‘Explore the theme of clash of civilisations in ‘The Secret River’’
Grenville portrays the theme of ‘Clash of Civilisation’ throughout the novel by juxtaposing British and Aboriginal understandings of several social concepts: personal property, clothing, relationship with the natural environment, the idea of settlement and social status. Grenville contrasts both cultures’ perception of these concepts with the incomprehension with which each culture regards the other. These contrasts lead to the majority of conflicts in the novel with it concluding with the ultimate success of the British over the Aborigines in a brutal genocide.
One of the main clashes and differences between the British and the Aborigines is the concept of clothing and appearance. The first clash in the novel is shown when Grenville shows the Aboriginal man with an alien impression by portraying him as an animalistic figure. She says, “He wore his nakedness like a cloak.” The word ‘cloak’ gives a sense of wealth to the Aboriginal, stripping the assumed power Thornhill has and replacing it with shame after being described as “skinless as a maggot.” Furthermore, the man’s scars on his chest were tribal marks, however, Thornhill’ scars were from the flogging he received as a result of his crime. This further emphasises the difference in culture. Moreover, later in the novel, Thornhill is seen to describe the Aboriginal man as ‘it’, almost taking the human identity and ownership of the right to be human away from him. The idea of the Aboriginal man lacking human qualities is further emphasised through Grenville’s description of the man as if “a dog were to bark in English”. This first clash in the novel contrasts the British idea of clothing with the Aboriginal idea of nakedness and being comfortable in their own skin and also foreshadows the entire theme of the novel.
The concepts of settlement and property in both cultures are also contrasted in this novel. The idea of ownership lies at the bottom of the conflict between the colonists and the natives. The British are obsessed with possession of property and believe that “marking” pieces of land makes it their own. They also felt no reason not to claim land that had not been claimed by any form of ownership and used the absence of infrastructure to mean that the Aborigines had not invested in the land. This concept is perhaps stemmed from the ‘Protestant work ethic’ which showed that simply living on a piece of land was not enough to warrant the respect of the colonialists’ law and therefore allowed the British to take advantage of the resources of the land.
Moreover, this idea of property is also fuelled by a need of social status through economic gain. An example of this is when Captain Cook first set foot on Australia, eventually colonizing it and disregarding the Aboriginals who had lived there for centuries. The ideology of the natives, on the other hand, completely contrasts that of the colonialists. For the Aborigines, there is need for property and ownership but rather, they flow around the continent according to seasons and where they can find an abundance of food and water. The quote, “There were no signs that the blacks felt the space belonged to them… no fences that said this is mine” shows that the Aboriginals feel no need to mark their land unlike the colonialists but instead coexist with it in harmony. Before the colonists arrived, there was no question of ownership of land but rather the land provided them with resources and they used it. This is further emphasised through the concept of a lack of clothing which shows that the Aborigines feel comfortable in their own skin and shameless as they live as one, with the land- they knew the land belonged to them and that they belonged to the land.
The concepts of class and social hierarchy are also contrasted in the novel. The convicts assume superiority over the Aborigines purely due to their race, placing them at the middle of the social hierarchy. This is heavily contrasted with the social status of Thornhill in London where he was portrayed at being at the bottom of the social hierarchy due to his work as a waterman and was looked down upon throughout his life in London. Therefore, life in Australia is a fresh start in which Thornhill strives to climb the social hierarchy and eventually own his land. The development of Thornhill’s status marks his crave for wielding power over others. This causes the convicts to let out all the oppression they received from the gentry onto the Aboriginals to avoid the humiliation they received in London and also due to the fear of returning to poverty. This in turn causes them to think of the natives as ‘savages’ and eventually leads to the genocide of the Aborigines. An example of a character with an extremist attitude towards the natives is ‘Smasher Sullivan’ who took pride in telling the story of how he cut the ears off an Aboriginal man and wore them as a “trophy”. This exemplifies the concept of social hierarchy and how the colonists took advantage and exploited the Aborigines’ land. The social hierarchy system within each country is also heavily contrasted. In Britain,
Grenville also explores the theme of clash of civilisations through the genocide which occurs in which the Aboriginal race is almost exterminated. Moreover, Grenville uses Thornhill’s guilt about the treatment of the natives to show the cost of the genocide. By committing this unforgivable act, Thornhill completes his dream of experiencing wealth and power. However, this came at a cost for Thornhill and his family: his relationship with Sal grew apart and he no longer spoke to Dick. Moreover, his unresolved dispute with the Aborigines is worsened further through Long Jack having “half his head shot away.” To compensate for Jack’s loss, Sal attempts to shelter Jack and provide him with the necessities. However, he refuses and and declares that the land as “[the Aboriginals’] place”. Moreover, despite Thornhill’s success, he feels that his presence has changed nothing. He also feels that the amount of ‘white’ settlement has increased but is exasperated by the fact that the Aborigines had reconnected with the land in a place where “in the intricate landscape that defeated any white man”. This lack of major change in the landscape adds to his guilt and a sense of penance is felt by his dread that it was “too late, too late” to repair the damage he caused. He is also seen to acknowledge Dick’s and Blackwood’s desire to live in harmony with both cultures, questioning the the British war-like ideology of expanding their empire which completely contrasted with the Aboriginals’.
In conclusion, Grenville successfully portrays a ‘Clash of Civilizations’ between the British and the Aborigines through many different concepts in their respective cultures. She uses Thornhill as a representative of the colonial ideology, expressing the colonial attitudes of the Western Powers. This is heavily contrasted with the Aborigines ideology which rivals the validity of the colonialists’ actions. These rivalries in cultural beliefs ultimately causes the ethnic cleansing of the Aborigines in which the colonialist power of the British overpowers the Aborigines.