nails into woods uselessly. Relations are uncomfortable for many months. The young man also disliked the little boy next to his door who urinated in the street. He once saw the little boy spraying urine on the cat from the back step. When the little boy stood at the fence with his blue coloured eyes, it made him nervous.
In the autumn, the young couple cleared rubbish from their backyard and manured the soil. They planted vegetables such as onions, cabbage, beans etc. The neighbours came to the fence and offered advice to a young man about the ways of planting, spacing, hilling, mulching. He paid proper attention to their advice. After some time, the young man and woman built a henhouse but it fell down. A Polish man who disturbed him at the beginning came without invitation and rebuilt it. They did not understand the word Polish man spoke because of the difference in their language. Now, they shared their things with their neighbours and assisted each other in the work.
The young man worked at his thesis on the development of the twentieth century novel. He also cooked dinner for his wife and listened to her stories of abnormal patients and hospital incompetence (inability to do something). This surprised the neighbours. The couple learnt many things from Macedonian family-like how to slaughter/kill an animal for food and pluck, how to dress etc. Now, the couple felt comfortable with neighbours They enjoyed telling stories etc. with each other. They found themselves shouting along with neighbours. Now, they were closer to their neighbours despite their cultural difference, language differences, etc.
Although a young couple haven’t planned for a child, they became parents so early. A young woman got pregnant and she arranged for maternity leave. When neighbours knew about woman’s pregnancy, people smiled tirelessly at them. One neighbour gave him a small gift that contains chocolates. Italian woman offered the name of the coming child. Greek woman felt a young woman’s belly and predicted the new guest (child) is a boy. The woman next to door knitted a suit for the baby. All the neighbours loved and cared for them during her pregnancy time. The young woman felt happy and grateful. Neighbours assisted the young woman in her hard time of pregnancy. When a baby was born, whole neighbours celebrated it and welcomed the new child in the world. After seeing the helping nature and positive attitude of neighbours, the young man began to weep.
Understanding the text
Answer the following questions.
- Describe how the young couple’s house looked like.
Ans: A new couple’s house was small but it had a high ceilings and paned window which gave them the feel of the stylish cottage. From his study window, the young man could see a car yards, rooftop, Moreton Bay (a bay located on the eastern coast of Australia) park where he went on a walk with his dog.
2. How did the young couple identify their neighbours in the beginning of their arrival?
Ans: The young people recognized their neighbours as uncivilized and annoying people in the beginning of their arrival. Their neighbours. made different types of unwanted noise which disturb and irritate them. Before coming to a new home, he used to live in a residential area where good neighbours were seldom seen and never heard. So, they assumed their new neighbours are the same. In this way, they have negative impression about their neighbours in the beginning of their arrival.
3. How did the neighbours help the young couple in the kitchen
Ans: The young couple cleared rubbish from their backyard and turned and manured the soil, and start planting vegetables. The neighbours suggested the couple about the ways of planting, spacing, hilling and mulching the vegetables. The neighbours provided them some seeds and vegetables as well. garden?
4. Why were the people in the neighborhood surprised at the role of the young man and his wife in their family?
Ans: Generally in our culture, it is thought that men do jobs out of the home and earn money. Similarly, women only do household work. In the case of a young couple, the young man stayed at home and did domestic work but his wife worked at hospital. That’s why, the people in the neighborhood were surprised at the role of the young man and his wife in their family.
5. How did the neighbours respond to the woman’s pregnancy?
Ans: When neighbours knew about woman’s pregnancy. People smiled tirelessly at the couple. One neighbour gave him a small gift that contained chocolates. Italian woman offered the name of the coming child. Greek woman felt a young woman’s belly and predicted the new guest (child) was a boy. The woman next to door knitted the baby a suit. All the neighbours loved and cared for them during her pregnancy time. The young woman felt happy and grateful. Neighbours assisted the young woman in her hard time of pregnancy.
6. Why did the young man begin to weep at the end of the story?
Ans: The young couple had thought their neighbours as uncivilized and annoying people in the beginning of their arrival because their neighbours made different types of unwanted noise which disturb and irritate them. But later neighbours helped the young woman in the time of her pregnancy. When a baby was born, whole neighbours celebrated and welcomed the new child in the world. So the young man began to weep at the end of the story after seeing neighbours’ helping nature, care and love.
