VCE · Text Response
Text Response: Sunset Boulevard criticises the act of…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 75%: Billy Wilder's Hollywood on 'Sunset Boulevard' explores the outcomes of being profitably driven in the film. Wilder…
Billy Wilder's Hollywood on 'Sunset Boulevard' explores the outcomes of being profitably driven in the film. Wilder exhibits creating films in means to generate profit. Wilder throughout the film exhibits how Hollywood drives its artists to sacrifice morality to survive. Moreover, through Hollywood's age disposal system, Wilder exhibits the presence of gender roles as a mechanism to make money. However, Wilder showcases how authenticity can still exist within Hollywood's capitalism.
Wilder undermines the decaying creativity in Hollywood as artists sacrifice their morality for survival. During the scene where Joe pitches his 'bases loaded' script to Sheldrake, Sheldrake displays his dismissive behaviour towards Joe's script through his seemingly unbothered behaviour through a mid-shot. Wilder defies a usual cinematic power dynamic where a standing character appears more dominant than a seated one. Joe's stance evokes a calm, and despite standing before Sheldrake who evokes a calm and seated posture. Wilder's use of defying cinematic dynamic suggests that ideas are controlled by executives who are profit-driven. Wilder also implies that creativity is not valued in Hollywood, but rather an idea's level of profitability. Thus, Wilder condemns the purpose of survival, and money. Moreover, Max's role as Norma's butler encapsulates on an individual sacrificing their creativity for survival. Max's choice to serve Norma after her career had faded reveals how the decaying creativity in Hollywood corrupted his identity as a director, sacrificing his morality to survive while giving his dependency to Norma. Hence, Wilder alarms the audience how Hollywood's profit-driven mechanism can result to an artist's loss of motivation towards creativity, due to its corrupted system, enforcing one to sacrifice their principles as a way out of the industry.
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: How does Wilder critique the world of…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 77.5%: Seen as the quintessential success factory, 1950s American society viewed Hollywood as a place where glamour,…
Seen as the quintessential success factory, 1950s American society viewed Hollywood as a place where glamour, fame and success flourished. Billy Wilder’s allegorical film Sunset Boulevard critiques aspects of the world of Hollywood through its construction and film noir genre. Throughout the film, Wilder builds tension and a sense of shock towards the harsh realities of Hollywood and awakens 1950 audiences to them. Ultimately, Wilder conveys that Hollywood is a place that gives rise to a damaging celebrity culture, sexism towards women, and opportunism and greed.
Wilder displays that the world of Hollywood gives birth to a damaging celebrity culture that sets unrealistic expectations on 1950s American society. Celebrities during this time had to be glamorous, beautiful, and wealthy to adhere to Hollywood’s strict star system rules, thus setting an unrealistic example on American society. This message is amplified through Norma’s intense beauty regime, and the ‘army of beauty experts’ who invaded her so that she could undergo a ‘merciless series of treatments’ to get ready for ‘those cameras that would never return.’ Throughout these beauty scenes, Wilder implements close-up camera shots of Norma’s face to amplify the notion that she appears to be struggling and in pain due to the harsh expectations that celebrity culture in Hollywood have put on her. Wilder’s use of black and white cinematography contributes to the overall film noir genre of the movie and helps to build further tension through these closeup shots of Norma and the torture that she forces herself to undertake. This tension allows the audience to reflect on the glamorous appearance of Hollywood and to look at it from a darker perspective. Additionally, through these scenes, Wilder portrays Norma as lady Frankenstein, through the bandages on her face and the clothes that she wears as well as the magnifying glass placed over her eye which acts as a metaphorical closeup into Hollywood’s damaging nature, to further exemplify the idea that societal expectations can leave one looking physically scary and exhausted. Furthermore, Betty’s attempts to ‘get [her] nose fixed’ and the sheer fact that it costed her ‘three hundred dollars,’ the price of Joe’s car, further amplifies the notion that Hollywood’s celebrity culture causes individuals like Betty to pay large amounts of cash to change their appearances and personalities to fit the restrictive moulds that studios have made for actors in Hollywood. Ultimately, Wilder employs a variety of construction techniques to depict that individuals who try to adhere to societal expectations that arise from Hollywood’s celebrity culture pay a price and awakens society to these harsh realities.
VCE · Creative Response
Creative Response: If you listen I will tell a story
VCE Creative Response essay scoring 80%: Listen up this is a story that your going to want to hear Hands up if you’re absolutely terrified about next…
Listen up this is a story that your going to want to hear
Hands up if you’re absolutely terrified about next year when this cruel experiment is over? Now keep those hands up if you don’t know what you are going to do? Half of you. Good. That’s normal.
