Adversity Case

Adversity is a hardship or a challenge that we face. Adversity can happen to anybody and it comes in many different forms depending on the individual. Likewise each individual will cope with their adversity in their own way. It is the way we face our adversity that is important, as it often makes us a better person. Laurie Saunders, a key protagonist in Morton Rhue's novel The Wave, and Clancy the key protagonist in the picture book Clancy the Courageous Cow by Lachie Hume both indicate that it is the way we handle our adversity that is important. Both composers through their use of visual and language techniques explore the concept of the factors that influence an individual's ability to overcome adversity.

Both composers present their key protagonists as outsiders who suffer the adversity of being ostracised for being different to the rest of their group but the characters have different factors that affect their ability to overcome adversity. In The Wave the factor that affects the key protagonist Laurie Sanders's ability to overcome adversity is her situation she faces, standing up for what she believe is right even if results in being ostracise. Laurie finds herself being ostracised and alienated by her classmates because she's against a radical group, The Wave. "I feel alone all sudden....it's like my friends are part of a crazy movement and I'm an outcast just because I refuse to be exactly like them." Through the use of first person "I feel" the reader is able to understand Laurie's adversity on a personal level and the connotations associated with the emotive word "outcast" has a powerful impact on the reader's emotions. Things get worse for Laurie as things turn sinister, she feels so threatened by Wave members that she has resolve to hiding. This is demonstrated when one of her friends Carl makes a comment about her hiding in the Grapevine office "looks like I've stumbled into Anne frank's attic". The use of this metaphor illustrates the enormity of Laurie's situation. Similarly Clancy finds himself being victimised and alienated for being different to all of the other cows in his herd but unlike Laurie, the factor that affects Clancy's ability to overcome his adversity is his characteristic of having no white belt which is consider being abnormal. The cows in Clancy's herd treated him adversely. "As Clancy grew up all the other cows treated him like an outcast". The emotive noun, "outcast", demonstrates that Clancy is isolated and lonely, making the reader feel sympathetic towards him. This is symbolically illustrated with the image of Clancy on one side of the river while the rest of his herd is on the other side. The use of this visual metaphor reinforces the idea that Clancy is alienated from the rest of his herd. Both key protagonist share the same adversity of being ostracise from their society due to their situation and characteristics which are factors that affect their ability to overcome adversity.

Over time both Laurie and Clancy overcame their adversity of being ostracised through finding Support from others and the factor that has gave both Laurie and Clancy the ability to overcome this adversity is their personality. Laurie is a strong character; Laurie doesn't run away from her adversity instead she faces up to her adversity through her own determination and support from her parents and friends Alex and Carl from the Grapevine. Laurie's support network is demonstrated