Critique of Violence: A Study of Colin Johnsons Novel Wild Cat Falling

Sikandar Kadar Aga M.A. (English) Shivaji University Kolhapur

Abstract: Australian culture is primarily divided into two major parts, as one is Indigenous Australian culture and other is White Australian settler culture. Violence in Australian culture is deeply rooted. Since European settlement in Australia in 1788, Indigenous people have been considered as a racial minority and have been victims of violence. Colin Johnsons novel entitled Wild Cat Falling(1965) is considered as an Australian classic, which is the violent story of an Aboriginal man trying to cope with a hostile society, but finally entrapped into a murder case. The aim of this present research paper is to highlight the various aspects of the term violence and to examine Colin Johnsons novel Wild Cat Falling in the light of theme of violence.

Key words: Colin Johnson, Wild Cat Falling, physical and institutional violence, subculture of violence
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Approaches to the Term Violence:

The term violence is a deliberate act to injure someone. Violence covers a broad spectrum, as in terms of social injustice, it is an act if violating a basic right of human being. Violence, in respect of physical force, is the use of physical force to apply a stat to others contrary to their wishes. Sexual violence is a situation in which force or threat is used to obtain unwanted sexual relationship.

There are various approaches to the term violence, as in terms of poverty-social disorganization theory; it is the result of the poverty and tendency to adhere to the lower class value. Poverty leads to the social conditions (e.g. Substance abuse), which are responsible for criminal violence. Racial oppression-displaced aggression theory explains violence as the cause of lack of positive encouragement results into anger and frustration experienced by people. The followers of the subculture of violence theory believe that the disproportionate rates of criminal violence are the product of commitment to subculture value and norms that accepts violence as acceptable means to solve the conflict.

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Aboriginal Writing in English:

Australian aboriginal literature in English represents a variety of attitudes towards aboriginal situation, including aboriginal cultural past and present, identity and belonging, historical and contemporary attacks on the aboriginal way of life. Aboriginal writing in English, in a broader sense, is political and it attempts to convey the political, social and cultural presence of aboriginal people in Australian society. Colin Johnson calls aboriginal writers as committed writers.

Australian aboriginal writing began by following the standards of English language. In the period of rebellion most of the aboriginal writers were political activists and their represented their revolt against racist society. Following to the period of rebellion, came the literature of understanding, when aboriginal writers tried to explore Indigenous and nonIndigenous relationship. Aboriginal writing in English began by following the standards of English language. In the period of rebellion, most writers were political activists and their revolution can be seen their works.

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Colin Johnsons novel Wild Cat Falling is about a young man facing racist attitude in a hostile society. Katherine Susannah Prichards novel Coonardoo retells the colonial process of the Australian landscape. Xavier Herbert in the novel Caprocornia depicts the failure of Europeans to understand aboriginal people with their way of life. Faith Bundlers novel Wacvie illustrates the institutional violence of labor trade.

Life and Works of Colin Johnson:

Colin Thomas Johnson was born on August 21st 1938, in the farming town of Narrogin, as a son of American Negro father and white mother, where he managed to obtain his Junior Public Certificate Course. In 1958 Johnson went to Perth to look for a job, but later he moved to Melbourne, by the advice of Dame Mary Durack, best known poet and novelist. There he began to attend Buddhist meetings, in following an existentialist philosophy. In 1988 as a political act he legally changed his name to Mudrooroo after discussing with Oodgeroo Noonuccal, the first Aboriginal poet. Colin Johnson later added Modrooroo Narrogin (birth place) and Modrooroo Nyoongah (the name of the people of his race) to his name.Colin Johnson is admired for his ten novels, poetry, plays, short stories, books on Aboriginal culture and literature. He is one of the Australias most prominent and provocative literary figures and his works has influenced Indigenous literature of Australia. His first novel Wild Cat Falling is inspired by his personal experience of survival in the racist society. In Long Live Sandawara Johnson has juxtaposed
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symbolically contemporary and historical locations, by using aboriginal myth. Doctor Wooreddys Prescription for Enduring the Ending of the World is historical novel, which narrates the violent adventures of European settlers in the novel Master of Ghost Dreaming, Johnson has discussed the health issues of aboriginal people.