I am going to talk about gap years. But I am not going to tell you it’s all sunshine’s and Instagram posts because two years ago, I woke up in Brazil with my passport gone… just gone.
Listen close, you’re in your hotel room in Rio, with maybe 50 dollars left and suddenly you are no longer a tourist. You’re stranded. That marble floor freezing beneath your feet as you tear through every drawer, every pocket yet still nothing. Jason-who’s your mate that dragged you on this trip, he’s sitting in the corner going “mate we’re so screwed”.
Let’s rewind a bit. 6 months before this disastrous story begun I was sitting where you are now, except I had no plan. Zero. Whilst everyone else was filling out university applications I was rotting in my bedroom. Netflix till 3:00AM, sleep till 2:00 Pm and repeat. I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life searching my brain for clues as to what I was going to be. It came to a point where my parents began to question “so what’s the plan?”, I just had nothing.
That’s until Jason rocked up at my door. This is where the journey begins. “come on a gap year with me” he enforces. In my household a gap year was for rich kids or drop outs, which I was neither. But honestly I was so lost that even the unknown felt better than that bedroom, becoming my bridge keeping me grounded to reality.
So anyways back to Brazil. We’re stranded in the streets that had been pumping with music, with the most breathtaking views, until it became jail. Looking back I still remember the views from my hotel room window; large silver arches that stretched across bold bridges, gleaming against the soft green hills, something you could only see in a postcard. But in the moment my life had come crashing down. Back home I would’ve run to mum and dad and hidden under the covers, waiting for someone else to fix my problems. But we couldn’t, we had no bridge back home. We had to adapt.
The Australian Consulate had gone radio silent, so we had to take to the streets. I remember this part of the story as clear as day. A taxi driver parked on the side of the curb tells us- I swear I am not making this up, he says “Mountain…gang…may have…things”, which directly translated to a gang in the mountain may have our things. I know, I know mental right? But when you’re desperate you’ll do anything. So up we went to climb a mountain, both of us exhausted and so lost.
Half way up the mountain we saw a small house perched on a plateau of land, surrounded by a field of corn, swaying in the wind. We
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: In Rainbow's End, racism appears in many…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 62.5%: in complex ways on every day basis from dislocation to sexual assault and to societal exclusion, Harrison…
in complex ways on every day basis from dislocation to sexual assault and to societal exclusion, Harrison suggests all the tragic experiences have shaped the Aboriginal women's view of white Figures however pushing racism and discrimination aside and through great optimism, the women decided not to be a victim of racism instead draw From it and change their destinies through resilience.
how the government always turned a blind eye to the problems of Aboriginal families. When Nan Dear opens up about her getting raped by a white man, it gives some courage to Dolly as she will also be able to care for the child as Nan says "you still em the same, no matter how they come into the world." however, as it also affects Dolly's relationship with Errol due to his last name being Fisher. Errol although not willingly demonstrated subtle racism when he thought he's just trying to help Dolly. "Why do you even live here. I'm offering you a better life." The segregation between ways of living of white figures and Aboriginal families made Errol think he knows better as apparently his way of living was better according to him. However Dolly thought although their humpy is vulnerable it's where people are looking out for each other." and that she doesn't need any help from Errol.
The Aboriginal women face racism
When the women face to evacuate them without their consent, the racist white authorities hold all the control. When Nan and Gladys heard the sound of bulldozer, it represents the forcefulness and control imposed on their families. The humpy was more than a house, the humpy 'was a home' for the women, where they supported and uplifted each other.
Through all the dislocation, sexual assault faced by Dolly & Nan and through normalized acts of racism, Harrison suggests
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: In Oedipus the King, Sophocles explores…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 75%: Sophocles’ classical Greek tragedy play Oedipus the King, performed in 429 BCE, follows the downfall of a king in…
Sophocles’ classical Greek tragedy play Oedipus the King, performed in 429 BCE, follows the downfall of a king in Thebes as he learns that he has fulfilled a prophecy to kill his father and marry his mother. The play explores how the gods control human fate and how people respond to divine will. Written for an Athenian audience who believed in Apollo and the power of oracles, the play uses dramatic irony to show how characters are blind to the truth even when the audience can see it clearly. Sophocles reveals that while Oedipus’s downfall is destined by the gods, it is his own pride and refusal to accept the truth that seals his tragic fate.
