Eta Away v1 10

Away
Area of Study: Discovery

copyright ETA 2014
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Home How to use this resource
The ETA discovery resource has been designed for your convenience with various levels of interactivity suitable for a
Table of Contents computer classroom, a smartboard classroom or a conventional paper and pen classroom. The resource is organised
to take you from introductory to complex ideas about discovery.
The Area of Study: Syllabus
Navigation
Prereading The main navigation is on the side bar which takes you to chapter headings, but for more details of lower levels of
navigation you need to go to the table of contents with subheadings.
Close Study of Text Worksheets
The Worksheets navigation tool takes you to headings of the various worksheets. These can be downloaded so you
Dramatic Devices can use a paper copy or they can be used online as interactive worksheets. Links to worksheets also appear in blue
on the relevant chapter pages. We recommend that you share the introductory explanation on the main page of the
Themes and Values resource with students before progressing to the attached worksheet.
Weblinks
Readings Embedded in the body of each relevant page you will find weblinks to videos, poems, websites, articles and extracts.
Use the pink words on each page.
Synthesising the Learning Slide show
The pages of the resource can work as a slide show if you want to go through sections on screen with a class. The
Assessment embedded weblinks will also work in this format.
Teaching notes prepared by: Help

Worksheets
Editor: Eva Gold, Executive Officer The resource is in Adobe PDF format. If you find that it
Writer: Mel Dixon, Resources Officer does not open on your computer then you may need to
Bibliography install the PDF Reader.
Acknowledgement
Some pages build on previous ETA Away resources
by Jenny Holland, Kim Bow and Maree Herrett. This is a free download from the Adobe website.
http://get.adobe.com/reader/
Layout and Design: Rod Carter
Images: Darcy Moore
copyright ETA 2014 2

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Home
The Area Of Study: Syllabus 5 Dramatic Devices 28
Table of Contents
Area of Study: Discovery Intertextuality
The Area of Study: Syllabus Prereading 8 Framing
Exploring the concept Play within a play
Prereading Context Music
Context in the play Symbolism
Close Study of Text
Title Themes And Values 33
Away as a play of discovery Ideas of the text
Dramatic Devices
Dramatising the play Allegory
Representing discovery in the play Readings 36
Themes and Values
Close Study of Text 15 Synthesising the Learning 38
Readings Form Play elements and discovery
Genre Related texts
Synthesising the Learning Comedy and comic relief
Assessment 40
Structure
Assessment Plot organisation Worksheets 43
Plot Table Bibliography 72
Worksheets Character and relationships
Setting
Bibliography
Language

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Home Terms and Conditions
ETA resources are created online for ease of use with your own classes only. It is an expectation of purchase that you
Table of Contents respect these conditions.
The Area of Study: Syllabus This resource is not to be forwarded or shared

Prereading electronically this includes uploading to websites
or facebook.
Close Study of Text
It is for use with your classes only.
Dramatic Devices
The ETA is a not-for-profit organisation run for the benefit of its teacher members. While these resources are
expensive to produce, it is their sale that helps to keep membership costs to a minimum.
Themes and Values
Copyright terms and conditions resource on all Commercial-available materials
Readings The ETA is a not-for-profit organisation run for the benefit of its teacher members. While these resources are expen-
sive to produce, it is their sale that helps to keep membership costs to a minimum.
Synthesising the Learning
By downloading the ETA resource Away you are agreeing to the following terms and conditions.
Assessment
1. You must not copy, distribute (print, electronic), adapt or edit without prior written permission of the NSW
English Teachers Association Inc.
Worksheets 2. You must not use the material for commercial purposes
3. You must not storage the material on a retrieval system
Bibliography
If you modify, transform, or repurpose the material, you may not distribute the modified material.
For information about copyright, terms and conditions contact: admin@englishteacher.com.au

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The Area of Study is the prescribed common content for Stage 6 HSC English Standard and Advanced courses. It
Table of Contents
constitutes 40 % of the course in terms of time allocation, HSC examination and internal assessment weighting.

An Area of Study is the exploration of a concept that affects our perceptions of ourselves and our
Prereading
world. Students explore, analyse, question and articulate the ways in which perceptions of this con-
cept are shaped in and through a variety of texts.
Close Study of Text
In the Area of Study, students explore and examine relationships between language and text, and
interrelationships among texts. They examine closely the individual qualities of texts while consider-
Dramatic Devices
ing the texts relationships to the wider context of the Area of Study. They synthesise ideas to clarify
meaning and develop new meanings. They take into account whether aspects such as context,
Themes and Values purpose and register, text structures, stylistic features, grammatical features and vocabulary are
appropriate to the text.
Readings Stage 6 Syllabus English Board of Studies NSW 2009 p. 29

The HSC examination Paper 1 Area of Study (COMMON to both Standard and Advanced) is a two-hour paper divid-
ed into three sections:
Assessment
1. A number of short responses to several unseen texts
2. An imaginative composition for a specified context and audience
Worksheets
3. An extended response incorporating the prescribed texts and additional texts.
Bibliography All of these sections will be connected by the concept of DISCOVERY.
Students will compose a range of critical, interpretive and imaginative texts. They should write reflections in prose
form, dialogue and in diagrammatic form.
This will provide students with an opportunity to experiment with different kinds of composing and to reflect on their
own learning. (Syllabus Outcome 13)

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Area of Study: Discovery
What is the rubric focus? The rubric What do we need to do?
What values IN society about This Area of Study requires students to explore the ways in which the concept of How does Away represent discovery?
discovery is Gow conveying discovery is represented in and through texts.
THROUGH poems
Discoveries can be seen in Discovery can encompass the experience of discovering something for the first Define what kind of discovery the
contradictory ways note oppositions time or rediscovering something that has been lost, forgotten or concealed. characters are making and locate the
in this paragraph Discoveries can be sudden and unexpected, or they can emerge from a different stages as a process from
process of deliberate and careful planning evoked by curiosity, necessity or initial stimulus to the final outcome.
A series of adjectives offers the range wonder. Discoveries can be fresh and intensely meaningful in ways that may Are there any contradictory views
of ways discovery can be defined be emotional, creative, intellectual, physical and spiritual. They can also be about discovery in the play Away?
confronting and provocative. They can lead us to new worlds and values, Consider the way discovery is
Discovery is a process from initial stimulate new ideas, and enable us to speculate about future possibilities. revealed, the values connected to
stimulus to the way it is revealed to Discoveries and discovering can offer new understandings and renewed discovery, and the effects it has on
the values it creates and the effects it perceptions of ourselves and others. individuals and the way we see the
has on individuals world.
What are the contexts of discovery in

Discovery is composed in its context An individuals discoveries and their process of discovering can vary according to
the play?
and received in different contexts over personal, cultural, historical and social contexts and values. The impact of these
How does each characters person-
time in different ways discoveries can be far-reaching and transformative for the individual and for
al context affect the process of their
broader society. Discoveries may be questioned or challenged when viewed from
discovery?
The impact of discovery changes different perspectives and their worth may be reassessed over time. The ramifi-
according to context (of individuals cations of particular discoveries may differ for individuals and their worlds.
How does your context affect the way
and world)
you perceive/ discover the text?
Critique, question, challenge, reassess
Gows ideas.

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What is the rubric focus? The rubric What do we need to do?
Understanding assumptions in texts and By exploring the concept of discovery, students can understand how texts Search for and question the assumptions
in the responder leads to greater depth have the potential to affirm or challenge individuals or more widely-held as- about discovery in the text and in yourself.
of understanding about the concept. sumptions and beliefs about aspects of human experience and the world.
Through composing and responding to a wide range of texts, students may Collect and synthesise perspectives
Language form and features are the make discoveries about people, relationships, societies, places and events from a range of texts to lead to deeper
vehicles used by composers to convey and generate new ideas. By synthesising perspectives, students may understanding.
meaning deepen their understanding of the concept of discovery. Students consider
the ways composers may invite them to experience discovery through their How do language modes forms and
texts and explore how the process of discovering is represented using a features affect discovery?
variety of language modes, forms and features.
This section refers directly to the stu- In their responses and compositions, students examine, question, and How is your reading of this text and dis-
dent experience which needs to be reflect and speculate on: covery affected by your experiences?
interrogated in order to comprehend the their own experiences of discovery
representation of discovery the experience of discovery in and through their engagement with Write critically about the way discovery is
texts represented in the prescribed and related
Writing well means acknowledging where assumptions underlying various representations of the concept of texts through language.
you are coming from as you explore the discovery
representations in texts which emerge how the concept of discovery is conveyed through the representa- Build on your personal experiences and
through language tions of people, relationships, societies, places, events and ideas understanding to compose your own
that they encounter in the prescribed text and other related texts of original pieces on discovery.
their own choosing
how the composers choice of language modes, forms, features and
structure shapes representations of discovery and discovering
the ways in which exploring the concept of discovery may broaden
and deepen their understanding of themselves and their world.
TASK: At the end of their study of the play students should use their understanding to respond to all questions and activities relating to the rubric in the third
column.

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PREREADING
Home
Exploring the Concept
Table of Contents
It is important that students are introduced to the concept of Discovery before launching into the study of the core
The Area of Study: Syllabus text. Students should read and discuss the rubric. The ETA publication Discovery: the concept has many activities to
make students engage with the words of the rubric.
Prereading Other ways of getting into the topic.
Students:
Close Study of Text 1. Brainstorm the feelings and words that come to mind when they hear discovery - they can categorise these
words by synonyms and by feelings. They can also consider discovery as an inner (self-growth) and outer
Dramatic Devices experience (about the world).
2. Share their holiday experiences who goes on regular annual holidays, what are the destinations (i.e. the same
Themes and Values place every time or new locations), what are the elements of these types of holidays that the students most
remember/enjoy? How might these types of holidays be experienced differently by their parents? What types of
discovery does a holiday yield?
Readings
3. Can be given a range of texts that deal with discovery: a scientific text; a travel journal or article extract; a short
story; a history text; an advertisement. Students:
Identify the kind of person is the text targeting
Assessment compare the different ways discovery is represented in these texts

list the positive and negative aspects of the discovery that the text explores
Worksheets consider the connotations (associated feelings) around this representation

think through the associated consequences.
Bibliography This is a way of introducing related text possibilities and the process of comparison. Related texts do not have to
be about the same topic as the prescribed text.
4. Students could design a visual representation of the concept Going Away and how that leads to discovery.
Worksheet 1: Starting Writing

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Context
Home
Table of Contents There are always three contexts to consider with any text. Sometimes they may coincide but when there is
difference this affects meaning as an audience today cannot approach a text written in 1986 with the same
The Area of Study: Syllabus understanding as an audience at that time. Everything we read we see from the perspective of the context we
live in and that we have lived in.
Prereading
Close Study of Text
Dramatic Devices Context of the play Context of the author The reader/viewer
Themes and Values When is the play set? When and where was When is the play being
Where is the play set? the play written? seen/read?
Readings What was happening What was happening in What knowledge does
there and then? that place then? the audience/reader
What attitudes and If the contexts of the bring to the play?
Assessment values are understood author and the text are Under what
by the characters? differenent then why has circumstances is the
Worksheets the author chosen another play being responded
time or place? to?
Bibliography

