A Town Like Alice is a novel written by Nevil Shute and first published in 1950. The story follows the experiences of Jean Paget, a young Englishwoman who is captured by the Japanese during World War II and forced to march with a group of other women through the jungle of Malaya. Along the way, Jean forms a close bond with a group of Australian soldiers who are also being held as prisoners of war, and together they face numerous challenges and hardships as they try to survive in a hostile environment.
One of the main themes of A Town Like Alice is the strength of the human spirit in the face of adversity. Jean is a determined and resourceful young woman who refuses to give up, even when faced with seemingly insurmountable challenges. She is driven by a strong desire to survive and to help those around her, and she uses her intelligence and resourcefulness to overcome the many obstacles that stand in her way.
Another key theme of the novel is the importance of community and cooperation. Throughout the story, Jean and the other prisoners rely on each other for support and assistance, and they work together to find food, shelter, and other necessities. The strong bonds that form between the prisoners help them to endure their trials and emerge from them with a sense of hope and determination.
A Town Like Alice is a poignant and powerful tale of survival, friendship, and the human spirit. It is a reminder of the resilience and strength of the human spirit in the face of adversity, and it serves as a testament to the enduring power of hope and the human capacity to endure and overcome even the most difficult of circumstances.
A Town Like Alice (miniseries)
And I think I prefer an older contemporary book which accurately reflects the period over a modern historical book which glosses over or completely rewrites then prevailing attitudes. I grew up in Malaysia so its like part of a narrative history. Over the course of the next few meetings, he learns her history. Jean is carrying a toddler, whose mother has died, and this leads Harman to believe that she is married; to avoid complications, Jean does not correct this assumption. Learning from the well diggers that Harman amazingly survives, Paget goes to Australia to find him. Geysel-Vonck, marched 1200 miles through Sumatra with baby under similar circumstances. Good review — you have it right, the way Shute picks out the heroic from characters who could seem mundane.
A Town Like Alice (TV Mini Series 1981)
While it is being built, she discovers that, by a strange chance, Joe Harman survived and returned to Australia. The second part is a love story. She presents some ideas but then she sits back and lets them figure out exactly what will best serve their needs. I do love this book. It is a semiofficial report more like a personal diary written by Alvar Nuñez Cabeza de Vaca to the King of Spain regarding the Narváez expedition.
A Town Like Alice (1956)
Cite this page as follows: "A Town Like Alice - Summary" Masterpieces of World Literature, Critical Edition Ed. As an Austalian I grew up with the books of Neville Shute on the bookshelves at home and still have a soft spot for this English writer who so well depicted the laconic Aussie hero Joe in A Town Like Alice. Tough selfless Aussie meets tough English lady. A lot of it is horribly sad. Separated first by their captors then by the distance of passing years, the two are finally reunited in the rugged outback of Australia-to face a challenge every bit as demanding as their wartime trials. In the book this is found amongst the Malayan women that has to work on the fields, look after the kids and sleep on the floor. And the overly romantic depiction of both Joe and Jean ultimately diminishes the book.
A Town Like Alice Summary
What seems to interest him as an author is the heroism of the ordinary person. To him, she seems a pleasant enough woman, but she has an enduring sadness about her. Jean is taken prisoner along with several other women and children. She writes Strachan a long proposal and asks he release £5,000 pounds of her inheritance to finance it. The soldier is abused by his captain and he finds it so humiliating that he looses his will to live. She and her brother Donald work in Malaya before the war.
Free Essay: A Town Like Alice: Discussion
. After Paget and Harman marry and begin their family, Strachan visits, sees all she has accomplished, and returns home to write the story of a woman who has made a difference, but whom he has met 40 years too late. What I'm trying to say with this essay is that you can't tell if people are the same or not because they have been too influenced by the culture that they're living in. Strachan's firm wants him to help her control the money and advise her, while Jean on the other hand has a completely different mind set. I don't think that they would want to be repressed by the men , but they are too used to it change it.
