Australian Context

Tomorrow when the war began was set in the southern hemispheric country of Australia. Many of the features in the novel, such as the bush, are a representation of what Australia is really like. It comes to my attention that many American students do not have a proper understanding of the novel due to aspects of Australian life and culture that are unfamiliar them. Some of these include: landscape and Australian language. The term "bush" is iconic in Australia. It describes the wooded, dry and grassland forest. The Bush is unique to Australia and is shown by the love that comes from the teenagers that camp in the Australian bushland. The Author John Marsden and Director Stuart Beattie have both shown how the bush land has portrayed Australia. "It sounds crazy with all the bush around us, but firewood was quite hard to get, because the bush was so dense. Its features of Australian Natural life, is the key aspect of our National identity which has been portrayed in many ways through paintings, food, literature and many more.

John Marsden is an excellent author and brings the story to life, with a mix of narrative techniques throughout the novel such as humour, affection, tension, suspense and action. As well as, direct speech, and colloquial language.

Our everyday slang reflects experiences from our country's history. Australian slang, applies humour to everyday sentences and many words have been embraced by other countries all over the globe. John Marsden, used slang, to represent a feature of Australia. Tomorrow When the War Began, includes a group of seven teenagers, from a small country town that decide to go on a camping trip. "We could take the Landie, but I was the only one allowed to drive it, even though Kevin had his P's." John Marsden, created narrative aspects, through first, person narrative voice, comparison, colloquial language and choice of words.

Slang matters because it is common in Australia and it is a mark of socialisation. Landscape is also important because it's not just scenery, but it links nature with culture. Both of these aspects are valued in today's society and important to Australian's and their pride.

The Australian Bush