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: In what ways does Oedipus embody the…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 80%: Sophocles’ play Oedipus the King, performed in 429 BCE, follows the hamartia of a king in Thebes as he learns that…
Sophocles’ play Oedipus the King, performed in 429 BCE, follows the hamartia of a king in Thebes as he learns that he has fulfilled a prophecy to kill his father and marry his mother. The play explores how the gods control human fate and how people respond to divine will. Written for an Athenian audience who believed in Apollo and the power of oracles, the play shows how humans rely on gods for guidance yet also suffer under their command. Oedipus is a typical tragic hero because his noble status, pride and pursuit of truth leads to his downfall in contrast with Medea, whose tragedy happens from deliberate passion and revenge. Sophocles uses dramatic irony and foreshadowing to highlight the power of the gods over humanity and the flaws that bring Oedipus to ruin.
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: Anger Works both as a motivaton and a…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 65%: In the film High ground directed by Wittiana Marika and Stephen Maxwell Tohnson. Set post world war 1, Anger is a…
In the film High ground directed by Wittiana Marika and Stephen Maxwell Tohnson.
Set post world war 1,
Anger is a prompting force towards motivation and achering goals. Although for some anger eaten creates a barrier towards sucess. this is shown through a response to trauma prevention of reconciliation and ultimatey hau anger prevents
In the film highground trauma acts as a primary Source of anger enaoling motivation and empowering those Who are traumatised to fignt. Early in the film the colonisers (ses violently perpetrate a massaure, slaughtering majority of the Yolnau tribe.Throuah pain and violence the Massacre acts as a motivater for Yolngu people to retalare and fight back for their culture, Some with anger, Some more Strategically. This is depicted through the character of Bayuara Where he leads a Wild mob' in an act o revenge because its
our land we should fiant, This demonstrates how Baywaras anger is driven by a deep sense of injustice and connection to land. hignliting how dispossesion and trauma fuels anger' as a means of reclaiming power. Johnson and Marika aim to highlight the destructive legacy of colonial power and the effect it can have on Austratian indigenous witure.
At the start of the film baywara is portrayea as the "greatest teacher" and an influential figure for young
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: How does Wilder use film noir to portray a…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 80%: How does Wilder use film noir to portray a pessimistic view of Hollywood? ‘Sunset Boulevard’, directed by Billy…
How does Wilder use film noir to portray a pessimistic view of Hollywood?
‘Sunset Boulevard’, directed by Billy Wilder in 1950, is a dark Hollywood drama that exposes the corrupt reality of the film industry's golden age through its stylistic and thematic use of film noir. Throughout the film, Wilder employs shadowed cinematography, strategic camera angles and flashbacks to critique a system that elevates stars only to discard them, while also revealing the moral decay and desperation of those in the pursuit of success. However, it also portrays a nuanced perspective of those who navigate Hollywood with integrity and clarity, offering a more optimistic view of the industry.
Through the lens of film noir, Wilder exposes the destructive impact of the Hollywood star system, showing how it exploits actors and drives them toward obsession, instability, and decay. ‘Sunset Boulevard’s opening shot, with the camera looking down at ‘SUNSET BLVD’ written on the curb, immediately establishes Wilder's critical view of Hollywood. By literally positioning the audience above the scene, Wilder establishes a tone of cynicism and fatalism, inviting viewers to look down, both physically and morally on an industry that inflates stars' egos with promises of eternal success, only to abandon them when they are no longer profitable. The effects of the Hollywood star system can also be seen through one of the main protagonists, Norma Desmond, a silent film actress. As the industry shifts towards ‘talkies’, Norma is left in the background, sidelined in favour of younger, more glamorous performers driving her deeper into an obsession with her former fame and former self. Norma's house appears to be ‘crowded with Norma Desmonds’, in the form of countless framed photos of her from her silent film era. This mis-en-scene, accompanied by a panning camera shot, shows the photos surrounding her, creating a sense of claustrophobia and symbolising her deluded fantasy world she has constructed in an attempt to preserve her fading fame. Further, at Paramount Studios, Norma steps onto the set of a film and Hog-eye shines a spotlight on her, causing the crew to flock towards her. However, DeMille quickly commands that they “turn that light back where it belongs” and the crew immediately abandons her. This scene highlights not only Norma's obsession with fame but how the Hollywood star system feeds actors' egos while simultaneously reminding them of their expendability. Wilder uses this scene, alongside her home, to reinforce a cynical view of the executives and the industry as a whole, showing how they use their power to foster delusion and leave stars isolated despite their desire for recognition.
VCE · Language Analysis
Language Analysis: vcaa 21 aa
VCE Language Analysis essay scoring 77.5%: As major threats to the cinema industry continue to threaten local community Toppdale cinema there is a risk…
As major threats to the cinema industry continue to threaten local community Toppdale cinema there is a risk of being forced to shut down. Consequently, Ava, marketing manager of the cinema shares a social media post to the residents of Toppdale and the broader community in which she contends that the cinema is too valuable of an asset to lose. Ava aspires to garner support and attract customers, new and old, to the business in hopes it will save the historical cinema.
