400 Intro to Remembering Babylon by David Malouf

In his Remembering Babylon, published in 1993, David Malouf uses sense of place to explore the cultural barrier between the ‘white’ Europeans and the ‘black’ native Australians. The author also uses imagery and creative language to convey images in the opening chapter of the novel.

The opening scene depicts images of place through imagery. Malouf shares the setting using poetic language. He opens the novel with a fantasy-like mode, saying: “One day in…”( Malouf, 6) which is similar to “once upon a time” told at the beginning of fairy tails. This opening links to the fantasy world of “ a forest in Russia”(6) in the mind of Lachlan, that he even feels the “cold air burn[ing] his nostrils” (6) and the “snow squeaking underfoot”(6). This also allows the reader to note the contrasting behaviors of Lachlan versus his cousins. The introduction of the main character is also through imagery, as the reader is presented with a poetic description of Gemmy who has been “changed into a bird” (7).

At the beginning of the book, it is observed through Lachlan and his cousins the conflicting place between Europe and Australia. Lachlan was born and raised in Europe, whereas Janet and Meg in Australia, which directly foreshadows the contrasting cultural events in the novel. An instance in the opening of the novel is when Lachlan sets his game in “ a forest in Russia” (6), but his cousins are not interested in the game as they have “no experience of snow” (6). This shows that he was not constrained by the world around him while in Australia, leading him to an environment that is more familiar to him. Therefore, through the development of Lachlan, the Australian versus the European sense of place is observed.

The social values of the time through the first chapters and the discrimination of ‘blacks’ by the whites are portrayed. Malouf portrays this idea when he writes: “... thing of substance, elongated and airily indistinct, was bowling, leaping, flying towards them. A black” (6), showing that the whites have a vital hatred for, and are afraid of the ‘blacks’. Hence why the whites avoid the natives, and this is evident throughout the novel as it leads to the McIvors drifting away from their neighbors and friends, as they do not accept Gemmy in their community. Discrimination is also shown through the children's relief when Gemmy calls “do not shoot. I am a B-b-British object.”(7) The relief of the children is significant in this situation, as at the beginning, they thought they were being "raided by blacks" (7) however hearing that Gemmy is British soothes them.