• Congratulations to the Class of 2024 on your results!
    Let us know how you went here
    Got a question about your uni preferences? Ask us here

Aussie theatre -ruby moon HELP! (1 Viewer)

Joined
Aug 6, 2005
Messages
134
Gender
Female
HSC
2006
wat artistic, political issues (and all the rest) are shown in ruby moon?????????


i really need help!!! i cant see anything artistic or political issues in the play at all!!!
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!:burn:
 

yeahyeahyeah

New Member
Joined
Sep 5, 2006
Messages
4
Gender
Female
HSC
2006
It doesn't adress political issues does it? I thought it was more about exploring SOCIAL issues....like the loss of a child, the loss of innocence, corruption, the deceit of suburbia, not belong, and darkness under perfection.
The set design and staging are extremely artistic but i don't think any artistic ISSUES are shown in the play.
Good luck :)
 

***Steph***

New Member
Joined
Oct 23, 2006
Messages
22
Gender
Female
HSC
2007
I'm not sure whether this counts as a political issue or not but in Matt Cameron's introduction to the play, he talk about the government nurturing fear and terror in society and then acting as if they are the only ones who can protect us from this fear and terror.
 

Eddieshort

New Member
Joined
Oct 2, 2006
Messages
6
Gender
Female
HSC
2007
There are plenty of issues within the play you just need to read between the lines. Open your mind
 

humiliatedgrape

New Member
Joined
Aug 19, 2007
Messages
1
Gender
Female
HSC
2007
My teacher told us something about it dealing with the issue of the loss of innocence in being sent to war by the government, and how that's reflected through the theme of the loss of innocence in the play. No one in my class seems to understand that though, or ever writes it in essays, so I don't know if it's actually true :p
 

lucilleM

New Member
Joined
Nov 5, 2007
Messages
9
Gender
Female
HSC
2008
Ruby Moon Issues:
Political: Plays different characters all represent the different parties involved in the running of our nation. The different characters all play a different part of Ruby going missing.
Artistic: more the staging of the play
Cultural: The Australian culture has an obsession with missing children. We love to come up with a million different ways in which the child could have gone missing. This occurs in Ruby Moon, with every character having a different solution.
Personal: most people will relate to losing something/ someone they love. We never want to admit the truth that happened to them/it so we think of alternate answers. And even rehearse different answers over and over until we begin to believe our own lie.
Social: like cultural. A missing child is something everybody talks about until they all move on. Even after everyone has moved on the parents of the child are left behind grieving.
 

Jerixodia

New Member
Joined
Dec 5, 2007
Messages
13
Gender
Male
HSC
2008
lucilleM said:
Ruby Moon Issues:
Political: Plays different characters all represent the different parties involved in the running of our nation. The different characters all play a different part of Ruby going missing.
Artistic: more the staging of the play
Cultural: The Australian culture has an obsession with missing children. We love to come up with a million different ways in which the child could have gone missing. This occurs in Ruby Moon, with every character having a different solution.
Personal: most people will relate to losing something/ someone they love. We never want to admit the truth that happened to them/it so we think of alternate answers. And even rehearse different answers over and over until we begin to believe our own lie.
Social: like cultural. A missing child is something everybody talks about until they all move on. Even after everyone has moved on the parents of the child are left behind grieving.
GIVE THIS WOMAN A MEDAL!!!
 

blond!34eva

New Member
Joined
Sep 23, 2007
Messages
3
Gender
Female
HSC
2008
lucilleM said:
Ruby Moon Issues:
Political: Plays different characters all represent the different parties involved in the running of our nation. The different characters all play a different part of Ruby going missing.
Artistic: more the staging of the play
Cultural: The Australian culture has an obsession with missing children. We love to come up with a million different ways in which the child could have gone missing. This occurs in Ruby Moon, with every character having a different solution.
Personal: most people will relate to losing something/ someone they love. We never want to admit the truth that happened to them/it so we think of alternate answers. And even rehearse different answers over and over until we begin to believe our own lie.
Social: like cultural. A missing child is something everybody talks about until they all move on. Even after everyone has moved on the parents of the child are left behind grieving.
although these things are true... its looking at it all to literally .. Ruby moon is an absurdest piece .. was their even a child to begin with ? the above ideas are all assuming that their was a child and that ruby was not a fictional character in the minds of two people who are trying to fit into a steriotypical type of family by claiming their " daughter" ruby disappeared.. im not saying that u shouldnt take all the above information in . im just saying look at it in many ways ...
 