Ava deliberately begins her piece by reminding her audience of the longstanding history of the cinema before introducing the threats the cinema faces. Describing the cinema as the “towns backbone” puts forth the notion that cinema acts similarly to a person apart of the town. Additionally, by describing it as the “backbone” Ava intends to imply that without it the town will be unsupported and crumble. This compels the residents to want to care for the cinema like it is one of them and feel concerned about the future of the town if it shuts down. Only after having reminded her audience of the cinema's significance does Ava introduce the risk that Toppdale’s cinema could close “forever”. Utilising an urgent tone Ava shares that there has been a “drop of well over 50%” of people coming to the business. These notions express the urgency of the risk and further create a panic within her audience, so they act quickly to defend the business and implies the irreplaceability of the business within the community.
VCE · Creative Response
Creative Response: personal journeys, this is me
VCE Creative Response essay scoring 90%: Blue paint smeared across the canvas as I moved with ease, my hands following a path they had long known, a…
Blue paint smeared across the canvas as I moved with ease, my hands following a path they had long known, a rhythm ingrained in me like muscle memory. Blue was the colour that lurked beneath my skin, quietly pulsing through me, embodying the entirety of my being. It seeped out of my eyes to escape its bodily confines, desperate for release, as if the canvas was the only place it could exist freely. It was dark and turbulent, like waves crashing relentlessly against a bleak and hollow shoreline, each stroke a reflection of the storms I carried within.
I had spent most of my childhood crying blue tears. I had cried when my grandma forced me to eat spinach, the bitter taste clinging stubbornly to my tongue, lingering even now in memory as if it had left a permanent stain. I had cried when my mum yelled at me for not remembering the 8 times table, the numbers swimming uselessly in my head, dissolving into a blur through watery eyes. I had cried when my brother tried to cut the hair off my favourite doll, the soft plastic strands falling like tiny sacrifices onto the carpet. Those blue tears dominated my youth, filling the quiet spaces of my days, as familiar as the toys on my shelf or the worn quilt on my bed.
VCE · Creative Response
Creative Response: "Some things about living still…
VCE Creative Response essay scoring 75%: So, the other day, I ran out of sugar. No big deal, right? Just pop to Woollies with my humble $2.50. That is…
So, the other day, I ran out of sugar. No big deal, right? Just pop to Woollies with my humble $2.50. That is enough. I do not buy brand names. I figure it is all the same stuff right. So, I am on the hunt for my trusty blue cheap packet of sugar. I scan it... FOUR DOLLARS. For sugar. The one thing that is supposed to be sweet in this economy! I stood there, staring at the screen like it just insulted my ancestors. Four dollars. That is robbery in a resealable bag. And of course, I had to check the milk. Fifty cents more than last week. Fifty cents! I thought we agreed prices do not increase midweek. We did not get that memo. I stared at the carton like it owed me an apology.
This economy does not just make me feel poor, but it confirms it. Soap or sugar. Petrol or a house. That is the new reality. I thought I would start a family this year. oops, a child or loaf of bread. Both, if I skip avocado toast for a month. Or live off coffee alone. Decisions, decisions.
Now the election recently happened. Everyone saying they would fix the cost of living. "we'll lower the cost of eggs, cheese and dreams." Yes right. Even the cemetery is raising prices because
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: In SB, fame is temporary and people are…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 80%: Produced in an era plagued by insecurity and glory, Billy Wilder’s Sunset Boulevard offers the audience a dark,…
Produced in an era plagued by insecurity and glory, Billy Wilder’s Sunset Boulevard offers the audience a dark, satirical exploration of the temporary nature of fame, showing Hollywood’s power to dispose of its stars. Wilder critiques the fleeting nature of fame, showing how Hollywood discards its stars once they no longer meet its marketable standards. Additionally, Wilder demonstrates Hollywood’s ability to commodify its actors, critiquing Hollywood’s ruthless standards. In contrast, Sunset Boulevard showcases the everlasting effects of fame, demonstrating how fame can create legacies. Ultimately, Wilder critiques Hollywood commodification of its stars, signifying the conditional and fleeting nature of fame.
