On The Jellicoe Road Analysis

Melina Marchetta uses a plethora of themes within ‘on the Jellicoe Road’ to establish the major characters. The themes of the text all revolve around self-discovery and identity, thus they link together to give readers an in depth understanding of the characters world. Ultimately, themes have the ability to create exceedingly complex characters, and Marchetta demonstrates this within the novel.

It must firstly be understood that novels have the ability to incorporate multiple themes; often they’ll involve a main theme along with sub-genres within that. The Jellicoe Road has obvious themes of friendship and family. It also has underlying themes of mystery and romance. In saying this, the dominant theme throughout the entire text is

Often this happens without the author’s intention. For example, in the sci-fi genre, the protagonist is often involved with science in some way.
Without a theme in place readers would not know the ways Taylor was affected by her abandonment. By having the theme of belonging, readers gain a deeper understanding of Taylors world and thoughts. She’s felt neglected and alone from the time she was seven, resulting in a desperate need to belong. Family and Friendship are also main aspects of Taylor’s life, along with other main characters in the story, namely Jonah. As these are big themes of the characters lives, they become themes of the novel.

The author of Jellicoe Road uses themes to build her characters. This is shown through not only plot but through language. Marchetta uses simple language techniques in a clever way that allows the most intricate characterisations.
Language is used to establish the characters Australian heritage through their slang and speaking patterns; “Other times it’s a few to the gut and presto…” “Oh bloody wonderful”– Jonah (pages 113 and 125).
Writing techniques are used to develop the characters along with the theme. Similes and comparisons are used on multiple occasions throughout the

This makes the themes of belonging and family even more prominent.
Foreshadowing is used within these flashbacks, as the events that occur in these begin to mirror those happening to Taylor. Readers discover that Hannah has also struggled with belonging, as in chapter 14 Hannah (Narnie) speaks of how she doesn’t know what to do since Webb’s disappearance. This foreshadows Taylor’s journey, as losing those close to her resulted in her lack of self-belonging. All the themes of the novel link together, as family and friends resolve Taylors story arc by giving her a place to belong.

Ultimately, the themes of the novel are used in such a way that allows readers to gain a better understanding of the characters. The themes of the novel are themes of the major characters worlds, essentially giving readers a look inside the characters head. Melanie Marchetta applied language techniques to furthermore emphasise the themes of the story. Overall, the authors use of themes created a fictional world full of complex and realistic