Homework 14/02

Read the article titled Larrikin has had is day.

Identify the two different representations that are in this article as we did with Clancy of the Overflow. These will be the two major binary oppositions.

Place these two representations into a table and record words or phrases that help you identify that representation.

Write a paragraph explaining whether or not you agree with this representation and why. You should refer directly to the words and phrases you have found, making a comment on how these have influenced your understanding of the topic.

Larrikin	Well - Behaved
Boisterous	Values are shared with liberal democracies
Goofball	Fair
Cheeky	Liberalised
Mischievous	Helping mates
Badly behaved	Committed to the ideal of Australian nationhood
Rebellious	Hard working
Irreverent	Multicultural

I do not agree with the representation of Australians being larrikins as not everyone in the community is 'boisterous' and 'badly behaved'. Australians are more commonly portrayed as a multicultural and fair society, where it is a country of strong mateship. The representation of Australians being cheeky and rebellious may be true  for some people, especially for those of the younger generations, but cannot be a general definition for a true Australian. If anything, Australians belong more towards the 'well-behaved' category, where they are hard working, fair and that 'their values are shared with liberal democracies'. 

These two representations have influenced my understanding that certain celebrities, such as Hugh Jackman, can mislead people from forming a stereotypical opinion that all Australians are supposedly 'larrikins' by judging from Jackman's general personality trait.