Sentimental Bloke and Australian Culture

Question: Discuss about the Sentimental Bloke and Australian Culture. Answer: Introduction: The Sentimental Bloke is an Australian film that is based on the poems from the Songs of a Sentimental Bloke, a piece done by Dennis C. J. This literary work is a piece that has literary been considered one of the greatest silent film in Australia. The book sets out to depict Bill, the author as one who wants to quit his gambling and drinking addiction. This film tends to mooch along a series of vignettes drawn from the poem. Before this becomes actualized, Bill gets arrested and gets a six-month incarceration after he is found in a gamble. Upon his release, he falls in love with one Doreen who gets her stipend from a pickle factory. The Sentimental Bloke is an affectionately known book that takes pride in its portrayal of naturalism and acts of humor. The literary work is set in Melbourne but later, the author, together with his family relocated to Sydney, a city well known for its toughness and reputable reservation. The violent gangs had since disappeared into thin air just before the city came to light, just in the wake of the continent recovering from the First World War (Conor, 23). This is a story set right in its historical context with vast visits on the happenings of the unforgettable period of war in world history. Being set at a time when the war was at its peak, the book is believed to have derived its popularity from among the war veterans and post-war soldiers of the time. The Sentimental Bloke serves to connect Australia and the Great Britain in the manner in which it won admiration from the public. The Play proved a success in the UK unlike in the United States where it was a flop. The reason why the film was not a hit in the US was its difficult prose which the audience failed to comprehend and internalize. It was not until the Melbourne fire tragedy that the film got some challenges, but this was not to see its end as some parts of the movie had been saved from the inferno and went ahead to be cast at the Sydney Film Festival (Boyd, 3-18). The other connection between Australia and Great Britain is how the author juxtaposes with the foppish Briton soldier who was played by his wife while on duty. The wife who also happens to be in combat is portrayed to have pantomime tights and plumed military cap. According to the author, her characters have been depicted to portray the link between effeminacy and dandy dress. The theme of masculinity and feminism has also been expressed in the film. The fil was a masculine affair. The play presents an expression of heterosexual romantic affair pitting a male character from a male perspective, a fact that is expressed in a self-consciously manly way. In this regard, the play touches a cultural nerve in some way (Bellanta, 1-20). The pre and post war times were marred by the confusion as to what the role of men and women were about romance. The Australian men were supposed to be foot soldiers and while on their return, were expected to nurse and care for their young ones as they turned into caring spouses. The other instance that depicts masculine versus feminine state was the case of the larrikin digger. His celebration was a blatant ridicule to the female rowdies (Lawson, 18-32). In his thought, he strived to express his wish to have the larrikinism affair be an entirely masculine affair as no single female rose to prominence after or during the war. The theme of high culture versus popular culture has been given weight in this film. It is known that the archetypal appearance of the Anzac was one of a drunkard, anti-authoritarian and one that was full of impudent humor as well as nonchalance in the face of many. This was a culture that was first eclipsed in the acts of the Australian servicemen who saw to it that it was prudent to have such self-actualization and self-generation of culture (Edmondson et al. 11). This culture and name calling was viewed to have been derived from their numerous stories and jokes about themselves refereeing to one another as diggers. The film then portrays the digger with all manner of attributes that range from carelessness to being an introvert who thrives in disheveled clothes. Conclusively, the film is a bona fide production that stands the test of time. It an Australian cinema at its best, dramatic, emotionally earnest and funny film that is still intact in the memories of many viewers. This movie should be recommended for anyone who wishes to have a silent cinema with a beautifully narrated story. Works Cited Bellanta, Melissa. "A Masculine Romance: The Sentimental Bloke and Australian Culture in the War-and Early Interwar Years."Journal of Popular Romance Studies4.2 (2014): 1-20. Bellanta, Melissa. "Posts Tagged masculinity." Boyd, David. "The public and private lives of a Sentimental Bloke."Cinema Journal(1998): 3-18. Conor, Liz.The spectacular modern woman: Feminine visibility in the 1920s. Indiana University Press, 2004. Edmondson, Ray, and Andrew Pike.Australia's Lost Films: The loss and rescue of Australia's silent cinema. National Library Australia, 1982. Lawson, Sylvia. "Towards decolonisation: Film history in Australia."Nellie Melba, Ginger Meggs and Friends, Kibble Books, Malmsbury, Vic(1982): 18-32.