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Context in the play
Home
It will be useful for students to understand the time in which the play is set: 1967 1968. This was the beginning of
Table of Contents great social, political and cultural change (feminism, black power, anti-war etc) against conservative values.
Production of the play

The Area of Study: Syllabus Students should also consider the context of the writing in 1986. What was happening then? How would a playwrights
historical and cultural context influence writing about an Australia twenty years earlier?
Prereading
Close Study of Text 1968 - Setting of the play 1986 - Context of author at the time of
writing
Dramatic Devices
Growing post-war prosperity and Time of global economic rationalism
Themes and Values subsequent social change
Readings Booming immigration (New Australians) Time of boat people
Vietnam War and marches Falklands war (1982)

Assessment
Task
Students should read the Introduction by May-Brit Akerholt which provides some contextual information about these
Worksheets
times. They can construct a timeline of events that are listed.
Bibliography Note: Remind students context should only be included in a discussion where it is relevant, with examples
from the play.
Worksheet 2: Cultural Knowledge

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Title
Home
1. Ask students to think about the simplicity of this title. What does the title suggest?
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2. Suggest to students that holidays or going away not only imply the act of going somewhere but also the idea
of returning or coming home. The discoveries made on holiday can affect the person who comes back home.
The Area of Study: Syllabus They leave behind the old self and come back renewed. Have students draw up a page in their books with two
columns -one titled Going Away and the other Coming Home. Ask students to categorise the following words/
Prereading phrases into the appropriate column. They should add any other associated words or ideas they think of.
Close Study of Text leaving behind

going from
going towards
Dramatic Devices reconciliation
returning
Themes and Values journeying to
acceptance
Readings healing
coming back
restoration of self
understanding
difference
Assessment self-knowledge
release
Worksheets
Return to these words with students at the end of the play.
Bibliography 3. How does going away fit in with the idea of discovery?

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Away as a play of discovery
Home
It was a brave decision in 1986 to set a play in 1968. The numerical reversal (86/68) may appear contrived but the
Table of Contents contextual comparisons are insightful. Financially 1968 was comfortable with a rising middle class, conveyed through
the two families: Roy and Coral; and Gwen and Jim. Similarly, in 1986, monetarist policies placed Australia into the
The Area of Study: Syllabus global market with a surge of wealth for many. The post war immigration of New Australians in 1968 received as
much criticism and derision as the boat people of 1986 and the low tolerance for New Australians (1968) on the
Prereading part of the upwardly mobile Australians can be seen in Gwens reactions to Toms family. Militarily, Thatcher had just
waged the criticised Falklands War (1982), just as the US with Australia as an ally had waged the Vietnam War in the
Close Study of Text 1960s and devastated so many families (Roy and Coral). The turmoil that marked the late 1960s was therefore very
similar to the turmoil that marked the 1980s and Gows families each exemplify elements of the past social history.
Dramatic Devices But the play is not just about social changes in Australia. It is also about the struggle of the everyday individuals. Each
person in the play has their private pain but each person chooses to face that challenge in different ways. The families
Themes and Values in the play act as groups of like-minded people, protecting each other from the outside world. It is when they discover
the truth that they start to move towards healing and acceptance.
Readings Restoration, reconciliation, realisation and acceptance stand next to self-knowledge as themes of the play. Self-
knowledge is integral to understanding the tragic hero who goes through stages to come to this realisation. It is this
discovery of the self that releases the individual from the pain of everyday existence. Toms illness becomes the
Synthesising the Learning trigger for understanding. His family ha[s] no regrets but we have no hopes. Nevertheless they accept what is to
come. It is when Jim and Gwen learn the story of Toms imminent death that they shed their own burdens and move
Assessment on. Tom also shares his secret and is able to heal Coral from the pain of losing her son in the war.
The play begins as a comedy, moves through stages including melodrama and fantasy but ends with a tragedy
Worksheets through the words of Lear as he moves toward death. Like a true tragedy, anagnorisis (self-knowledge) has to be
achieved before Tom can move on.
Bibliography The play is therefore about discovery as a strong inner force. It is in different places and with different people that we
begin to discover what we often cant see in our everyday lives. To go away physically to a different place allows us to
go away from what we were and discover new ways of being.
Worksheet 3: Free Writing

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Home Dramatising the play
Either
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Students present a dramatised reading of the play in class.
The Area of Study: Syllabus or
Students are divided into groups corresponding to the number of characters in each scene and prepare a
Prereading dramatic presentation of the play, scene by scene. The allocation of this task should be done early enough
to give groups time to prepare their scenes outside of class time, with perhaps one lesson given over to final
rehearsal.
Close Study of Text
Characters should be given a part of their costume or something symbolising their character to wear which remains
constant to retain a sense of consistency through the changes of actors. Choosing an appropriate symbol for each
Dramatic Devices
character can be a useful class activity in representation.
Each group should write a reflection on why they chose to dramatise the scene in the way that they did and how their
Themes and Values
decisions were designed communicated the concerns of the play as they address the concept of discovery.
These reflections could be published on the classroom wall or in a folder on the class communal drive.
Readings
Assessment
Worksheets
Bibliography

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Representing discovery in the play
Home
Student activity
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Divide the class into 5 groups, one for each Act. Have students develop a large wall frieze representing the
development of discovery in the play through:
A plot line
Prereading A collage of images that have been gathered to convey to setting, mood and atmosphere of the act.
Key words that focus on way the play enacts the concept of discovery.
Close Study of Text
Worksheet 4: Key questions for each scene
Dramatic Devices
Themes and Values
Readings
Assessment
Worksheets
Bibliography

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CLOSE STUDY OF TEXT
Home
Form
Table of Contents
Plays are made to be performed so any consideration of the form needs to be aware that the play will be enacted and
not read when it is presented to the public. Every performance is an example of a directors and actors interpretations.
The Area of Study: Syllabus Directors and actors read the play, interpret the lines and then create an experience for the public.
Prereading For the purposes of the HSC Area of Study the focus has to be on the written text but viewing a performance leads
to an awareness of the critical relationship between the words and the performance; that is, the notion of individual
Close Study of Text interpretation. Performance is the realisation of one persons discovery in the text revealed through the performance,
so if a performance is available, try to offer the students the experience.
Dramatic Devices
In the play, just like in the prose text, we look at how setting, context, character and plot convey particular themes and
Themes and Values values supported by a careful choice of language. While it is good to separate these aspects to scaffold the learning it
is also necessary to bring them together to see that every part of the play works to support the others.
Readings Specific elements of form that should be considered are:

Genre
Synthesising the Learning Structure
Plot
Assessment Character
Setting
Language
Worksheets
All the elements of form come together to create meaning in the play. It is through close study that values and themes
Bibliography
can be seen.

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Genre
Home
Comedy is far removed from Tragedy and yet there are texts which are called tragi-comedies. Modern audiences
Table of Contents see the difference between the two as emotional with comedy inciting laughter or happiness and tragedy bringing
sorrow and catharsis. However, generically the two forms have many more differences that emerge through the
The Area of Study: Syllabus language, structure and conventions.
Away is framed by two Shakespearean plays: the comedy Midsummer Nights Dream and the tragedy King Lear.
Prereading
It starts with the epilogue from Midsummer Nights Dream regarded as a comedy. The fact that the quoted section
is from the end of that Shakespearean play foreshadows the end that is to come. A fantasy setting of fairies is
Close Study of Text created with Tom as Puck making his final speech addressing the audience about the process of watching a play.
This self-conscious metatheatrical referencing to the act of creating a play becomes an effective way of establishing
Dramatic Devices for a modern audience that this play will not be naturalistic in some parts it becomes surreal and over-dependent
on coincidences. For example, a storm magically appears, driving all the characters to the same place where they
Themes and Values discover reconciliation and acceptance.
Apart from providing an excuse for later fantastical elements, the opening speech also begins one of the themes of
Readings the play: restore amends. Restoration is the desired outcome and for all the characters it is an acceptance of their
trials but true restoration that is of Toms life and Corals sons life cannot happen in the real world.
Synthesising the Learning In the final scene, back at the schoolyard Tom is reading from King Lear. King Lear is declared by the teacher to be
the greater tragedy against Hamlet which is only one mans struggle. It is in King Lear that the struggle between
man and nature as well as man and man, and between man and himself takes place and it is all three types of
Assessment struggle that are evident in the play Away.
Endings are powerful. They leave the final message and often give us a new framing for what we have seen,
Worksheets elucidating the values of the text. In this ending we have clear statement that the play is a tragedy. The tragedy is
not about death but about struggle and if we follow this hint and go back through the play we start to see that each
Bibliography family is struggling to cast off their burdens.
Tom ends as he begins, reading Shakespeare, but the opening delight of the fairies is replaced by a sombre
darkness, Meantime shall we express our darker purpose. Lear is handing over his kingdom and is preparing to
enter old age, approaching death, without the worries of ruling a kingdom. He wants to crawl to death unburdend.
This invites us to see the play as being a space where characters can unburden themselves. For Tom, this leads to
death but for others there is reconciliation and acceptance of their condition.

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Questions
Home
What is Gow telling us about human nature through this tragi-comic relationship?
Find examples in Away of the struggle between man and nature as well as man and man, and between man
Table of Contents
and himself.
Comedy and Comic Relief
Comedy can emerge from:
Prereading physical actions
verbal interactions
Close Study of Text situations
a sense of familiarity and identifying with characters and their actions.
Dramatic Devices humour addressing group foibles
Comedy is not always comfortable and it is often about laughing at rather than with people. Often, when the comedy is
Themes and Values painfully close to the truth, the effect is pathos or melodrama rather than humour. Interestingly the same attributes can
be evident in tragic or comic texts. Weakness for example can be part of both genres.
Readings
Weakness
Tragedy:
Comedy:
a flaw or a
source of
Assessment vulnerability
laughter
Worksheets
Gwen is a character whose actions can be both comic and tragic.
Bibliography What is her weakness?
Find places where the weakness is comic
Find places where her weakness is tragic
Another element that can both tragic and comic is the appearance of the mysterious stranger on the beach.
In what way does Corals appearance as the stranger on the beach add to both comic and tragic elements of
the play?
Worksheet 5: Tragic or Comic?

