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Lost Identity In The Sapphires

1365 Words6 Pages

Introduction
The Sapphires illustrates the ways in which the stolen generation continues to have repercussions against the indigenous community. The stolen generation was a period of time where children were violently snatched from their families and forced into houses and institutions that lied, abused, and humiliated them. When the children were taken away, relationships were ripped to shreds as the children lost their sense of belonging alongside their beliefs. This loss in connection left unresolved conflicts and impaired relationships that by the time they reunited years later, the resentment towards each other had built and the argument was brutal enough for the relationship to become inrepairable. The Europeans brainwashed the childrens …show more content…

When kay was plucked from her family she was relocated to an area with an abundance of white people and white culture. Her land, her family, and any of her culture was immediately stripped away from her. The drastic change of scenery perplexed Kay and her moral compass started to break as the people she was now surrounded by challenged her previous views. Before she was taken, her identity relied heavily on the land and the traditions encompanied with it, now that it was taken away from her she was unable to use those resources to find herself and instead she would be forced to use the people she now associated with as guides to follow. The Europeans had a very different idea of life and taught Kay about judgement, what they believed to be right and wrong, and the social hierarchy they had created. Kay had to not only adapt to those values but figure out who she was through the layers of judgment she had learned. Kay’s identity could not fully develop due to the restrictions put up on her and her life since then was spent restraining her true identity, until she ultimately reunites with her cousins for the tour in Vietnam. “Don't go telling me what I am and what I'm not. I didn't get a say in how things worked out for me” (Kay). The loss of the land and culture to the people who were snatched from their homes proved to be problematic later in life when they were in dire need of figuring out who they were and what they wanted from

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