Wilder critiques the fleeting nature of fame, demonstrating how it discards actors once they no longer serve a marketable purpose. This is made evident through a wide shot that showcases Norma’s decision to confine herself with photographs and memorabilia of her past silent film career, revealing her refusal to accept her age. By clinging onto her commodified past, Norma seeks to maintain her worth as an actress for an industry that has rendered her identity obsolete. Wilder uses this to criticise Hollywood’s transactional approach to stardom, where it uses a system that leaves objectified stars like Norma in deluded cycles of denial once they come of age. Additionally, the Waxworks scene demonstrates that once actors age, they are forgotten and neglected by Hollywood, left as relics of a bygone era with no place in the modern industry. Wilder uses their faded presence to expose the ruthless disposability of fame, showing how stardom is entirely conditional and tied to youth and marketability. Furthermore, Norma’s insistence that her “return” to Hollywood is inevitable demonstrates her denial of reality and refusal to accept her obsolescence. This delusion is employed by Wilder to reveal how fame distorts self-perception, compelling stars to form elaborate fantasises to protect themselves from confronting the industry’s relentless and often merciless cycle of relevance and rejection. By unveiling the conditional nature of fame, Wilder critiques Hollywood’s cruel obsession with fame, showing how success can be both an intoxicating allure and a destructive trap designed to prey on the aspiration of the young.
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: In Sunset Boulevard, fame is not a reward…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 82.5%: Produced in an era plagued by insecurity and glory, Billy Wilder’s Sunset Boulevard offers the audience a dark,…
Produced in an era plagued by insecurity and glory, Billy Wilder’s Sunset Boulevard offers the audience a dark, satirical exploration of fame’s intoxicating allure, showing how it is both a prize and a poison that corrodes an individual's identity. Wilde critiques the fleeting nature of fame, exposing Hollywood’s capacity to commodify its actors. Further, Wilder showcases fame’s ability to sever personal connections, leading to artificial and transactional relationships. Conversely, Wilder acknowledges that fame is not entirely transient, suggesting that certain figures can achieve lasting relevance within Hollywood’s hierarchy. Ultimately, Wilder reveals the corrosive nature of fame, exposing its intoxicating allure as a destructive trap that erodes a person’s identity.
Through his scathing critique of Hollywood’s transactional system, Wilder critiques the fleeting nature of fame, exposing how Hollywood discards stars once they no longer meet its marketable standards. This is made evident through a wide shot that showcases Norma’s decision to confine herself with photographs and memorabilia from the past, revealing her refusal to acknowledge her age. By clinging onto the past, Norma seeks to maintain her worth as an actress for an industry that has rendered her obsolete, leaving her to appear glamorous even in private life. This delusion is employed by Wilder to criticise Hollywood’s transactional approach to stardom, where it adopts a system that leaves actors like Norma in deluded cycles of denial once they come of age. Additionally, the Waxwork stars scene demonstrates that once actors come of age, they are forgotten and neglected by Hollywood, left as relics of a bygone era with no place in the modern industry. Wilder uses their faded presence to expose the ruthless disposability of fame, showing how stardom is entirely conditional and tied to youth and marketability. Furthermore, Norma’s insistence that her “return” is inevitable demonstrates her denial of reality and refusal to acknowledge her obsolescence. Wilder utilises her refusal to reveal how fame distorts self-perception, compelling stars to form elaborate fantasies that protect them from the industry’s relentless and often merciless cycle of relevance and rejection, By unveiling the conditional nature of fame, Wilder critiques Hollywood’s cruel obsession with marketability, showing how fame can be both an intoxicating allure and a destructive trap that invades a person’s autonomy.
VCE · Creative Response
Creative Response: "Some things about living still…
VCE Creative Response essay scoring 75%: So, the other day, I ran out of sugar. No big deal right? Just pop to Woolies with my humble $2.50. That's…
So, the other day, I ran out of sugar. No big deal right? Just pop to Woolies with my humble $2.50. That's enough. I don't buy brand names. I figure it's all the same stuff right. So I'm on the hunt for my trusty blue cheap packet of sugar. I scan it... FOUR DOLLARS. For sugar. The one thing that's supposed to be sweet in this economy! I stood there, staring at the screen like it just insulted my ancestors. Four bucks. That's robbery in a resealable bag. This economy doesn't just make me feel poor but it confirms it. Soap or sugar. Petrol or a house. That's the new reality. I thought I'd start a family this year. oops, a child or loaf of bread. Now the election recently happened. Everyone saying they'd fix the cost of living. "we'll
VCE · Creative Response
Creative Response: The government has banned public…
VCE Creative Response essay scoring 65%: Resist and Persist To my beloved, I miss you every day. The streets feel quieter without your voice in them.…
Resist and Persist
To my beloved,
I miss you every day. The streets feel quieter without your voice in them. They say the government wants order, equality, safety, but it is a silence that suffocates. Public gatherings are banned. No one dares raise a sign, sing a chant, or speak above a whisper. I feel the emptiness pressing in, but I remember you, always, in motion against it.