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Structure
Home
Students need to understand how structure is about the organisation of the texts. Events are not always chronological.
Table of Contents One characters story can be followed by another characters story or they can interact. Every decision affects
meaning. Juxtaposing one scene against another creates a contrast that adds to the effect. It is therefore a good idea
The Area of Study: Syllabus for students to track the movement of ideas through the scenes and acts.
Away follows the classical structure of a five-act play with the climax in Act 3. It is also framed by two Shakespearean
Prereading plays, Midsummer Nights Dream and King Lear . Midsummer Nights Dream introduces the elements of fantasy that
are sustained throughout the text. The innocence of the fairies at the beginning, the curse Tom delivers to Gwen,
Close Study of Text I hope you have rotten holiday, I hope it rains, the comic relief of the campers who are like the mechanicals in
Midsummer Nights Dream Act 3 scene 3, Corals love of the young Rick and Tom, like Titania and Bottom, the storm
Dramatic Devices that magically brings them together are all elements of fantasy that are connected to Midsummer Nights Dream and
create a structure for the play.
Themes and Values Students should be able to articulate the main idea of a whole act. They need to be reminded that every scene has
to reinforce the main idea in the act, like writing a response with the act being the essay thesis and the scenes being
Readings paragraph headings that support the thesis.
Once each scene is considered a pattern should emerge.
Is the focus in each scene:
About the influence of settings
Assessment About different characters
Showing contrast or similarity
About thematic concerns
Worksheets
Showing the growth of a character or idea
Other?
Bibliography
Understanding texts is about seeing patterns but also about relating this to the focus area that has been set, in this
case Discovery, so follow up for all questions has to be: How has this advanced the concept of discovery?
Worksheet 6: Play structures
Worksheet 7: Tracing discovery

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Plot organisation
Home
The plot centres on three holidays. It starts at a moment of unity then separates as the characters go to different
Table of Contents holidays and later converge again because of the storm.
The penultimate scene of simultaneous mimed actions shows the parallel plots coming together as each pair of char-
The Area of Study: Syllabus acters occupies different parts of the stage. The final scene returns to the school.
There are two types of plot structure in this play: parallel plots and a circular plot returning to the school and play read-
Prereading ing. The parallel plots indicate the separate lives of the characters who need the magic impact of the storm to come
together while the circular plot suggests the cycle of life and death.
Close Study of Text
Dramatic Devices
Themes and Values
Readings
Assessment
Worksheets
Bibliography

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The plot follows a typical pattern:
Home
Exposition Rising Action Climax Resolution
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Exposition unfolding the tensions that are to follow and the secret to be revealed.
The Area of Study: Syllabus What has happened to Coral?
What are the bruises on Toms body
Why can only Coral see these?
Prereading What is making Gwen so angry?
Close Study of Text Student Activity

Locate quotes in the exposition that link to these questions.
Dramatic Devices Rising action a series of parallel plots revealing problems in each family
Student Activity
Themes and Values Explain the problems we see.
Climax falling traditionally in Act 3, in this play it is in each parallel plot. The action of the storm is a
Readings dramatic element that creates a reason to bring the characters together again, while also being a
physical manifestation of the tensions in each family.
Synthesising the Learning Student Activity
What tensions do we see?
Assessment Resolution sharing the truth. Coral is present implicitly in these revelations. By returning to the beginning, the
circular plot ends with a sense of completion.
Worksheets Student Activity:
What revelations are uncovered here?
Bibliography How does the play within a play at amateur night facilitate the themes of the play?
(Act 4 scene 3)
What is the function of the mimed scene? (Act 5 scene 1)
How does the plot control the way discovery is revealed?
How does the final scene relate to the idea of discovery?

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Plot table
Home
The Plot table maps how different types of plot can occur in one text. The plot moves fluently between the parallel
Table of Contents plots in the individual stories and the group stories. The school play and the storm become events that bring together
and reconcile the characters.
Prereading Act Focus of plot Which characters are involved?

Act 1
Close Study of Text Scene 1 Tom is separate in his reading of the play Tom and Roy
Scene 2 The play brings together separate families All the characters except Coral
Scene 3 Coral is separate from the others Coral
Dramatic Devices ACT 2: Preparations for holiday Harry and Tom
Parallel plots Gwen, Jim and Meg
separate Roy and Coral
Themes and Values relationships Tom and Vic
ACT 3: Crisis in each holiday ending in climax of the storm Coral and Roy at Gold Coast
Readings Parallel plots - sep- (magic) Gwen Meg and Jim
arate settings and Coral and Roy in crisis
aspirations Jim and Gwen and storm
Synthesising the Learning Vic Tom Harry after the storm
ACT 4: Reconciliation as the truth is revealed and rein- Vic and Harry tell Jim and Gwen; Coral is
Assessment Plot comes together forced in the play within a play sighted
in the same setting Tom tells Meg; Coral is discussed
Amateur night: all the families except Roy
Worksheets in this play within a play
ACT 5: Resolution as everyone accepts their lives return Mimed actions from all the couples
Bibliography Parallel but on one to normal lives
stage
Circular plot: return Tom ends the play as he began with a play reading Final reading by Tom in the school yard
to the beginning

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Character and relationships
Home
We understand characters through their actions and interactions with others, what they say and what others say about
Table of Contents them. Sometimes their mode of speech, dress, setting and objects around them can also be an indicator of character.
The playwright may also state directly something about the character in the stage directions.
The Area of Study: Syllabus Student activity
1. Collect notes on the characters and then use these notes to write a paragraph describing the character and what
Prereading discovery means for them. The table below about Tom has been done as an example. In the case of Coral you might
also want to consider her as Titania (Midsummer Nights Dream) caught under a spell.
Close Study of Text
2. Use the notes to write a paragraph starting with this topic sentence:
Dramatic Devices Central to the play is the character of Tom, who is never static but changes from scene to scene as he learns about
himself and discovers the inner strength to accept his death.
Themes and Values 3. Use the character tables you have made to write a paragraph with a strong topic sentence that includes the idea of
discovery.
Readings
Assessment
Worksheets
Bibliography

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Tom
Home
Examples Explanation
Table of Contents
Actions He acts the role of Puck in control He is constantly acting a role, trying to protect
The Area of Study: Syllabus He acts the role of the Flying Dutchman, his parents but we realise that his strength is
I can see my life flashing before my eyes going as he acts each of these roles in plays:
Prereading He acts the role of Lear the first full of life, the second doomed and
the third at the end of life.
Close Study of Text Interactions He buys Meg a gift He likes Meg. He is caring and protective of
He jokes with this parents his parents, but he also recognises the pain
Dramatic Devices He befriends the mysterious woman who is of Coral who he befriends and helps through
Coral I told her a thing or two that helped her pain.
Themes and Values What he says I have some memories He is talking from the beginning about mem-
Ill wait and see ories and doesnt anticipate living for long
To Gwen: I hope you have a rotten holiday so he will wait and see when Meg asks him
Readings To Vic: Itll be terrific (holiday) about a career. He is defensive of his par-
To Meg: I want to do it just once ents and reacts angrily to overhearing Gw-
Synthesising the Learning They mustnt find out I know ens criticism. He protects his parents from
As Lear: Unburdend crawl unto death knowing he knows about his imminent death
but in the end faces death with courage.
Assessment
What others Meg: Maybe you read poetry Different people see him very differently as
say about him Deep if he is a chameleon. Their views of Tom tell
Worksheets
Vic: A real Laurence Olivier us more about themselves than about Tom.
Gwen: Hes a bit no hopery Meg imagines him as a romantic figure while
Bibliography Coral: He looked so sick and yet so wonder- her mother sees only his poverty. His parents
ful praise him but only Coral can see the great-
ness beyond the illness.

Away
Relationships
Home
The characters may act as individuals but they also act in groups. The three families can be seen against each other
Table of Contents as foils. Each family carries a burden but with knowledge finds the resilience to move forward.
Student activity
Complete the following table as a summary of the concerns for the three families.
Prereading The families The state of their Their burden Their social class
relationships and values
Close Study of Text
Gwen, Jim and Meg
Dramatic Devices Vic, Harry and Tom
Coral and Roy

Themes and Values
Vocabulary
Readings Decide which character is best described by each word:
Pathetic, melodramatic, aggressive, accepting, modest, introspective, articulate, critical, jovial, mild-mannered,
volatile, forgiving, exclusive, wise, knowledgeable
Assessment
As preparation for answering examination responses, build a bank of words to describe each characters.
Worksheets Supporting evidence

Any statements you make have to have supporting evidence.
Bibliography Find supporting evidence for this statement:
Coral is an imperfect character who struggles to accept her sons death but has discovered the insight to see into
other peoples lives.
In groups:
write down a statement (like the one above about Coral) that you think describes one of the characters and
their motivations, using the idea of discovery
give the statement to another group who has to collect evidence to prove the statement.

Away
Setting
Home
Michael Gow has always stressed his interest in the wider concerns of world literature, and yet the Australi-
an settings of his plays are crucial. Gow has commented: for me the school hall and the beach in Away were
Table of Contents
strong settings. A hot stuffy hall at night and then the beach and air and salt water. A terrible December night in
the 1960s. These sum up for me the whole notion of Australia in summer. Or again: northern New South Wales
and Gold Coast areas are terribly important in my plays ... because its so long ago, the places are very idealised
in my mind. I dont have to do very much doctoring to them as they are already fantasised.
Prereading
The Question of Australias post-colonial identity and Michael Gows Career by Michael Stuart Lynch
Close Study of Text http://aulla.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/AULLA-2011-Proceedings.pdf
Why might Gow think the school hall and the beach were strong settings?
Dramatic Devices In what way are the northern New South Wales and Gold Coast areas in the text fantasised?
A true understanding of setting requires students to go beyond just naming the place and time. At all times setting sup-
Themes and Values ports characterisation and establishes a space for the ideas of the text to develop. The setting should reflect elements
of the character. It also needs to be able to move the plot forward. Comparison can be made about characters and the
Readings way they live.
Worksheet 8: Setting
Vocabulary
Assessment Its a good idea to develop a vocabulary for setting. Using oppositions is a powerful way of seeing contrasts:
Inner; outer; domestic; public; private; natural; artificial; enclosed; confined; fantastical; realistic; marine;
Worksheets agrarian; isolated; urban; metropolitan.
Students can locate the oppositions in the above list
Bibliography They should build up a list of words they can use to describe settings
Students should write a paragraph answering the question:
Discussion
How does setting facilitate discovery in this text?