Violent Reconstruction of Selfhood in Wild Cat Falling:

The novel Wild Cat Falling narrates the story of an aboriginal youth from his release from jail, freedom of two days and ends with his return to jail. In the novel, Colin Johnson has explored the notion of violent reconstruction of selfhood, through first person narrative of unnamed protagonist in a racist society. The protagonist, whether in or out of jail, attempts to find his place society, but finds himself marginalized by aboriginality, leads him towards crime and criminal violence. Leaving prison, the protagonist finds isolation from his self, as he notices that the mirror outside the institutional walls reflects a person I take to be myself gazing blank eyed. (p.16). In the jail he reads Tolstoy, Camus, Satre, on release he reads Beckets Waiting for Godot. Beckets concept of acting is significant. The protagonist searches for all ways of life e.g. university life, prison life, intellectual, but finds meaningless. Thus, he leads to his own way of bodgie life, full of violence, crime, drunkenness, sex and prison. The novel also depicts his violent journey of state of being depicts aboriginal and failed attempt of reintegrating in the society. Thus protagonists attempt of violence by murdering a policeman results into being sentenced to ten years imprisonment.
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The Subculture of Violence in Wild Cat Falling: The novel explores the fact that youth subculture are sources of new identity, as well as it also explores the fact of oppression by dominant culture and their dream for new popular but restricted cultural forms. The protagonist remains a member of working class in the racist society. He tries to cope with society, but society has not changed its structure of social power, so that after release from jail he finds himself in the bodgie gang. The novel Wild Cat Falling also questions about the social exploitation of aboriginal youth. In the novel Johnson has reconstructed the speaking subjectivity of aboriginal youth in post-colonial Australian society. Narrative of the novel portrays violence, crime, drunkenness, sex, prison as the routine activity of aboriginal youth. In the novel Johnson has praised the Utopian sub cultural discourse as the impact of Americanization of aboriginal youth. Here they all are the anti-socials, the misfits, the delinks, in a common defiance of the squares. The juke box, a mass of metal, lights and glass, commands the room, squat god worshipped and fed by footloose youth to fill their empty world with the drug delusion of romance. (p.63). Sexual Violence in Wild Cat Falling: In the novel sex never appears to be as an act of love, rather as a violent act. After facing the brutality of racist society and institutional violence of Boys Home, the protagonist rejects any intimacy with women. His attitude towards sex transforms into aggression, hate. In the novel sex is always come with alcoholic intoxication.
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I pull off her clothes and take her violently, like it was rape. Hate her. Hate her. Love her. It is finished. I fling away from her and she lies like a discarded doll. (p. 66). Institutional and Physical Violence in Wild Cat Falling: In the novel Johnson has discussed the institutional violence. The protagonist calls himself as the permanent unemployed unemployable, and informs June, a white girl, that in the jail other prisoners are friends. If they are seen talking outside prison, they will be arrested for consorting with crimes. The protagonist dreams of becoming rich person by taking good education, but falls into the world of criminal violence. I went to an ordinary school for couple of years, I tell her. There I learnt the art of survival against mob rule. Then I get copped for stealing and I was sent to a home where I was educated in the simple techniques of crime and learnt to survive the harshness of Christian charity. In Noongar camps I learnt the art of being completely exploitable and of sabotaging every make-believe effort to improve the natives lot. I also learnt to take raw alcohol and raw sex. In jail I graduated in vice and overcame my last illusion about life. Now I know that hope and despair are equally absurd. The has been protagonist sentenced for fourteen days solitary confinement, seven days dread and water in the prison, for throwing the tea on warders face reflects physical violence.
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Thus Colin Johnson has explored various aspects of violence, which reflects the attempts of aboriginal youth to survive in hostile society and brutality of racist society. Though they are able to cope the society, but society is not accepting as its own part. References: Archer-Lean, Clare. Cross-Cultural Analysis of The Writings Of Thomas King And ColinJohnson (Mudrooroo). New York: The Edwin Press, 2006. Johnson Colin, Wild Cat Falling. Sydney: Angus and Robertson, 1965. Marvin Wolfgang, Franco Ferracuti, Subculture of Violence, Travistock Publication, London, 1967. Shoemaker Adam, Mudrooroo: A Critical Study. Sydney: Pymble, NSW: Angus and Robertson, 1993.

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