Across the Nightingale Floor

Suitable for students, Australian literature comprises of a variety of thought-provoking concepts that challenge readers minds, as opposed to the simple texts that students be confronted with nowadays. A mythic impertinent, crosswise the nightingale Floor is an example of modern literature that most students read these days. A highly praised novel, it has authentic awards such as the German Youth Literature Prize. Written by the pseudonymous Australian author, Lian Hearn embraces a contemporary writing style, and her novel shows weeny resemblance to that of Australian literature.Based on high recommendations from my peers and beholding that the novel was intended for teens of both genders, I was compelled to explore this novel. Although a well written ask, I accept that it is an inappropriate book for high school study due to its incomplex storyline and weak moral sense. In the mythic novel, Takeo, a young boy living in the Three Countries, is on a quest to kill Iida, the call ous leader of the Tohan set, after Iida burnt Takeos village and killed his family. Takeo is taken in by Lord Shigeru and begins training as a warrior.Having macrocosm brought up by the Hidden, a peaceful clan who be against war, Takeo demonstrates reluctance to kill. This creates problems in his training and his teacher is determined to help him overcome this. across the Nightingale Floor takes on a traditional and contemporary trend, incorporating ideas such as teenage love and arranged marriages. Gender discourses are embedded within the novel and are shown by the domination of males over females. be a female, Kaede is without freedom and is forced into an arranged marriage with no objection. Lord Iida on the other hand, world a domineering male, over mights Kaede.The majority of the novel consists of a war discourse which is apparent through the strife between Lord Shigeru and Iida. Family discourses are also seen at the very beginning of the novel with Takeos family. secern themes are cleverly entwined, as the novel revolves around strong themes such as love, beauty, honour, vengeance and death. have intercourse is portrayed through many parts of the novel Takeo and Kaede, Lord Shigeru and Lady Maruyama and all the friendships and alliances that Takeo and Kaede make passim the novel. Beauty is shown through Kaedes striking appearance which men die for.Honour is seen in Kaedes obligation to marry, as well as Takeos pledge to avenge Iida. Vengeance and death are portrayed in both Iida and Lord Shigerus death, and is also present throughout the entire novel as Takeo seeks to kill Iida. In terms of moral perspectives, Across the Nightingale Floor does not yield conceptions of peace as it holds many unethical ideas. Although mentioned early in the novel, Takeos religious upbringing is miss as his trainings as a warrior requires him to kill. Iidas vindictive character is emphasized through his intentions of strengthening his power base by destroyi ng defenceless villages.Innocent village inhabitants are brutally punished by Iida through methods such as suspending them in midair to be further eaten alive by crows. Such immoral concepts would not be suitable for school students to absorb. era the novel contains figurative terminology, it is also accompanied by speak up prose which dissatisfies the story, and the readers opportunity to broaden their vocabulary is miniscule. Through the course of the novel, the reader follows three perspectives The protagonist, Takeo, Kaede, and the narrator. oft confusion is brought about as the story switches from first person to third person, and a considerable train of concentration is required. The reader is needed to position themself in three perceptions, as well as being able to sympathize for both Takeo and Kaede. The novels intermittent pace also further complicates things as the author fails to describe the situations in detail. An example of this is the death of Takeos family. Alt hough Takeos grievance for his dead family is obvious, it is thorny for the reader to sympathize for him due to their lack of understanding of his family bonds, caused by a deficiency in information.It back be easily assumed that the imagery contained in Across the Nightingale Floor is based on feudal Japan. A tell-tale sign of quests, the maps at the very beginning of the book lead to this preconception. Although this is the case, very little references are made to the surroundings within the novel, consequently decreasing the readers ability to view the exotic Japanese backdrop. Most of the characters thoughts are incoherent within the novel. Takeos thoughts on his new-found supernatural powers are unheard of, as well as what he thinks of having to use weapons, something which disagrees with his anti-war nature.As the antagonists of the novel, Iida and his men are budding characters and do not seem to make much progress throughout the novel. They are not prone a chance to por tray their strengths, nor are they seen to fall. Because Takeos role as a warrior conflicts his reluctance to kill, his spirit is divided thoroughout the whole novel. Takeo takes the centre of the many conflicts between the other characters, and this mainly influences and emphasizes his divided nature.As a result, Takeos issues remain at the end of the novel and he is unable to resolve them. It is evident that Australian literature is gradually dominated by simple texts and to my disappointment, Across the Nightingale Floor further highlights this issue. While its intended audience is young adults, I would recommend this novel for primary school students, due to its simple-crafted language and easy to grasp concepts. Although it may not be suitable for teens, as a childrens novel, Across the Nightingale Floor is an enjoyable read.