Away
Language
Home
In plays language is found in the stage directions and dialogue.
Table of Contents A note on techniques:

Language is too often narrowly regarded by students as techniques. Selecting techniques and explaining what they
The Area of Study: Syllabus mean does not lead to a well-synthesised and articulate response. Techniques have to be part of the evidence that
supports their ideas about the play and not the driving force of their response. This is an essential difference between
Prereading lower band responses and upper band responses.
Close Study of Text One way of supporting them in giving techniques their appropriate status is to ask students to begin the sentence with
an idea and not the technique. The technique can be included in the evidence that follows the idea. This may appear
over a couple of sentences but the first sentence must foreground the idea and it is this that drives the discussion
Dramatic Devices about techniques.
Themes and Values Stage directions

Many modern playwrights omit stage directions and leave these for the director. When directions are offered they are
Readings important indicators of setting and movement as well as of characterisation and relationships.
Its interesting to see where the playwright has added directions. In the opening directions establishing the setting
Gow uses the words that Midsummer Nights Dream is coming to a close and then Tom speaks. He becomes con-
nected with the idea of coming to a close and closure so foreshadowing his death.
Assessment
The second group of extended directions is more about humour with the fairies caught unready, creating visual hu-
Worksheets mour and possibly slapstick, and yet we can also read into this that the characters are caught unready for the revela-
tions that will unfold.
Bibliography
In the final stage direction in scene 1 Roy, the principal, moves away, then remembers something. What he remem-
bers creates more humour as it is anticlimactic an instruction from the gardener about the flower beds.
Worksheet 9: Stage Directions

Away
Dialogue
Home
If students flick quickly through the pages of the play, they should immediately see that the dialogue varies in length
from short quick conversations to extended responses. They might also note that there are scenes of varying length
Table of Contents
and perhaps just one speaker.
The Area of Study: Syllabus In the dialogue there are variations in punctuation with ellipsis, exclamations and questions.
All of this shows the skill of the playwright, able to show character and emotional difference in the dialogue through
Prereading line length and punctuation.
Close Study of Text Activity

Ask students to work in groups and focus on a different page of the text per group. They should look for punctuation
and consider how this affects the delivery of ideas and the subsequent characterisation.
Dramatic Devices
Worksheet 10: Dialogue
Themes and Values
Readings
Assessment
Worksheets
Bibliography

Away
DRAMATIC DEVICES
Home
Intertextuality
Table of Contents
Intertextuality is about the subtle and often implicit use of references from or to other texts. These other texts are
The Area of Study: Syllabus usually so well known that the audience brings that cultural knowledge to view the new text within the framework of
the old one. Writers can do this for many reasons: for quick identification with ideas, to create a contrast, to add irony,
Prereading to give a structure or framework that adds an extra layer of meaning. In this way the new text is enriched as it is read,
both within its own terms and as part of, or comment on, our wider textual heritage.
Close Study of Text
In Away, Gow is directly alluding to Shakespearean plays and places them in positions of prominence.
Dramatic Devices Student optional activity

Find a summary of King Lear to see how relevant the Lear play is to Away.
Themes and Values Hamlet is also mentioned once (page 56) but only as a contrast to King Lear but it does indicate that Gow expects his
audience to have Shakespearean knowledge.
Readings
Worksheet 11: Intertextuality
Assessment
Worksheets
Bibliography

Away
Intertextuality: Popular Culture
Home
Popular culture references are often more difficult to understand because they rarely go beyond their time.
Table of Contents In this text Gow refers to:
Actors
The Area of Study: Syllabus Chips Rafferty Australian actor
Kim Novak sexy American actor
Prereading Laurence Olivier British actor
Vivien Leigh American actress
Close Study of Text Films
Gone With the Wind (with Vivien Leigh)
Dramatic Devices Tarzan
Themes and Values For students to discuss

Why does Gow use popular culture references alongside Shakespearean allusions?
Gow wrote Away in 1986. What expectations would he have had about his audiences knowledge of popular
Readings
culture?
An interesting irony is that Chips Rafferty who represented the quintessential Australian character in his acting
Synthesising the Learning is linked to Tom who is English and not native born. Why do you think Gow did this?
Assessment Intertextuality: The Flying Dutchman and The Little Mermaid

Students should look up the stories of The Flying Dutchman and The Little Mermaid and then read Act 4 Scene 5
Worksheets closely.
How have these two texts been used?
Bibliography In what ways has the intertextuality affected the meaning in the play?
How do these texts fit in to the concept of discovery?

Away
Framing
Home
The play is framed by Tom delivering speeches from the end of two Shakespearean plays, a comedy and a tragedy,
Table of Contents in which the most important words are: restore amends and unburdened.
Prereading
Exposition Resolution:
The intention: The outcome:
Close Study of Text
restore amends Unburdened
King Lear
Dramatic Devices A Midsummer Nights Dream
Themes and Values
Readings
What restoration takes place in the play?
Synthesising the Learning What burdens does each character carry?
How do they unburden themselves?
What is the relationship between the first idea of restoring amends and the last idea about being unbur-
Assessment dened?
How does this framing device work dramatically?
Worksheets
Bibliography

Away
Play within a Play
Home
Gow uses the Shakespearean theatrical device of the play within a play. In Shakespeares Hamlet (mentioned in Act
Table of Contents 5 scene 2) this device is used to discover the truth. The belief is that the play will trigger in the audience a reaction if
they identify with it. Here we have two audiences: the audience in the play and us. Discovery works at both levels as
The Area of Study: Syllabus we discover more about the characters and they discover more about themselves.
Prereading Student activity

Gow uses the device of a play within a play three times, at the beginning and the end but also in Act 4 scene 5.
Close Study of Text What discovery is Gow revealing in the play within a play?
If we include the MC in the play within a play we need also to consider the song Pearly Shells. What could
this represent?
Dramatic Devices
In the play on the beach, Tom teaches Corals character to walk, What is he really teaching her as Coral?
Themes and Values

Music
Readings A performance brings a play script to life through sights, sounds and movement. In Away Michael Gow makes use of
Mendelssohns music from A Midsummer Nights Dream.
Student activity
Assessment Look at the places where Mendelssohns music appears in stage directions.
(Act 1 sc 1; Act 3 sc 4;Act 3 sc 5; Act 4 sc 3; Act 5 sc 2)
Worksheets What is the purpose of the music?

What element does it introduce?
Bibliography How does this relate to discovery?
Why is it used at the end following the Lear reading which is a tragic play?
What discovery is Gow revealing in the play within a play in Act 4 Scene 5?

Away
Symbolism
Home
Symbols in the play achieve a few different functions. They can:
Table of Contents link different parts of the text
provide contrast between different parts of the text
The Area of Study: Syllabus represent something important
convey meaning without words show not tell.
Prereading Students should look at the following and draw some conclusions about the way Gow uses symbolism.
Close Study of Text The holiday

What does the holiday represent?
Dramatic Devices Who goes on holiday and where in this play?
Describe the holidays for each family. What does this reveal about the family?
Themes and Values What is the significance of the holiday in the play?
How does this relate to discovery?
Readings
The storm
What is the purpose of the storm?
Synthesising the Learning How does it add a fantasy element?
Assessment
The gift
What do gifts and giving represent?
Worksheets
Who gives gifts to whom in this play?
Describe the act of giving for each family. What does this reveal about the family?
Bibliography
What is the gift illustrating about that family?
Giving is central to Act 5 scene 1. What is the significance of the gift and giving in this scene?

Away
THEMES AND VALUES
Home
The ideas of the text
Table of Contents
The values that a text promotes can often be found in the final pages. In this case we see two scenes in Act 5. Act 5,
The Area of Study: Syllabus scene 1 is a mimed act of giving and reconciliation.
Act 5 scene 2 is about casting off the burdens of life to crawl towards death but it is also about the nature of tragedy.
Prereading
Because this text is in an Area of Study about Discovery we also have to consider how this related to discovery.
Close Study of Text Student activity

Consider the following topics and from each write a thesis statement relating to discovery. Remember a thesis is the
statement of a point of view that can be argued in an essay.
Dramatic Devices
For example
Self-discovery is an important precursor to reconciliation.
Themes and Values
Topics:
Giving
Readings Regeneration
Recreation
Synthesising the Learning Restoration
Resolution
Assessment Resignation
Tragedy
Is there another topic you think should be included? Discuss with other students and develop the list accordingly.
Worksheets
Worksheet 12: Values and discovery
Bibliography

Away
Allegory
Home
An allegory is a literary form that uses characters and events to symbolise concepts. It is often likened to an extended
Table of Contents metaphor, but instead of substituting one object for another, it goes further and offers a story. This allows the actions,
thoughts and feelings of the characters to resonate beyond the particular. People and places represent a much bigger
The Area of Study: Syllabus picture and the personal story can become a message about the political or philosophical.
Aussie characters
Prereading
In the case of this play every family represents an aspect of Australian society.
Close Study of Text Gwen and her family represent the Aussie battler and Gwens despair is fear of poverty. She believes in work-
ing hard, and that hard work leads to rewards..
Toms family are relatively recent arrivals. They are still being accepted but they have a positive mindset and
Dramatic Devices acceptance to their new country. They are New Australians.
Roy and Coral are middle class conservatives.
Themes and Values The holiday becomes the identifier of difference between the families.
(An interesting additional group is that of the campers how can they be understood? Are they characters or a
Readings device?)
Student activity
Synthesising the Learning Find a quotation that shows the values of each class.
Assessment
Characters Represent Values Quotation
Worksheets Tom, Vic and Harry New Australians
Bibliography Gwen, Meg and Jim Aussie battlers
Coral and Roy Middle class

conservative
The chorus of
campers

Away
For discussion
Home In the play we see that Australia has to undergo a change. The sense of being an egalitarian society is being
challenged as people grow in prosperity and the competing discourses of the Aussie Battler, the New Australian and
Table of Contents the Conservatives have to be resolved.
Consensus is needed and is ultimately achieved but, as with any progress, someone or something has to be lost.
Tom becomes the sacrifice for moving forward but he does so having cast off his burdens by being an instrument of
acceptance and reconciliation.
Prereading
Gaps and silences
Close Study of Text One consideration however is that some voices are missing from this story of reconciliation. The discovery of a new
nationhood does not include all.
Who is missing from this story of Australian reconciliation?
Dramatic Devices
Who is silent?
In what way does this affect the impact of the discovery?
Themes and Values
Readings
Assessment
Worksheets
Bibliography

Away
READINGS
Home
The Introduction
Table of Contents The introduction to the 1988 edition of Away was written by May-Brit Akerholt where she makes very important obser-
vations about the play.
The Area of Study: Syllabus After reading the play, students should copy relevant statements by Akerholt and find evidence from the play for each.
Worksheet 13: Reading Commentary
Prereading
An Interpretation
Close Study of Text The following extract comes from the website The Academy and sums up many of the themes of the play.
Gow's play Away (1986) is one of the most frequently revived Australian plays. The play begins like a familiar
Dramatic Devices satire of suburban banality. Three families at a school play look forward to the school holidays. Underlying this is
a nostalgia for the apparent innocence of the 1960s. In the second act the edges of the satire start to show. The
Themes and Values couples locked into ritual and pretence at home are suddenly freed from restraint by being 'away'. Through the
experience they evolve new understandings. The transformations are partly the result of relocation, the storm
Readings that exposes everyone to the elements and the confrontation with the reality that one of the children is dying of
Leukemia.
Synthesising the Learning In general Gow's dramatic writings analyse the experiences of the lower middle class family since the Second
World War.
Assessment Other pervasive themes in Gow's work explore the change wrought by suffering through physical illness,
spiritual damage and even the death of young people.
Worksheets Most of Gow's plays deal with conflict between generations. Often particularly between parents who experi-
enced the hardship of the Depression and the Second World War and their children born to post war affluence
and choice.
Bibliography
http://dlibrary.acu.edu.au/staffhome/siryan/academy/author%20pages/..%5Cauthor%20pages%5CGow,%20Michael.
htm
Answer the questions:

1. According to this extract what is the discovery that is made?
2. What elements of the play allow the discovery to take place?