7. Why do you think the author did not characterize the persons in the story with proper names?
Ans: I think the author did not characterize the person in the story with proper names to focus on multiculturalism rather than individualist. The writer wants to explain the cultural difference, linguistic differences and geographical differences in the story. Although the persons in the story are not characterized with proper names, they are regarded as role models in the society for everyone.
Reference to the context
1. The story shows that linguistic and cultural barriers do not create any obstacle in human relationship. Cite some examples from the story where the neighbours have transcended such barriers.
Ans: This story shows that linguistic and cultural barriers do not create any obstacle in human relationships. In the story, we see that different types of people are living in a society that comes from different cultural, religious backgrounds and also from different countries whose languages differ from one another. But they all are living together like a family.
In this story, the young couple doesn’t like their neighbours in the beginning of their arrival because their neighbours made different types of unwanted noise which disturb and irritate them. But now, they like their neighbours and they have positive attitude toward their neighbours. This also shows that new neighbours take some time to adjust as a member of the society.
2. The last sentence of the story reads “The twentieth-century novel had not prepared him for this.” In your view, what differences did the young man find between twentieth-century novels and human relations?
In my view, the young man as the writer used to think that the people in twentieth were selfish and helpless and his thought become true for sometimes when he had just shifted to the new community. The people of the community are noisy and annoying. They used to make noises and shout each others. Even the small kids also have poor sanitation. But when he and his wife need small help too, all the neighbours helped them without saying a word. Yeh way of counselling each othes in nedd and sharing happiness with each othe touches his heart and proved him wrong. He found the huge difference between his thinking and reality. His thinking changed and he said that the novel for which he was researching had not prepared for him.
3. A Nepali proverb says “Neighbours are companions for wedding procession as well as for funeral procession.” Does this proverb apply in the story? Justify.
Ans: A Nepali proverb says “Neighbours are companions for wedding procession as well as for funeral procession”. This proverb shows -the social harmony and relationship of people in Nepali community. This proverb shows that neighbours are important part of the society; no matter what is the culture, language and tradition of neighbours. They all become the members of the same family. If someone has marriage, puja, rice feeding ceremony etc. in the society, neighbours go there and help for arrangements. They don’t go there only to celebrate. It is almost impossible to conduct such ceremonies without the help of neighbours in the society. Similarly if someone dies in the society, neighbours go in that house and share grief. They help for funeral procession. They postpone even their personal work and involve either in happy or sad ceremony.
This proverb is also applicable in this story. When they were gardening, neighbours come to the fence and offer advice to a young man about the ways of planting, spacing, hilling, mulching. When a baby is born, whole neighbours celebrate it and welcome the new guest (child) in the world. Neighbours also help them in their diffiiculty. When neighbours know about woman’s pregnancy, they love and care for them. Neighbours assisted the young woman in her hard time of pregnancy. In this way, we can say this Nepali proverb applies in the story.
4. The author has dealt with an issue of multiculturalism in the story. Why do you think multiculturalism has become a major issue in the present world?
Ans: Multiculturalism refers the presence of several distinct cultural or ethnic groups within a society. It has become a major issue in the present world because it invites a number of social problems like conflict, discrimination, groupism, etc. Multiculturalism also may be the reason for the crime, political instability, discrimination in the recruitment, selection, and promotion of the job.
Reference beyond the text
1. Write an essay on Celebration of Childbirth in my Community.
Celebration of Childbirth in my Community
Childbirth celebration is the ceremony or ritual to celebrate the birth of a child with joy and happiness. My community is a hindu majority community with the majority of castes like Brahmin, Chhetris, Newar, Magar etc. Due to the majority of Hindu my community people worship child as the image of god. Specially girls are considered as goddess, laxmi and sarswati in my community. Every good works are started with worshipping the girls.
When a baby get birth in my community, people congratulate the parents and celebrate it as a ceremony. When the child become of 6 days, there is a ritual known as chhaiti. In this day it is believed the god comes to write the future of that baby. So, the lamp is burn all over the night and a paper and pen is kept below the childs pillow so that God will come and write the child’s future. After that at the 11th day of child birth there is naming ceremony called ‘Nwaran’. At this the day the child is give a name. When the child is of 5-6 months, there is weaning ceremony in which the child is feded with different kinds of foods especially rice. This day is also known as rice fedding day.
This is how the people celebrate in my community at the birth of a child.
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