I remember the weeks leading to the final protest. You planned quietly, carefully. Nights spent sketching signs, refining speeches, debating with others who were too afraid to act. You told me that silence has many forms. There is the silence of fear, the kind that coils in your chest and paralyzes you. And there is the silence that waits, like a storm, before striking. You knew the difference, and you chose to act.
VCE · Creative Response
Creative Response: The government has banned public…
VCE Creative Response essay scoring 62.5%: Resist and Persist To my beloved, I miss you every day. The silence since you’ve gone is not peace. It is a…
Resist and Persist
To my beloved,
I miss you every day. The silence since you’ve gone is not peace. It is a weight pressing down on every street, every voice, every heart. The government calls it equality. They say no one should be louder, brighter, freer than anyone else. But I know the truth. Silence is their weapon, their law, their chain.
You would have laughed at their rules, at the ban on public gatherings, at the way difference is punished in the name of fairness. You always said it reminded you of Harrison Bergeron, where brilliance was shackled and rebellion was crime. You underlined the line about people being “equal every which way,” and laughed, saying, equality isn’t justice if it demands silence. That is why you refused to obey.
I remember the day we called the Last March. The streets were empty, the air tense. Soldiers waited in lines that cut across the pavement like shadows. And yet, there you were, standing at the front, holding your sign, voice rising against the quiet they demanded. It read “Silence is power.” At first, I thought it ironic, a naive belief. But you explained, silence gives power to those who oppress, and to speak even at risk is to reclaim it.
VCE · Creative Response
Creative Response: The government has banned public…
VCE Creative Response essay scoring 67.5%: Justice To my beloved, I miss you. I miss you every day. Since you’ve gone, the silence feels endless. The…
Justice
To my beloved,
I miss you. I miss you every day. Since you’ve gone, the silence feels endless. The government calls it equality. A world where no voice is louder than another. But all I hear is fear. No one speaks above a whisper now. No one dares to.
You would’ve mocked their new laws. The way they’ve banned public gatherings, erased music from the streets, outlawed difference in the name of “fairness.” It’s their version of peace, one built on submission. You always said their dream of equality reminded you of that story you loved, Harrison Bergeron, the one where brilliance was punished and rebellion was treason. You used to underline that line, the one about people being “equal every which way,” and you’d laugh, saying, equality isn’t justice if it demands silence.
VCE · Creative Response
Creative Response: The government has banned public…
VCE Creative Response essay scoring 62.5%: Resist and Persist To my beloved, I miss you. I miss you every day. Since you’ve gone, the world has grown…
Resist and Persist
To my beloved,
I miss you. I miss you every day. Since you’ve gone, the world has grown quieter but not peaceful. It’s the kind of silence that feels forced, heavy, suffocating. The government calls it “order.” I call it fear.
You would have laughed at their curfews, at the way they think they can legislate silence. Even after they banned public gatherings, you said voices can’t be outlawed. You said it softly that night, sitting out on the balcony, Marshy at your feet, paint-stained hands gripping your brush as you traced the words across your sign:
“Silence is power.”
Back then, I didn’t understand. I thought you meant strength through calm. But now I see the irony you meant it as a warning. That silence gives power to those who abuse it.
VCE · Creative Response
Creative Response: The government has banned public…
VCE Creative Response essay scoring 65%: Resist and Persist To my beloved, I miss you. I miss you every day. Life feels smaller without you in it. I’m…
Resist and Persist
To my beloved,
I miss you. I miss you every day. Life feels smaller without you in it. I’m trying to keep going to stand for what’s right, to continue what you began, but the weight of it all grows heavier. The forces have tightened their grip on us. Every voice that dares to rise is silenced before it reaches the sky. And yet, I can still hear yours.
You used to sit at the crumbling wooden table on the balcony with Marshy at your feet, your pen scratching against paper, hair dancing in the wind. You always said words could start revolutions. How dare they take you away from me, for using only your words. How dare they strip you of your life, your laughter, your soul.
I remember that day, the day you made the most change. The weeks leading up to it were filled with restless nights and whispered plans. You poured your dedication into changing the world, into saving a planet too bruised to heal itself. I admired your hope, your reckless courage.
When the government banned public gatherings, you said their silence was a weapon, and that ours would not be. You painted your sign on the deck, Silence is power, the phrase that had once meant strength through calm. But this time, you meant it differently. You said silence only empowers those who hold the chains.
VCE · Creative Response
Creative Response: The government has banned public…
VCE Creative Response essay scoring 60%: To my beloved, I miss you. I miss you every day. I can’t live without you. I’m trying my hardest to stand up…
To my beloved,
I miss you. I miss you every day. I can’t live without you. I’m trying my hardest to stand up for what’s right, to continue in your footsteps, but it’s just too hard. The forces have gotten stronger, and somehow, I keep getting weaker.
