This is my Week 6 CRITICAL analysis of Patrick White’s essay the “Prodigal Son”
Patrick White was a great Australian modernist, he utilised this to convey meaning in his work. Audiences had to work to interpret their own meaning, as White created his work while acknowledging subjective experiences. However, though this he critiques how despite individuals have different realities, one should still seek to be challenged by and seek true meaning behind the readings.
His essay the “Prodigal Son” critiques how people do not value consciousness and finding meaning and or beauty in the mundane. White by emphasising how “school master’s rule”, highlights how these arbitrary and objective roles that are not creative are very important within society. Through losing the ability to be creative, White foreshadows the negative affects this may have on society’s future. White utilises the metaphor of being “blind”, here he is undermines the authority of the leaders in society by alluding to how they too are blind. The cliché ‘ignorance is bliss’, is obvious, and lead astray the youth as they seek. external influences in order to gain insight to deeper meanings. Moreover, White emphasises how society is narcissistic and materialistic, “Buttocks of cars get glassier”, this refers to someone excessively polishing their car, which is a critique of the materialistic culture developed in society. Though this, he makes the audience question their priorities as he implicitly suggests that one should be investing time into intellectual pursuits rather than materialistic ones.
White once said, “I was unable to write, and this finally became the explanation of my state of mind: my flawed self has only ever felt intensely alive in the fictions I create”. This analyses the integrity of White’s characters and the imagination he encapsulates within his work. Indeed, White utilised modernism as a tool to convey himself and his purpose in his essays and fiction.
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