Michael Gow's Waiting On The World To Change

Change is a process, transition or alteration that affects all aspects of life and can affect attitudes, beliefs and behaviours. Michael Gow’s play ‘Away’ conflicts emotional, spiritual and mental change expressed through the characters along their journey of change. Gow has chosen characters such as Coral, Tom and Gwen to demonstrate the different types of changes that occur in the play ‘Away’. Gow uses techniques such as Intertextuality, allusion, structure, stage direction and symbolism to present the transformations the characters experience. In the song and video clip ‘Waiting on the world to change’ composed by John Myer, change is demonstrated through the reference of war and the hope of a change in future. Myer uses poetic techniques and symbolism to show the changes

It is a stage direction as the fairies in the opening scene symbolise a storm which refers to the internal conflict within the characters and the consequences of their individual changes just like a storm creates changes after it has occurred. The storm is a necessary destruction that brings the characters together on a ‘magical’ beach to be restored and reconciled. The characters at this point have all experienced change and the storm is cataylst of their transformation. Upon coming home after the family holidays, the play completes a full circle by ending the play where it started. Although the play completed a circle, so have the characters that have undergone a total transformation in outlook by the end of the play. It is shown that changes are evident in both texts and provide similar values or concepts that encounter change.

Coral’s mental and emotional state is overcome by the acceptance of her son’s death while Tom and Gwen present spiritual and mental change when the reality of Tom’s condition has been