I can still hear your voice echoing through the house. I see you sitting at the disintegrating wooden table out on the balcony with Marshy curled at your feet, writing away, your hair blowing in the wind. This isn’t fair. Life isn’t fair. How dare they take you away from me. How dare they strip you of your life, your laughter, your soul.
I still remember that day. The day you made the most change. The weeks leading up to it were filled with planning, sketching, writing your dedication poured into changing the world. To make peace. To save us from the diminishing earth. I applaud you, I appreciate you, I love you.
That day replays in my mind every second of every day. You, standing there, shoes untied, hair in a messy bun, looking wild and free. You didn’t care; you never did. I loved that about you. Marching down the street, left foot, right foot one after another. Sirens screaming through the air, ready to crush the innocent, the young, the hopeful.
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: “In The Memory Police, Ogawa shows that…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 87.5%: Yoko Ogawa's 1994 dystopian novel 'The Memory Police' critically examines a haunting world plagued by…
Yoko Ogawa's 1994 dystopian novel 'The Memory Police' critically examines a haunting world plagued by psychological decay and pervasive dictatorial surveillance, which threatens the very fundamentals of individual and collective identity. Set on an unnamed island where objects and their associated memories gradually disappear - Ogawa asserts that censorship and assimilation to the rule of oppressive entities predominantly imperil shared experiences; inevitably endangering both individual and collective humanity. Throughout the novel, Ogawa undermines the occurence of systematic information control as a mechanism of political dominion - in which 'forgetting' functions not only as personal loss but as an active control manoeuvre. Similarly, the author underscores how the loss of memories under ubiquitous authoritarian scrutiny diminishes the emotional depth and soulfulness of exposed individuals. Despite the overwhelming emotional and psychological perils of memory loss, in the face of hegemony, Ogawa champions the preservation of arts and creativity as a medium of endurance and protection of unique identities even in the face of imminent societal decline.
Forgetting functions not only as a potential for personal loss but also as a mechanism of political domination. Ogawa embodies this manipulation through the titular police force's unrelenting and menacing presence, whose "forceful, rhythmic boots," contrasted with "quicker, more uncertain steps" of civillians,
dominate the island's landscape. The auditory juxtaposition not only conveys the regime's physical control but also represents its psychological dominance - the rhythm of the boats becomes the significant rhythm that conditions the 'inhabitants' compliance to injustices. The repetitive, almost mechanical rhythm mirrors the process of forgetting enforced by the oppressive police force: just as the islanders' memories are systematically erased, their actions, reactions, and inner lives are gradually synchronised to the demands of power.
In this way, Ogawa links sensory experience with psychological manipulation, demonstrating that totalitarian control is not only external but internalised, aligning individuals as observers complicit in their own erasure. Furthermore, the citizens' passive acceptance - "they are just doing their job" to the pernicious actions of the police force - further illustrates how reverence sustains oppression, reflecting historical parallels with Japan's Meiji restoration period censorship and revisionist euphemism surrounding events like the Nanking massacre, where collective forgetting functioned as a means of national self-preservation at the cost of truth and accountability. By invoking such historical erasures, Ogawa critiques the human tendency to discredit uncomfortable histories in order to maintain social harmony, exposing how such suppression erodes a nation's moral identity just as surely as the island's disappearances erode individual selves.
Thus, Ogawa highlights that totalitarian power endures not through physical coercion, but through the quiet and systematic eradication of collective memory, ensuring that both resistance and selfhood are methodically dissolved.
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: Neap 2025 trial examination: Shame is the…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 72.5%: 'Oedipus the king', written by Athenian Tragedian Sophocles in the fifth century B.C, elucidates the tragic…
'Oedipus the king', written by Athenian Tragedian Sophocles in the fifth century B.C, elucidates the tragic peripeteia of characters who are driven to tragedy out of fear of shame. The playwright's rendition of the ancient Greek myth stands as a testament to the influence of honour and public perception within mortal actions. Thus, Sophocles invites audience members to explore the futility of reputation and anxiety amongst a society governed by divine rule.
Firstly, the desire to avert distasteful public perception fosters inevitable catastrophe amongst Thebes. Adhering to his duty of nobility as king of Thebes, Oedipus is compelled to pursue the truth to Laius' demise and bring "what's dark to light". This moral responsibility of the tragic protagonist is thus impressed upon him out of shame, in which Oedipus is fearful of the consequence of inadequate leadership. Whilst, the playwright validates the contemporary values of Greek audiences within the presence of the Chorus, to further exacerbate how excessive honour when exercising authority may also lament misery. The reverent views of audiences viewing this play at the festival of Dionysus are entwined within the Chorus's lionization of Oedipus upon his "triumph" over the "Riddling Sphinx". This pivotal event and rendering of process is therefore emblematic of a patron deity, in which the "greatest power" to Thebes amalgamated the city and delivered them from "misery". However, this reverent-like devotion from disciples rather subjects Oedipus to greater honour and orchestrates his vice of hubris "You all know my fame". Sophocles thereby projects that the nature that Oedipus ascends to kingship is fatal to his character, as his excess of honour and self - narcissism contradict the elusive principle of Sophrosyne and catalyse anguish.