Joined
Aug 11, 2006
Messages
4
Location
Muswellbrook
Gender
Female
HSC
2008
blond!34eva said:
although these things are true... its looking at it all to literally .. Ruby moon is an absurdest piece .. was their even a child to begin with ? the above ideas are all assuming that their was a child and that ruby was not a fictional character in the minds of two people who are trying to fit into a steriotypical type of family by claiming their " daughter" ruby disappeared.. im not saying that u shouldnt take all the above information in . im just saying look at it in many ways ...
i fully agree with this. Ruby Moon is much more an absurdist play than it is realistic. it takes on the form of a 'fractured fairytale' portraying obvious stereotypical people with stereotypical names (ie Sonnyjim). you cannot look at it as if it is something that will happen to you or your neighbours. if you ever have the chance to see it performed by professionals (anyone who is studying this), please do. it makes the themes and issues much easier to understand.
 

lucilleM

New Member
Joined
Nov 5, 2007
Messages
9
Gender
Female
HSC
2008
Pippa Elise said:
i fully agree with this. Ruby Moon is much more an absurdist play than it is realistic. it takes on the form of a 'fractured fairytale' portraying obvious stereotypical people with stereotypical names (ie Sonnyjim). you cannot look at it as if it is something that will happen to you or your neighbours. if you ever have the chance to see it performed by professionals (anyone who is studying this), please do. it makes the themes an easier to understand.
i agree that it is an absurd piece... and seeing the stage production does give you a point view of the piece.
However, markers are not after what you saw on stage. If you have seen it live kudos! use that as an example in your essays but like i said the markers are after the interpretation you recieve after you have read the script. The question of Ruby Moon is in my opion not of did Ruby exist, but how are Ray and Sylive existing in this absurd and tweisted word.
I also reccommend reasearching the names of all the characters and their meanings.. all the name defonitions refer to light or dark and covering or showing... eg Ray=sun ray Veronica= ture meaning Vale= well the bride where's it when she gets married her name alludes to the truth being covered
Research the names!
 

jennieTalia

Member
Joined
Nov 28, 2007
Messages
605
Location
Hills district
Gender
Female
HSC
2008
I guess another social issue is that of personality.

Each of the characters represented a different Australian identity, from its evolving forms, whereas some are just in there for dramatic meaning (e.g. idea of the Wizard etc)

Socially, the most important part of the play for me (especially in performance last year) was the part where Sid Craven says that he 'played' with Ruby... and we somehow immediately hear "fondled"

It's a creepy sort of thing. And personally, I got the shivers until you realise that he is actually innocent but that we are conditioned to think things like that.
 

xhelena

New Member
Joined
Nov 15, 2007
Messages
3
Gender
Female
HSC
2008
:worried:
jennieTalia said:
I guess another social issue is that of personality.

Each of the characters represented a different Australian identity, from its evolving forms, whereas some are just in there for dramatic meaning (e.g. idea of the Wizard etc)

Socially, the most important part of the play for me (especially in performance last year) was the part where Sid Craven says that he 'played' with Ruby... and we somehow immediately hear "fondled"

It's a creepy sort of thing. And personally, I got the shivers until you realise that he is actually innocent but that we are conditioned to think things like that.
can u pleassse expand on this "Each of the characters represented a different Australian identity, from its evolving forms". Which characters do this and how? :s
 

G.e.M.z

New Member
Joined
Jun 21, 2008
Messages
16
Gender
Undisclosed
HSC
2008
No one has mentioned that
- the play exposes the underbelly of Australian suburbia and the veneer of the Australian Dream that exists in our national identity
 

ravenmorr

New Member
Joined
May 9, 2008
Messages
8
Gender
Male
HSC
2009
jennieTalia said:
I guess another social issue is that of personality.

Each of the characters represented a different Australian identity, from its evolving forms, whereas some are just in there for dramatic meaning (e.g. idea of the Wizard etc)

Socially, the most important part of the play for me (especially in performance last year) was the part where Sid Craven says that he 'played' with Ruby... and we somehow immediately hear "fondled"

It's a creepy sort of thing. And personally, I got the shivers until you realise that he is actually innocent but that we are conditioned to think things like that.
true, there are also other concepts on the personality of the characters as our teacher described that all the characters that Ray plays are in house on even numbers(meaning they are on the level-good poeple) while sylvies characters are on odd numbers (deception-evil)

there are more to the characters than meets the eye, ill place more infomation if people could please get me stuff on tragety? but ill still put stuff down on Ruby Moon & if use want my other aussie play 7 Stages as well.
 

Emi C

New Member
Joined
Sep 19, 2007
Messages
1
Location
Bega
Gender
Female
HSC
2008
xhelena said:
:worried:

can u pleassse expand on this "Each of the characters represented a different Australian identity, from its evolving forms". Which characters do this and how? :s
Well as far as i interpret:

Ruby: Loss of; innocence, Australian identity - (did we really lose this?)
Dulcie Doily: Religion
Sid Craven: Fear for children
Veronica: Lust, Sex
Sonny Jim: Terror, War, Fear
Dawn: Self Identity
Carl Ogle: Science, the new - change

And How

Well these topics/issues are what these characters talk about and embody. Most are pretty straight forward. Dawn is the one i forget, she changes her face with rubber bands and wants to be someone else.