Away
A critical reading
Home
This extract comes from a conference paper called The Question of Australias post-colonial identity and Michael
Table of Contents Gows Career by Michael Stuart Lynch.
His plays present defamiliarised portraits of life in Australia that eschew traditional national images and
The Area of Study: Syllabus associations and spurious exceptionalism, and put him at the forefront of his nations drama.
In his most celebrated play, Away, there is a focus on details that might be passed over as trivial, the minutiae of
Prereading life: a bad school production of Shakespeare, a teachers speech to the departing children, an undemonstrative
farewell between students, caravan holidaying. As with his other plays, there are sudden subversions of
Close Study of Text the viewers expectations, revelations of character and situation, and while the overall dramatic structure is
unconventional, the rules of drama are followed, as Gow has expressed it.
Dramatic Devices
Robert Dixon writes in Writing the Colonial Adventure of the uniquely colonial identity crisis ... the new concept
Themes and Values of an Australian nation caught between a lost origin and an undefined future.
http://aulla.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/AULLA-2011-Proceedings.pdf pp. 48-51

Readings
1. What are the sudden subversions of the viewers expectations and how would lead they to a discovery on the
viewers behalf?
2. Dixon writes about the Australian colonial identity crisis but is this identity crisis just about colonialism? Con-
Assessment sider how the play may have developed this notion of identity crisis in 1960s Australia.
3. Reflection:
Worksheets How have these two extracts affected your ideas about the concept of discovery?
Bibliography

Away
SYNTHESISING THE LEARNING
Home
Play elements and discovery
Table of Contents
Student activity: Class discussion
Leave the second column blank and discuss with students how the following elements of the play contribute to the
concept of discovery.
Prereading
Context Offers a political, social and cultural framework for the discovery
Close Study of Text Genre Offers clearly defined boundaries for the discovery. For example given that the play has tragic
elements the discovery is created within a tragic framework.
Structure Controls the process of discovery. In this case the play follows a classical 5 act structure with
Dramatic Devices
discovery coming after the climax, facilitated by the theatrical device of the storm which brings the
characters together.
Themes and Values Plot Guides the reader through the process of discovery. Enables the discovery to follow stages through
the acts and scenes.
Readings Characters Become the channels for discovery. The discovery becomes personalised through the individuals,
showing the relationship between certain personalities and the way they are open or closed to
Synthesising the Learning discovery.
Symbols The discovery becomes associated with the attributes of the symbol and transcends the personal.
Dialogue The dialogue gives the reader access to characters attitudes and personal discoveries being made.
Assessment
Composing
Worksheets
Once the table has been completed ask students to write a well-structured paragraph on how each of the elements
adds to the way the idea of discovery is represented in Away.
Bibliography
Writing about Away and Discovery
The following worksheet provides a model for writing about discovery using a close reading of a scene.
Worksheet 14: Close reading and writing

Away
Related texts
Home Students need to collect additional texts on the subject of discovery. They need to select at least TWO that can be
linked with Away.
Table of Contents
When preparing these additional texts, students should make notes on WHAT discovery the text is focussing on as
well as more detailed notes on HOW the composer represents discovery.
Students may select texts that can be closely linked or contrasted with the text Away. The link or contrast may be by
Prereading genre or technique as long as the concept discovery can be found in both texts. For example, they may have seen
another play in which the set was used to symbolise character changes.
Close Study of Text Students need to be alert to these possibilities and collect their materials. They should collect many examples and
then select the best few for their HSC study.
Dramatic Devices Student activity
Select three of the texts of your own choosing and use the diagram in the worksheet below to identify their
Themes and Values connection to the prescribed text.
Readings Remember: A link could be a similarity or contrast.
Synthesising the Learning Return to the rubric
While it is necessary for students to know the text well, the Area of Study requires them to consider it in terms of a
Assessment wider cultural understanding: how it contributes to our perception of the concept of Discovery.
Students should return to the annotated rubric on pages 6 - 7 and check their understanding against the annotations.
Worksheets Alternatively or additionally, students can look at the final worksheet in the resource and synthesise their learning
using the questions that emerge from the rubric.
Bibliography
Worksheet 15: Rubric and Discovery
Worksheet 16: Related texts and Discovery
Worksheet 17: Related texts suggestions

Away
ASSESSMENT
Home
This section looks at Assessment broadly and comprehensively in terms of assessment for, as and of Learning.
Table of Contents
Available resources
The Area of Study: Syllabus The principles of assessment for as and of learning can be located in the ETA Programming package.
Discovery: The Concept resource has many activities that can be modified for assessment as, of or for learn-
Prereading ing.
The Discovery: Writing Imaginatively resource contains activities and guidance for imaginative writing.
Close Study of Text ETA Discovery: Examination packages for tests to practise in class (to be released in Term 1 2015).
Dramatic Devices Tasks for discovery should encourage students to explore a breadth and depth of texts on discovery so they can feel
confident in the HSC. Students should be encouraged to develop strategies for deconstructing unseen texts across
a range of forms: poetry, drama, short story, articles, journals, reviews, advertisements, websites, novel extracts,
Themes and Values
speeches and so on.
Readings The following are broad descriptions of types of activities that may be used in assessing student understanding of the
text and its contribution to various representations of the concept of discovery.
Writing
Students need opportunities in class for imaginative writing, analytical short answer and extended responses.
Assessment
Possible examples are:
A feature article on the significance of the concept of discovery in modern society
Worksheets A formal essay response to a quotation such as:
The greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance - it is the illusion of knowledge.
Bibliography
Daniel Boorstin http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/d/daniel_j_boorstin.html
Do you agree? Respond using your prescribed text and one related text of your own choosing.
A blog entry considering one recent highly publicised and significant discovery comparing it to our daily
personal discoveries.

Away
Speaking
Home
A group performance of extracts from discovery texts would be a good way for students to share their under-
standing and extend the range of texts. This might be well positioned in Term 3 after trials when students can
Table of Contents explore their topics in more depth.
A speech arguing for the inclusion of a text on the discovery lists. Students should use a text of their own
The Area of Study: Syllabus choosing, focusing on the way the text develops our cultural understanding of the concept of discovery.
A group book panel discussing the concept of discovery in different texts
Prereading A radio review of their prescribed and related text on a program called Discovery Texts.
Close Study of Text Representation

Representation is usually combined with a writing or speaking activity.
Dramatic Devices A representation can be diagrammatic asking students to explore the rubric and construct a diagram that
includes their text and the related text. An explanation has to accompany this either written or spoken. The
diagram and explanation can be for inclusion in an HSC textbook on Discovery for students
Themes and Values
The home page and site map of a class website to house shared resources that shed light on the rubric.
A representation can be an acted selected extract from a text this could be followed by an explanation of
Readings ways that the words lead to discovery and how a set and costumes could visually support the ideas.
Reading
Practice at short answer tests is a good way to extend the connection to different texts but this will also be tested in
the trials and the HSC so it should be seen as assessment for learning.
Assessment
Regular extracts with questions should be practised from a variety of types of texts. This could be scaffolded
through model answers, then guided responses and finally students working alone.
Worksheets Students can locate their own short extracts and write questions (using the rubric) to test each other. One
example might be:
Bibliography Art is a journey of self discovery by Janet Shorthouse, 2012, ABC
http://www.abc.net.au/local/stories/2012/11/21/3637646.htm

Away
Listening
Home
Listening tests must consider the features of the form such as sound, pace, introductions, pauses, music, interview,
Table of Contents brief insertions of expert opinion, structure and phrasing.
In what way do these features of sound convey the concept of discovery?
The Area of Study: Syllabus Here are some programs that might be interesting to listen to:
BBC world service discovery program: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p002w557
Prereading
ABC Radio National for shows such as:
Close Study of Text Ancient Birds Discovered
http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/bushtelegraph/ancient-bird-tracks/5102708
Dramatic Devices
Themes and Values
Readings
Assessment
Worksheets
Bibliography

Away
Worksheets
Home 1: Starting writing 44 10: Dialogue 56
2: Cultural Knowledge 45 11: Intertextuality 59
Table of Contents
3: Free writing 47 12: Values and discovery 61
The Area of Study: Syllabus 4: Key Questions for each scene 48 13: Reading Commentary 64
5: Tragic or Comic? 50 14: Close reading of a passage 65
Prereading
6: Play Structure 51 15: Rubric and Discovery 67
Close Study of Text 7: Tracing Discovery 52 16: Related Texts and Discovery 68
8: Setting 54 17: Related texts suggestions 69
Dramatic Devices 9: Stage Directions 55
Themes and Values
Readings
Assessment
Worksheets
Bibliography

Away
Worksheet 1: Starting Writing
Regular writing is the best way to build up an understanding of the concept and how to play games with it. Here are
some ideas that can come at any stage of the study.
Work in groups and write a pamphlet called Discovery Holidays for travel agency about
what you might discover on a holiday. Think of how this should be laid out and how it will be
written
Write a group poem about self-discovery

Use these lines in any order you like and add any other lines you need to create a poem that
shows a moment of self-discovery.
I came to this place lost and frightened
I searched but couldnt find
The sun was strong and harsh on my face
I had to follow my heart
In the world as we know it
My mind was in a whirl
Yearning for I knew not what
This was what it all meant
The beach spread out before me
Work in groups and organise these elements into a story
a school play 3 families a caravan park a storm a discovery

a grieving mother a dying son holiday time reconciliation
ETA_2014_Worksheet 44
Away
Worksheet 2: Cultural Knowledge
The play makes reference to many aspects of Australian culture as well as historical events that may puzzle students.
Below is a list of explanations that may assist:
Event Explanation Link to discovery
The Armada A large and impressive group of Span-

ish ships that tried to invade England in
1588 but were defeated by the smaller
English fleet.
The Beatles An early rock group who were at the

height of their popularity in the 60s.
Bex A powder taken for pain containing as-

pirin and other substances. It was widely
used by Australians but it was found to
be dangerous and could cause kidney
problems. It was especially overused by
housewives.
Charles Atlas A body builder who established a

body-building program and gymnasia. A
famous advertisement of the time was
about a weak boy who was bullied and
had sand kicked in his face but who
used Charles Atlas techniques to build
up his body so that he could withstand
bullying.
Chips Rafferty A famous Australian actor of the 40s

and 50s.He was most famous for por-
traying the typical Aussie male tough
and cynical
Coelacanth A pre-historic deep-sea creature.
Dame Pattie Dame Pattie Menzies, the wife of the

Prime Minister Sir Robert Menzies (1949
66), founding member and first patron
of the Australian Monarchist League.
The Gold Coast A popular holiday destination for Austral-

ians in Queensland that features luxury
hotels and entertainment.
Gone With the Wind A famous novel and movie whose

protagonist, Scarlett OHara finds her
wealthy and privileged life is shattered
and she is forced to undergo a change
in order to survive.
Kim Novak An actress of the 1960s who was fa-

mous for her sexy looks and blonde hair.
Away
Laurence Olivier A prestigious English Shakespearean

actor, later Lord Olivier
Rotary A social club, devoted to improving the

community through its works such as
building parks or ramps for wheelchair
access or planting trees.
Rotterdam A large seaport in Holland. During WW2,

it was a target for bombings and was
badly damaged.
Tierra Del Fuego A group of islands off South America.

