Discuss about the The Anzac Hero for Australian Militant.
The Anzac is used to embrace and recognize the Australian militants who struggled and sacrificed themselves to show the world that they represented a strong nation- Australia. The majority of the Anzacs fought as troops in the British Empire during a period when the Australians termed the United Kingdom as an old country. Although they had this conception Australian troops continued to fight during the First World War under Britain flagship. Despite the tireless efforts of the Australian troops mostly the Anzacs, under harsh conditions, their heroism was not recognized by the journalists (Watson, 2008). However, Charles Bean has played a pivotal role in seeking information about the Australian heroes and brought them to light. This heroism stories based on stereotypes depict Australia as a nation that was actually born at Gallipoli. It is one hundred years since the brave and youthful citizens stormed the Anzac cove, that they have finally come to be known as Anzacs, the national heroes. Moreover, this recognition has led to a strong national narrative which has seen Australia as a country use the stereotype for cultural and modern development. The Anzac day has also been set out which is celebrated in April every year in remembrance of these national heroes. This paper therefore explores the role of the Anzac stereotype in modern identity development in Australia.
The Anzac day is among the most important national occasions in Australia. This is because this day marks the first major military achievements that were achieved through a strong fight by the Australian and New Zealand troops in the First World War (Slade, 2003). It is during this period that Australia made a legacy to the world making the country to become a powerful (Donoghue and Tranter, 2015). As a result, the term Anzac means Australian and New Zealand Army Corps. This is the day when the soldiers marched to Turkey and engaged in a serious fight and finally took over Constantinople. Although Australian forces thought that Turkey would surrender, they were surprised by the retaliatory fight which caused massive injuries to troops from both sides.
The Anzac hero stereotype is of great significance to the history of Australian culture and modern identity. This made them develop a cultural attitude towards war and the development of a government. Initially, Australia used to be a federal commonwealth with high levels of patriotism for many years. During this time they were providing support to Britain with promises of forging their own national identity (Slade, 2003). Much of the success was based on the enthusiasm by many Australian men who considered the war as a great opportunity for them to adventure and travel. However, these Australian men did not consider the hardships that they would face on the battlefield.
When the war came to an end, the perception of the soldiers who survived changed because they were glorified by the government and the public. They were constructed to be the mythic heroes due to their prowess against the enemy (Watson, 2008). The respect accorded to these men was much more because their achievement was great despite the fact that they were not trained in the military. By venturing into other wars with Vietnam and Korea during the Second World War, the Anzacs heroes got more respect than before. Anzac has transformed the identity of Australia because it has enabled the construction of national identity with a perception that Anzacs are stereotypic heroes.
The Anzac plays a very critical role to the myths on which the Australians can be identified through the Anzac day celebrations. This identity is recognized worldwide through vigils whose aim is to commemorate the Anzac legends. At some point during the Vietnam War, the Anzac day celebrations decreased due to criticism although later on the ceremonies have increased to a large extent. It is worth to note that the youth contribute the highest support to the support of the Australian military heroes. As a result, the youth and the middle-aged Australian citizens are more likely to associate with Anzacs at a close level than the old people. This means that the Anzac heroes’ recognition is likely to flourish more in future. Considering the tertiary educated people, city dwellers and those that lean towards some politics, Anzac recognition is few (Thomson, 1990). However, it is important that a nation boasts a glorious past of heroes so that the dignity and restoration can be given the meaning they deserve. When it comes to giving of approximations to saints and heroes of a golden age in Australia, the Anzac is the most groups recognized.
In terms of identity, nearly all Australians use the myth of Anzac in order to claim back what is theirs because they believe that they are very brave (Watson, 2008). By associating themselves with Anzac heroes, the Australians not only associate themselves with the past, but they also pay homage to these heroes. Moreover, the Anzac myths are a symbol of being brave and claiming what is authentically theirs. These stereotypes also indicate the conservative nature that is highly valued by the citizens, especially the young generation (Slade, 2003).
The long lasting connection between the Australians and the Anzac stereotype is largely due to their landscape. The Anzac has the narratives about the harsh landscape that the men went through during the wars (Harper & White, 2010). According to Thomson, 1990, this stereotype makes Australians be able to overcome the pathos of diaspora and instead be patriotic to their country. This stereotype has transcended the identity of Australia in both physiological as well as physical boundaries and borders. Use of mythical stereotypes deepens the collective understanding about the past and the future of Australians. The Anzac legend, therefore, enables the Australians to be comfortable with the myths as well as notions of nationhood that are not sustainable. Instead, this stereotype helps them to avoid forcing these myths with values and other unnecessary symbols. The chroniclelization of the Anzac stereotype will help the future Australian generations to have these realities and make their nation an established one on the basis of Anzac heroes.
The elevation of the Anzac celebrations above all other national events in Australia strengthens and signifies the values and character of the citizens. To this date, pilgrimage, both physical and imaginary is paid to the Gallipoli to signify the people’s feeling of togetherness which enhances good citizenship to this country. The Anzac stereotype enables the Australian citizens to be connected to one another and participate in the national process of making myths. Moreover, people have a high sense of debt to the Anzac soldiers who fought hard and died during those wars (Donoghue and Tranter, 2015). The Anzac heroes legend creates a strange fold in the public lives of Australians which forces them to have a common collective narrative, especially for the white Australians through a collective memory of the heroes. This stereotype creates a myth whose goal is to unite the Australians on diverse social and ethnic groups through the identification of both cultural and national identity and hence the uniqueness of Australians.
In Australia today, the majority of the people are women because most men were killed in the wars. The majority of these citizens is Australian English, Irish or of Scottish ancestry while a smaller proportion is from other parts of the world. Most of these diverse groups migrated to Australia after the wars that Anzacs were fighting (Slade, 2003). This multicultural structure of the Australians gives them a national identity which is also contributed by the diverse religious beliefs.
Today, there is a strong belief among Australians that Anzacs used their spirit to forge their national character. This is because although the Anzacs lost the campaign, they made a long lasting unique identity for their nation. Moreover, the Anzacs set up an example which can be adopted by the future generations of Australians based on Australian values. This is supported by the fact that sometimes back, the finance minister in Australian said that although Anzacs used values which really defined whom Australian are, only a few of the people lived by those values. Moreover, during the Australian crises, it is believed that the spirit of Anzacs exist in form of floods and bushfires whereby Australians meet and rescue the victims.
Conclusion
Despite the fact that Australia has so many things which are common to the rest of the world, there are some of the things which are so unique to them. The issues of mental, physical features, language idioms and stereotypes are some of these unique factors. These factors for instance Anzac stereotype have effects of culture as well as modernization which plays a role in national identity. For quite some time, Australians have been embracing their heroes by placing them on a pedestal.
Reference List
Donoghue, J. and Tranter, B., 2015. The Anzacs: military influences on Australian identity. Journal of Sociology, 51(3), pp.449-463.
Harper, M & White, R 2010, ‘Land of symbols’, in Symbols of Australia, UNSW Press, Sydney, pp1Sydney, pp78-104, 254-256.
Slade, P., 2003. Gallipoli thanatourism: The meaning of ANZAC. Annals of tourism research, 30(4), pp.779-794.
Thomson, A., 1990. Anzac memories: Putting popular memory theory into practice in Australia. Oral History, 18(1), pp.25-31.
Watson, D., 2008. Digging: A Moral Equivalent to Anzac Day. Monthly, The, (May 2008), p.44.
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