All these issues are what matt cameron thinks are important and relevant to our society, don't forget to mention that. Contemporary Australian theatre reflects the issues with Contemporary Australia.

so yeah hope that helps
 
Last edited:

Mithead

Member
Joined
Oct 23, 2006
Messages
37
Gender
Male
HSC
2009
The names are actaually all sort of significant:
Ray - 'protector'
Sylvie - A saint invoked by mothers in times of crises
Dulcie - 'frail'
Sid - Contraction of Saint Dennis - Associated with revalry (Clown associations)
Veronica - The name was actually 'imported' to England from France and Scotland (yeah, this one's a stretch) so it has some associations with exotic features. A further stretch may be a saint cannonised for unique stigmata - on her heart
Sonny Jim - 'man'
Dawn - literally means Dawn (go figure!) but this emphasises her claims that it is stale and boring
Carl - really struggling to make this connection, except the fact that an entymology search returns a list of scientists


Ok, so some of them are a bit of a stretch. Theyre not particularly helpful in writing the essay, but they're a little insightful.
 

aid1

New Member
Joined
Feb 8, 2009
Messages
9
Gender
Male
HSC
2009
well the war part is about about how sonny jim is abbandoned by govt. after war and how hell never be the same again. the ruby going missing is a political issue because its like a parrallel for that case with the dingo stole my baby!!
 

posey-rose

The lost member
Joined
Mar 7, 2008
Messages
139
Location
Bathurst
Gender
Female
HSC
2009
Well as far as i interpret:

Ruby: Loss of; innocence, Australian identity - (did we really lose this?)
Dulcie Doily: Religion
Sid Craven: Fear for children
Veronica: Lust, Sex
Sonny Jim: Terror, War, Fear
Dawn: Self Identity
Carl Ogle: Science, the new - change

And How

Well these topics/issues are what these characters talk about and embody. Most are pretty straight forward. Dawn is the one i forget, she changes her face with rubber bands and wants to be someone else.

All these issues are what matt cameron thinks are important and relevant to our society, don't forget to mention that. Contemporary Australian theatre reflects the issues with Contemporary Australia.

so yeah hope that helps

That makes so much sense! especially Dawn.

one thing i love this text is that it has so much meaning and symbolism-
 

arooonaloo

New Member
Joined
Jun 8, 2009
Messages
2
Gender
Male
HSC
2009
Sorry for the bump XD

Well as far as i interpret:

Ruby: Loss of; innocence, Australian identity - (did we really lose this?)
Dulcie Doily: Religion
Sid Craven: Fear for children
Veronica: Lust, Sex
Sonny Jim: Terror, War, Fear
Dawn: Self Identity
Carl Ogle: Science, the new - change

And How

Well these topics/issues are what these characters talk about and embody. Most are pretty straight forward. Dawn is the one i forget, she changes her face with rubber bands and wants to be someone else.

All these issues are what matt cameron thinks are important and relevant to our society, don't forget to mention that. Contemporary Australian theatre reflects the issues with Contemporary Australia.

so yeah hope that helps

That's pretty dead on, but there's a few others ones you can link there too...like..

Dulcie Doily: Communal Isolation, the fact that we live in such suburbia, and yet she's forced to talk to herself for companionship.

Sid Craven: Paranoia in regards to children, stranger danger and what not, how some people go WAY over the top in regards to accusing anyone who works or goes near children

And..I can't really think of many more at this point in time...
 

phayte

New Member
Joined
Jun 20, 2008
Messages
20
Gender
Male
HSC
2009
Due to it's absurdist nature all the ideas and concepts which are purported aren't linear at all, they involve different interpretations and deeper meanings.
When I read Ruby Moon it helped to look at everything as cyclical and as a double entendre. It juxtaposes the concept of a community with a name like "Flaming Grove" which evokes a hostile environment, the inhabitants of which all represent different social demographics and characteristics of "Australia" as a whole community. Matt Cameron also uses subtleties in his composition such as each of the characters in the play (played by the father and mother) all representing the values a parent is supposed to uphold, which Ray and Sylvie (symbolism in the names) failed at. Protectiveness with Sonny Jim, Maternal nurturing in Dulcie, among others.
When looking at it and annotating it, look at your notes at the end and see if they can be warped into any other meaning/interpretation, as it's based on dramatic interpretation there is no black and white right and wrong, as long as your statements are backed up with evidence.
Good luck :)
 

Users Who Are Viewing This Thread (Users: 0, Guests: 1)

Top