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: ‘What will come will come.’ Does…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 77.5%: Sophocles’ Greek tragedy, Oedipus the King, explores the tension between fate and freewill as one of the central…
Sophocles’ Greek tragedy, Oedipus the King, explores the tension between fate and freewill as one of the central themes of the play. During the fifth century B.C.E., intellectuals within the Athenian society began to contradict the traditional view of the Gods power, and the legitimacy of the oracles. This created a tension between those who hold onto traditional beliefs and those who challenge them. Through the play, Sophocles examines how fate is an unavoidable force, how defying the prophecies is a fruitless endeavour, and the repercussions that occur to individuals when they attempt to avoid fate. In Oedipus the King, Sophocles reinforces the idea that fate is mostly an inescapable, almost divine power that cannot be overthrown by one’s free will.
Sophocles examines how fate is an inevitable force. To outwit fate and stop the prophecy that their son will kill his father and marry his mother from occurring, Queen Jocasta and King Laius send away their newborn son, Oedipus, to be killed by their servant. Despite their frivolous efforts, Oedipus still fulfilled the prophecy, as the Shepard goes against the wishes of King Laius and Jocasta to kill their child, as he “pitied the little baby” that was sent to death. Tiresias further exemplifies this as he points out that “what will come will come” as no matter what an individual may do to delay the prophecy, all choices that are made with the idea of doing them free willingly, is just fate changing the path that individuals will go down, all still falling victim to destiny’s unavoidable hand. The murder of King Laius also underlines how an individual can still unknowingly fulfill the prophecy due to the inevitable force of fate. Oedipus’ admission of killing them all and not knowing “if that stranger was Laius” as he feels that if it was true, no one “could have more miserable lives than [his]” underlines his ignorance towards murdering his father, or as he knew it, an unknown man, at the three crossroads symbolising him unknowingly stepping onto the path of his true discovery of his identity. The tragic irony between Oedipus unknowingly murdering his father and his frivolous efforts to avoid the prophecies from being fulfilled, highlights how regardless of if individuals are conscious of their actions, fate is omnipotent in all aspects of life.
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: “Oedipus the King is as much about gain as…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 100%: Sophocles stages a world where every genuine gain arrives with a proportionate loss. Thebes gains health at the…
Sophocles stages a world where every genuine gain arrives with a proportionate loss. Thebes gains health at the cost of its king. Oedipus gains truth at the price of sight, status and family. The audience gains tragic wisdom by watching a good man break. From the first proclamation to the final maxim, the play links benefit to damage so tightly that to “bring it all to light” is always to spend something precious to get it.
From the outset Oedipus turns civic panic into procedural gain, and that gain immediately binds him to future loss. “I acted at once. I sent Creon to Delphi” compresses fear into method; the adverb “at once” marks duty rather than dread. “Let me grant your prayers… do what the plague demands” reframes prayer as administrative action, so the city stands to gain order through reasoned leadership. “I will speak out now as a stranger to the story” commits him to public, impartial inquiry, and “I’ll bring it all to light” names knowledge as his goal. Most telling is the self-curse, “I curse myself as well… if he proves to be an intimate of our house,” which shows integrity and self-trust so complete that he wagers his own body on the justice of his process. The gains are real, including authoritative procedure, a legal-ritual framework, and the promise of truth. The losses are foreshadowed in the oath that will return upon its speaker.
The play then shows how others chase false gains such as comfort and delay, and how these ripen into larger losses, which sharpens Oedipus’ different way of gaining. Tiresias warns that “The truth is only pain to him who sees” and attempts, “I will never reveal my dreadful secrets,” to withhold knowledge in order to limit harm. Jocasta dismisses the oracle with “So much for prophecy. It’s neither here nor there,” and later pleads, “Stop, in the name of god, if you love your own life, call off this search!” The shepherd begs, “Don’t torture me! … I’m right at the edge, the horrible truth.” These are bids for the gain of peace; they purchase only loss when revelation finally breaks. Jocasta’s comfort ends in silence and suicide. The shepherd’s secrecy collapses under questioning. By contrast, Oedipus’ “I’ll bring it all to light myself!” declares a gain of truth he is willing to pay for, and the play will take him at his word.