In 1982, the British launched what was
known as the Falklands War to assert
their claim to these islands from the Ar-
gentineans.
New Australians This term referred to new immigrants to

Australia. At the time they were mainly
from Italy, Greece and Eastern Europe.
Away
Worksheet 3: Free Writing
Concepts are never straightforward and in fact statements about discovery can often contradict themselves.
Sorting through to the truth of the riddles is a good way to develop critical thinking but also to think creatively
beyond the text and prepare for imaginative writing. Use these riddles which are drawn from twisting Aker-
holts statements in the introduction to engage more closely with the topic of discovery.
Free writing
Use these riddles for free writing to stimulate ideas about discovery.
Perhaps organise pairs of students and have mini debates.
If irony is being negative but discovery is positive then how can anyone talk about discovery
ironically?
If a holiday depends on how much you spend then how much do you have to spend to have a
good discovery?
If the world is universal then why doesnt everyone feel the same way?
If any quest is about self-knowledge then is everyone imperfect?
Can something as light as a holiday lead to a profound self-discovery? How?
If discovery is about progress how can it be set in retrospective times?
Narrative writing
This free writing can then lead fluently into narrative writing. After sharing the answers to these riddles stu-
dents can work on a story that illustrates an aspect of the riddle.
Writing imaginatively
Practise writing discovery narratives regularly while studying the play. (More activities on Imaginative writing
can be found in the ETA resource Discovery: Writing Imaginatively).
Write a monologue from the point of view of Rick
Write a diary entry from the point of view of Meg after the holidays have ended and she is back at school.
Write a narrative about how discovery can offer new understandings and renewed perceptions of
ourselves and others. Your narrative has to include a school play.
Write a narrative about how discovery can be fresh and intensely meaningful using one of these motifs: a
gift/ bird/ sea
1. Use images as a stimulus: 2. Use the image below to write a narrative on the
Students can work in groups and use the image need to question or challenge discoveries.
below to create a group story to share with the
class about how discoveries can emerge from
deliberate and careful planning.
Away
Worksheet 4: Key questions for each scene
The table below is one way of organising a summary of key aspects of the play and can be adapted to different class-
es by omitting some of the commentary. Worksheet 6 about Structure offers another approach.
Scene 1
We see a typical school play. Tom is seen acting as Puck in the school play.
ACT ONE -Establishing
What makes the opening amusing?

characters and
relationships
Scene 2
We see typical girl-boy relationship and family interactions around them. Australian patterns of
holidaying are described through the characters but also attitudes to new Australians.
Select one statement from each character that captures an element of their personality and justify
your choice.
Scene 3
We sense that Coral is disturbed but we dont know why. We also see that she has insight in
others.
What does she see that others miss?
ACT TWO - Scenes 1, 2, 3
Secrets and Every family has its own pain.
Conflicts What secrets and conflicts emerge in each of these scenes?
Scene 1
In this scene Coral seems to have magical properties and is able to see into the lives of others
but she is also disturbing.
How do her statements affect other people?
Why are her nationalistic statements so inappropriate?
Scene 2
This scene has a comic function in the play. The campers act as a chorus.
What attitudes of some Australians do they convey?
ACT THREE Conflict and Denial
Scene 3
Corals own emotional despair has heightened her ability to see the pain in other peoples lives.
What statement is Gow making about peoples lives when Rick says, I feel like Im asleep all the
timeLike in a dream. ?
Coral flees her holiday and her life just as the New Year is being heralded in and as the storm
approaches.
Why do you think she runs away?
What is she running from?
Scene 4
Discovery is dealing with and overcoming obstacles. The storm acts as a symbolic and literal
obstacle as it destroys Gwens campsite and her highly prized caravan.
The fairies serve a dramatic/symbolic function in this scene.
How does their appearance link back to the opening scene of the play?
Scene 5
The storm scene is contrasted with the calm, tranquil sounds of Mendelssohns Dream Overture
and the voices of Vic, Harry and Tom on a remote beach.
Away
Scene 1
This scene is important for the beginning of the healing process that will take place. There are
important messages about other kinds of storms that can occur in life.
ACT FOUR - Transformation
Explain these important messages.
Scene 2
What is the purpose of the dialogue between Tom and Meg?
Scene 3
Play-within-a-play.
Examine the following elements and discuss their significance for the characters:
The title
The ocean
The ghost
The transformation into a mermaid
The lonely, silent bottom of the deep
You dont belong here. You must return to your own world
The lines Im walking
ACT FIVE - Reconciliation and
Scene 1
Here, again, Gow uses another Shakespearean device a dumb-show or mime scene.
Explain how this represents reconciliation.
Acceptance
Scene 2
Interestingly, Gow chooses to end his play with lines that appear at the beginning of one of Shake-
speares greatest tragedies King Lear.
Look closely at the language in these lines
.Tis our fast intent
To shake all cares and business from our age,
Conferring them on younger strengths, while we
Unburdend crawl toward death.
What relevance do these lines have for all the characters in the play, including Tom?
Away
Worksheet 5: Tragic or Comic?
Comment on how the comedy in each scene is created
Event What makes this comic?
Act 1 scene 1 Inclusion of Midsummer Nights Dream

the childrens actions off stage when
the curtain rises and they are caught
unawares
The final words of the principal in this
scene are also comic in suggesting
that the gardener has control over the
principal.
Scene 2 Gwens exasperated reaction to Jim

losing the car keys
Gwen needing a Bex
Gwens snobbish elitist attitude
Act 2 scene 2 Gwen needs a Bex again

Gwen manipulates the household
Scene 3 Roy uses moralistic patriotic statements

to avert his personal tragedy
Coral reminds him of Kim Novak
Act 3 scene 1 Coral copies Roys sententious

statements and corners a poor woman
Scene 2 Gwens preparations for Christmas are

painfully controlling
Jim explains Gwens imitation in terms of
the defiance of Scarlett in Gone with the
Wind
The 4 campers arrive with a petition (act
like a classic chorus)
Act 4 scene 3 The performance night starts with

stand-up comedy.
If you look closely, these comic scenes are followed or follow deeply scarring admissions.
How effective are the comedic elements?
Trace the tragedy in the same way as the comedy is traced above.
How effective is the interplay of the comic and the tragic?
How is the concept of discovery affected by placing it in a comedic or tragic form?
Consider how can one thing be both tragic and comedic?
Away
Worksheet 6: Play Structure
As you read each scene write its main concern in its box. Once you have finished reading the play consider how the scenes are united as an Act and write in the Act
space the main idea that links the scenes.
Act 1 Act 2 Act 3 Act 4 Act 5
Scene 1 Scene 1 Scene 1 Scene 1 Scene 1
Scene 2 Scene 2 Scene 2 Scene 2 Scene 2
Scene 3 Scene 3 Scene 3 Scene 3
Scene 4 Scene 4
Scene 5

Away
Worksheet 7: Tracing Discovery
Tracing Discovery Through The Play Structure
How does each act and scene develop the concept of discovery?
Include quotes and page numbers
Act 1
Scene 1
Scene 2
Scene 3
Act 2
Scene 1
Scene 2
Scene 3
Scene 4
Away
Act 3
Scene 1
Scene 2
Scene 3
Scene 4
Scene 5
Act 4
Scene 1
Scene 2
Scene 3
Act 5
Scene 1
Scene 2
Away
Worksheet 8: Setting
Trace the settings in each scene and explain how the setting influences the action in each scene.
Consider where a scene is interior or exterior. The outside world is usually natural and less confined.
How might this affect meaning?
Consider also how different the settings are created for each family and what this is saying about the
characters.
Setting The importance of the setting
Act 1
Scene 1
Scene 2
Scene 3
Act 2
Scene 1
Scene 2
Scene 3
Scene 4
Act 3
Scene 1
Scene 2
Scene 3
Scene 4
Scene 5
Act 4
Scene 1
Scene 2
Scene 3
Act 5
Scene 1
Scene 2
Away
Worksheet 9: Stage Directions
Students can work in groups on one scene per group.

They should collect stage directions from the scene and share where these appear, what they
require and how they affect the characterisation, plot or ideas in the play.
If there are no stage directions in a scene they might suggest why Gow doesnt provide these.
They could take on the role of directors. They need show understanding of the relationship
between performance and the written text. They take an extended piece of text that presently
doesnt have stage directions (see suggestions below). They should add at least five stage
directions about voice or movement. They then explain to other students why they chose to
present the play this way.
Suggestions:
Act 1 Scene 2 pages 4-7
Act 2 scene 1 pages 13-15
Away
Worksheet 10: Dialogue
Student Activities
1. Students should complete this table by finding examples of these different uses of dialogue.
Dialogue Examples
public
performances
speech
normal
conversation
formalities
conflict
revelation
inner thoughts
admission
humour
sarcasm
accusation
Australian slang
other
Away
2. Find words and phrases that are clearly from a different era.
How effective are these words in creating character and mood?
Expressions Purpose and effect
Away
3. Good characterisation is achieved by using different language for each character. Students should look at
each of the characters and see if they have a particular way of speaking. The first has been started.
Character Characteristics Examples Conclusions about the

of speech type of person
Complains constantly
Gwen
Uses the formal version
Margaret for Meg
Dismissive
Accusatory
Questions
Exclamations
Jim
Meg
Vic
Harry
Tom
Roy
Coral
Rick
Away
Worksheet 11: Intertextuality
The following is a summary of the main events of A Midsummer Nights Dream. Consider how the play Away uses
this play.
The story Connection to Away

