Simile - “It made the newly-weds feel like sojourners in a foreign land”
Juxtaposition (of setting): Winton juxtaposes the couple’s previous home to their new home.
Mood – Disattachment, alienation
The characters in the short story are not named, which creates a sense that their identity is completely defined in this neighbourhood.
Belonging is process driven (transitory process) as it is dynamic, ongoing and changing. The couple’s journey towards the state of belonging is a transitory process. At first they don't belong, but over time, they are accepted, and discover a new identity in this neighbourhood.
Imagery/Symbolism – The transitory process is further shown through the reference to the 'seasons' as “autumn merged into winter and the vermilion sunsets were followed sudden, dark dusks...”
Stereotyping - Winton creates stereotypes (class and culture)
Flashback – The author alludes to the fact that the couple are upper-class when he writes “The young man and women had lived all their lives in the expansive other suburbs where good neighbours were seldom seen and never heard.”
Third-person omniscient narrator