Act 1 A wedding is being prepared for the Duke
Theseus who is asked by Egeus to insist that
Exposition daughter Hermia marry Demetrius who he
has chosen.
Complication Hermia wants to run away with Lysander
whom she loves and confides in her friend
Helena who happens to love Demetrius.
Helena tells Demetrius to win him around. All
four lovers run away into the forest.
Meanwhile a group of tradesmen (referred to
as the mechanicals) are preparing a play to
entertain at the wedding.
Act 2 In the forest, Titania, the queen of fairies is
fighting with Oberon the king of fairies.
Rising Action As a cruel joke, Oberon asks his servant
Puck to place magic juice into Titanias eyes
so she falls in love with the first thing she
sees. He also asks that Demetrius who is
quarrelling in the forest with Helena receive
the same treatment so that he fall in love with
her.
Act 3 The mechanicals go into the forest to practise
their play.
Climax Puck is full of mischief and places an asss
head onto the tradesman Bottom and lays
him near the sleeping Titania. On waking she
falls in love with him.
He also mistakenly places juice into Lysand-
ers eyes. Oberon tries to correct this by
placing juice into Demetrius eyes. Confusion
ensues when both Demetrius and Lysander
love only Helena.
Act 4 Oberon has Puck mend his mischief and
Titania awakes normal and remembers a
Dnouement dream of loving an ass
The corrective potion is given to Lysander
who returns to loving Hermia. Demetrius
remains in love with Helena.
Bottom awakes normal and decides to write a
ballad about his dream in the forest
Act 5 Everyone ends up loving the right person and
the play ends happily with the tradesmen per-
Resolution forming the play at the Dukes wedding.
Away
The play is about love and uses magic to create scenarios which are amusing by placing odd couples together.
Student Activity
Complete the table above to note any similarities do you see with Away.
Are the connections with Away about
plot
theatrical elements
themes
other?
Why do writers use Shakespearean allusions? What message are they conveying?
Student optional activity

Find a summary of King Lear to see how relevant the Lear play is to Away.
Hamlet is also mentioned once (page 56) but only as a contrast to King Lear but it does indicate that Gow expects
his audience to have Shakespearean knowledge.
Away
Worksheet 12: Values and discovery
Values are ideologies that lie underneath our words and actions.
Working In pairs, examine the quotes and say what values underlie them.
In the final column consider how this might be used as evidence for a discovery. The first one is partially done for
you.
Quote Values Facilities or prevent

discovery?
From Gwen Weve got a new Gwen has materialistic values that She is unable to perceive anything
caravan. Everything in it you could place material objects ahead of other positive as her narrow-mindedness
want. values such as respect for others. does not open herself to discovery
(Act 1, sc 2)
She has a limited view of everything
you could want and sees mate-
rial things as being what you could
want.
From Roy to Vic

You seen much of this country
yet?
(Act 1 sc 2)
From Coral
To wake up and find something
you want so badly
(Act 1 sc 3)
From Meg I think youve been

cheated
(Act 2, sc 2)
From Harry
Something to look forward to
Its for her. Let her see you really
enjoying yourself, having a terrific
time.
(Act 2, sc 1)
Away

discovery?
From Jim We lived in rubbish

tips. We shared rooms with oth-
er people.And we all planned.
We planned our time. We wait-
ed. We stuck to our plans like
the Bible. (Act 2, sc 3)
From Gwen
I wish people did a bit more, with
a bit more preparation. Instead of
leaving it all to the last minute
(Act 2 sc 2)
From Roy Two things! One.

My position at school.
(Act 2, sc 3)
From Roy Thats what history is,

people picking themselves up,
pulling themselves together and
going on.
(Act 2, sc 3)
From Roy We were picked out to

pay. Were living in a country
with one of the highest standards
of living on earth and we have
shown ourselves willing to defend
that standard.
(Act Two, sc 3)
From Coral But Im not ignoring

them. I cant think of anything to
say (Act 2, sc 3)
Away

discovery?
From Coral:
If there were someone here who
was in trouble would anyone know,
take the trouble to try to find out, to
try to help?
(Act 3 sc1)
From Coral:
I know so many people. There
a couple who are both ill and not
telling each other. I think
(Act 3 sc 1)
From Coral:
Marriage or the jungle
(Act 3 sc 1)
From Meg:
What were toy trying to do, what
did you want to gain?
(Act 3 sc 2)
Student Activity
Complete this table of quotations, Values and discovery with quotations from Act 3 scene 3 and onwards.
Away
Worksheet 13: Reading Commentary
Important observations about the play

Read the introduction to the play by May-Brit Akerholt on pages xi to xv
Consider Akerholts statements.
Do you agree with each?
If you disagree, write why and if you agree add evidence from the text.
Statement Evidence from the text
The portrayal of Australia in Away is

ironic Away fit in with the idea of
discovery? xi
Gows characters are imprisoned in

a world in which their worth as hu-
man beings is measured in the cost
of their holidays xi
Gows play dramatises a universal

world xi
The purpose of the quest is to gain

self knowledge xii
Undertaking a journey from

ignorance to knowledge xii
The journey is embedded in the

character of Coral, who links the
school play with a Shakespearean
world of distortion, the tragedy of
lost hopes and the possibility of
restoring order through love xii
The play is of a classical nature xii
Shakespearean connotations
provide a retrospective view xii
Away
Worksheet 14: Close reading of a passage
The following can be used in a few different ways:

1. Remove the annotations and box them in a mixed order. Ask students to add them in the right place (this forces
close reading and connecting to lines).
2. Give students the annotated passage and ask them to write a paragraph analysing the passage.
3. Remove all quotes from the annotated passage leaving lines and ask students to place the right quote where
lines appear.
4. Show students the copy of the interpretation and ask them to critique it, using the questions that follow.
Act 1 scene 2
The first extended speech from Coral is very much a soliloquy. Shes speaking alone and therefore her isolation from
others is suggested. She further establishes her isolation in the words she says.
Colloquial use of that CORAL: Refers to scene

woman and you and and When that woman woke up and saw the donkey
(beginning sentences) at her feet I thought my heart would break.
I had to wipe away tears. Refers to emotions
To wake up and find something you wanted so
badly. Even an animal. Hints at what it means to her
Sense of longing empha- And then she spoke up again and saw her hus- Suggests that she and her
sised through the conjunc- band and loved him. husband may be out of love
tion and which builds up
desire
Focus on the physical That boy! In that black light the shadows on his Fascination with Tom. Why?
face and neck were like bruises. He looked so
Series of oxymorons - sug- sick and yet so wonderful, so white, so cold and
gesting secret to uncover burning.
Direct quotes from play to What angel wakes me from my flowery bed? I Returns to the idea of waking
show power of theatre kept saying it over and over in the dark. from a sleep
Participles listing the ac- All these children, having fun, playing and me Sense of exclusion
tions of the children against sitting there in the dark wiping away tears. I
her action wiping away could hardly watch them. Their legs and arms Returns to focus on Tom
tears painted gold. And that boys hair, so black. And Wonder at the beauty of the
Gold used to show glory of his smile. children
childhood
Ends with sorrow about

Returns to play with quote What angel wakes me from my flowery bed? mortality
that leads into a series of Is it better for them to die like that? Looking like Questions arent directly
rhetorical questions gods? Burning, gold, white. Whats that word related to the play
they always say in those plays? Alas?
Ends with alas - Grief is timeless
Away
Interpretation of the passage
This first extended speech by a character introduces many of the ideas to be followed. The soliloquy
introduces the idea that within each character there is a secret a personal tragedy that needs to be
discovered. Coral uses the play Midsummer Nights Dream to reflect on her own sense of loss.
In the previous scene we have seen that she is disconnected to people, and doesnt respond when Gwen
talks to her. Gwen says She looks awful poor woman. Her son you know but it is not explained to the
audience so a mystery begins that we as viewers want to uncover.
What we do realise from this passage is the power of theatre to connect. Coral has been touched emo-
tionally from the scenes she has witnessed. We see this in the references to lines and to tears. There
is an intense focus on the idea of waking from a dream a repeated metaphor that captures her sense of
dislocation from the world.
As well as the lines, she has been fascinated by the children on the stage and Tom in particular. She
takes on the role of a seer able to see beyond the stage emphasized with the oxymorons sick and yet so
wonderful cold and burning . The darkness becomes a place of revelation, shadows allowing her to see
the bruises.
Ultimately her musing leads her to big questions about life and death. There is pain in seeing the activ-
ities of young vibrant children, dressed in gold and compared to gods. The boundary between life and
death is being explored but rather than answering questions, Coral find it opens up new questions.
Analysing the interpretation
Does the explanation go back to the concept of discovery? Find relevant lines that do this.
Does the discussion show how this passage connects to the rest of the play? Why is it important
to do this?
Highlight the techniques and look at how these techniques support ideas.
Note that to write this there has been a selection process- you cant add every thing you have
noted in your first annotation. Are there ideas you think should have been added?
Sometimes in an examination you may be asked to discuss a passage and how significant it is in
the whole play. What do you need to add above to answer such a question?
Follow up:
Answer this question:
Read the extended passage Act 3 scene 2 (page 33) when Jim is explaining to Meg why Gwen is as
she is.
Annotate the passage and then write an answer about how this speech reflects the concerns of the
play.
Away
Worksheet 15: Rubric and Discovery
Below are different ways of working with the rubric.

Turn sentences of the rubric to questions to explore the prescribed and related text.
Stimulus of discovery
Describe the experience of discovering (for each of the characters).
Is the discovery sudden and unexpected or the result of deliberate and careful planning?
Type of discovery
Which of these best describes the type of discovery in the text?
You can refer to more than one but need to be able to justify your choice.
- emotional
- creative
- intellectual
- physical
- spiritual
Process of discovery
How do personal, cultural historical and social values affect the process of discovery?
How does the author invite you to experience discovery through the text?
How is the process of discovering represented in the text? Consider the representations of people, relation
ships societies places events and ideas.
How does the choice of language, forms, features and structure shape the representation of discovery and
discovering?
What assumptions and beliefs about the human experience are being challenged or affirmed by the text?
In what way can we question or challenge or reassess this discovery? (consider perspectives, time and gaps
and silences)
Consequences of discovery
Is the discovery confronting or provocative?
Does the discovery lead to new worlds and values?
Does it stimulate new ideas?
Does it allow us to speculate about future possibilities?
Does it offer new understandings and renewed perceptions of ourselves and others?
Impact of discovery
Is the impact transformative for the individual?
Is the impact transformative for broader society?
How has the concept of discovery broadened and deepened your understanding of yourself and the world?
Like any concept, discovery is not limited but goes beyond a single definition.
Is there any other way that the concept of discovery is being addressed in this text?
Away
Worksheet 16: Related Texts and Discovery
Below is one way of considering how a text of your own choosing may relate to Away.
What kind of discovery is the What is the stimulus for the

text about? discovery?
Quote(s): Quote(s):
Away link: Away link:
Quote: Quote:
Text:
Away link: Away link:
Quote: Quote:
What is the consequence of How does the form affect the

the discovery? discovery?
Quote(s): Quote(s):
Away
Worksheet 16: Related texts suggestions
The following is a guide to possible related texts for the Area of Study, Discovery.
This list may give you some added ideas for your students. We strongly advise that you do not pass the list to them
but make choices from it that fit well with their prescribed text and their interests and abilities.
RELATED TEXTS
Prose Fiction Short Stories
Cloud Atlas Looking for Mr Green by Saul Bellow
Frankenstein by Mary Shelle The Garden Party by Katherine Mansfield
Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad The Garden of Forking paths by Jorge Luis Borges
The Handmaids Tale by Margaret Atwood The Guest by Albert Camus
The Outsider by Camus The Lady with the Dog by Anton Chekhov
Strange Objects by Gary Crew The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin
Treasure Island by Stevenson Youth by Joseph Conrad
Lord of the Flies by Golding Winter Dreams by F Scott Fitzgerald
Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Stevenson The other side of the hedge by E M Forster
Mr Darwins Shooter Roger McDonald The Sea of Lost time by G G Marquez
The Secret River by Kate Grenville The Yellow Wallpaper by C Perkins Gilmore
One hundred Years of Solitude by G G Marquez The Nose by Nikolai Gogol
Sons and Lovers by D H Lawrence Is there Nowhere else we can Meet? by N Gordimer
Big Two-hearted River by E Hemmingway
Science Fiction
The Pupil by H James
Never let me go by Kazuo Ishiguro
The Beast in the Jungle by H James
Crime Fiction The Man who would be King by R Kipling
Any version of Sherlock Holmes Lost Letters by M Kundera
Picture Books The Fox by D H Lawrence
Dream of the Thylacine by Margaret Wild Vaster than Empires and more slow by Ursula le Guin
My Place by Nadia Wheatley The old chief Mshlanga by D Lesssing
Mirror by Jeannie Baker To Build a fire by J London
The Outsider by J P Lovecraft
Poetry The Necklace by G de Maupassant
Diving into the Wreck by Adrienne Rich A Christmas Story by V S Naipaul
Discovery by Gwendolyn MacEwan In the Region of Ice by J C Oates
The Darwin Letters by Emily Ballou Guests of the Nation by Frank OConnor
Discovery by Mary Jo Salter The Fall of the House of Usher by E A Poe
http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/172202 The Death of Ivan Illyich by Tolstoy
Astronomy Lesosn by Shapiro Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by K Vonnegut Jr
http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/171394 Roman Fever by E Wharton
When I heard the learnd astronomer by Whitman
Plays
http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/174747
Stolen by Jane Harrison
Information by D Ignatow
The 7 stages of Grieving by Wesley Enoch
http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/172191
Proof by D. Auburn
Book of memory R Hazelton
The Odyssey by Homer
The Aeneid by Virgil
Away
TV series Documentary
Insight Life on Earth with David Attenborough
4 corners Grizzly Man by Herzog
Horizon When We were Kings (Mohammed Ali)
Who do you think you are? Cannibal Tours by
Sherlock New History of Discovery: Astounding Scientific discoveries
Elementary https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKP9ru_G5vk
Bones
Time Walks with Tony Robinson Short film
Time Team with Tony Robinson Know thyself
Greatest Cities of the World with Gryff Rhys Jones https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=is3CPHzCg_w
Compass Change the way you see the world
Enough Rope with Andrew Denton http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9CjmywZ3yQ
Australian Story (ABC) Restored earliest recording
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z2swf_KPVc8
Reality shows
Rethinking thinking
Edwardian Farm BBC
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KJLqOclPqis
Survivor
The Worst Jobs in History with Tony Robinson
Feature films
The 1940s House
Gorillas in the Mist
Non fiction Indiana Jones
Romulus my father by R. Gaita Aguirre God of Wrath by Herzog
Destined to Witness: Growing up black in Nazi Blade Runner
Germany by Massaquoi Star Trek
Tracks by Davidson Star Wars
Mary Poppins she wrote by V Lawson Tracks
12 Edmondstone St by Malouf Websites
A Boys War by D. Michell Museums eg National Museum of Australia
We Band of Brothers by Macfarlane Refugee information sites
Searching for Schindler: a memoir by Kenealley Blind society etc
Mawson by Peter Fitzsimmons
Leaflets/pamphlets
Follow the Rabbit Proof Fence by Pilkington
Government publications on illnesses or housing etc
Black Swan by Eileen Harrison
Unreliable Memoirs by C. James Advertising
Articles Eric Clapton song: change the world
The Faustian impulse and European exploration. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x11NA63gLDM
By Ricardo Duchesne. Think different - Steve Jobs
http://fortnightlyreview.co.uk/2012/06/explore-duch- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bqM1bAO5Bzo
esne
Amy May Nunn on the Poetry of exploration and
petrified bones
http://www.metremaids.com/2012/06/19/amy-may-
nunn-on-the-poetry-of-exploration-and-petrified-
Away
Podcasts
Art is a journey of self discovery by Janet Shorthouse, 2012, ABC
http://www.abc.net.au/local/stories/2012/11/21/3637646.htm
BBC world service discovery program
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p002w557
ABC Radio National for shows such as:
Ancient Birds Discovered
http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/bushtelegraph/ancient-bird-tracks/5102708
Missing Link Fossil Discovery
http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/breakfast/missing-link-fossil-discovery-in-south-africa/3039020
The Science Show
http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/scienceshow/
Self-discovery on a single breath
http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/offtrack/self-discovery-on-a-single-breath/3818892
Self discovery saori weaving
http://www.abc.net.au/local/videos/2012/07/02/3537238.htm
Self discovery in coffee shop
http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/lifematters/heywire-self-discovery-in-a-coffee-shop/3291144
The spirit of adventure, Jennings wire: the world of success.
http://anniejenningspr.com/jenningswire/lifestyle/spirit-of-adventure-the-high-drama-of-self-discovery/
Away
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Board of Studies 2013 English Stage 6, Prescriptions 2015-20, Area of study, Electives and Texts prescriptions, Board
of Studies, NSW.
Board of Studies 1999 English Stage 6, English Syllabus, Board of Studies, NSW.
Gow, Michael, 1986 Away, Currency Press.
Lynch. M.S. 2012 The Question of Australias post-colonial identity and Michael Gows Career AUMLA, Special Issue:
Refereed proceedings of the 2011 AULLA conference: Storytelling in Literature Language and Culture, April 2012
pages 47- 62 http://aulla.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/AULLA-2011-Proceedings.pdf
Ryan, Simon and Delyse, Michael Gow, The Academy http://dlibrary.acu.edu.au/staffhome/siryan/academy/au-
thor%20pages/..%5Cauthor%20pages%5CGow,%20Michael.htm
Further Reading
Akerholt, May-Brit. 1988 Michael Gow talks to May-Brit Akerholt. Australasian Drama Studies 12-13
Simon, Luke.1991 Michael Gows Plays. Sydney: Currency
Attributions
Page Description
1 Come unto these yellow sands, William Bustard, State Library of Queensland
hdl.handle.net/10462/deriv/224972 No known copyright restrictions
12 The cast of Midsummer Nights Dream, 1973, School performance at Newcastle Girls High School, NSW
(property of Mel Dixon)
13 Title: Feet in the sand, Jennamayyy
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)],via Wikimedia Commons No known copyright restrictions
Title: Mrs Dudley Courtman in her Chesney caravan, 1952
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:StateLibQld_2_136178_Mrs_Dudley_Courtman_in_her_Chesney_
caravan,_1952.jpg No known copyright restrictions
Title: The Globe, Darcy Moore http://www.flickr.com/photos/darcymoore/5879743937/
Title: Red Sky in the morning, Darcy Moore http://www.flickr.com/photos/darcymoore/8899424581/
18 Title: Beach scene at Nelson Bay, NSW, University of Newcastle, Australia
http://www.newcastle.edu.au/service/archives/ No known copyright restrictions
21 Title: Midsummers Night Dream, Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d7/Midsummer_Nights_Dream_Henry_Fuseli2.jpg
26 Title: Kiama dawn II, Darcy Moore http://www.flickr.com/photos/darcymoore/4295601363/
27 Title: Folger King Lear http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Folger_King_Lear.JPG
Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication
Tile: Folger Midsummer Nights Dream http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/77/Folger_Mid-
summer_Nights_Dream.JPG Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication
34 Title: Bombo Beach, Darcy Moore http://www.flickr.com/photos/darcymoore/10633112595/
41 Title: Bombo at Dawn, Darcy Moore http://www.flickr.com/photos/darcymoore/12704946665/
43 Title: Kiama Rockpool, Darcy Moore https://www.flickr.com/photos/darcymoore/12550302263/
45 Title: Gloucester beach scene, Ben Becker, Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.5 license
https://www.flickr.com/photos/45795292@N00/4803021343
47 Title: Interior of a caravan in 1950 Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication http://commons.wikime-
dia.org/wiki/File:StateLibQld_1_154075_Interior_of_a_caravan_in_1950,_Queensland.jpg
Title: In a cave, Darcy Moore https://www.flickr.com/photos/darcymoore/11701074923/in/photostream/
55 The cast of Midsummer Nights Dream, 1973, School performance at Newcastle Girls High School, NSW
(property of Mel Dixon)
60 Title: The Globe Theatre, Darcy Moore http://www.flickr.com/photos/darcymoore/5879743389/

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Away

Area of Study: Discovery

Teaching notes prepared by: Help

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The Area of Study: Syllabus This resource is not to be forwarded or shared

For information about copyright, terms and conditions contact: admin@englishteacher.com.au

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The Area of Study: Syllabus

Synthesising the Learning

Bibliography All of these sections will be connected by the concept of DISCOVERY.

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What is the rubric focus? The rubric What do we need to do?

What are the contexts of discovery in

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Assessment compare the different ways discovery is represented in these texts

Worksheets consider the connotations (associated feelings) around this representation

Worksheet 1: Starting Writing

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Close Study of Text

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Production of the play

Readings Booming immigration (New Australians) Time of boat people

Vietnam War and marches Falklands war (1982)

Worksheet 2: Cultural Knowledge

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Close Study of Text leaving behind

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Worksheet 3: Free Writing

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Synthesising the Learning

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Themes and Values

Synthesising the Learning

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Readings Specific elements of form that should be considered are:

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Worksheet 6: Play structures

Worksheet 7: Tracing discovery

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Themes and Values

Synthesising the Learning

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Close Study of Text Student Activity

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Prereading Act Focus of plot Which characters are involved?

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Synthesising the Learning

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Dramatic Devices Vic, Harry and Tom

Coral and Roy

Worksheets Supporting evidence

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Table of Contents A note on techniques:

Themes and Values Stage directions

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Close Study of Text Activity

Synthesising the Learning