The Arrival by Shaun Tan In Depth Analysis

GreenFilmsOfficial

3 Sept 202207:34

Summary

TLDRIn this video, the creator analyzes Sean Tan's graphic novel 'The Arrival,' focusing on its themes of immigration and adaptation. The story follows a man who flees his homeland due to a giant creature, symbolizing fear and change, and his experiences in a foreign land with different cultures, food, and language. The video highlights Tan's use of symbolism, color, and fictional elements to depict the protagonist's emotional journey, struggles, and eventual integration. The reviewer appreciates the novel’s message of hope and acceptance, especially for immigrants, making it a timeless, universal story.

Takeaways

🎨 'The Arrival' by Shaun Tan is a graphic novel that uses allegory to depict the immigration experience.
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 The story revolves around a man who leaves his family behind due to a mysterious creature, representing the reasons and emotions tied to immigration.
🐉 Monsters in the novel symbolize the unknown and unfamiliar aspects of a new culture, as well as the challenges faced by immigrants.
🚢 Chapter 2 focuses on the protagonist's journey to an unnamed country, highlighting the hardships of immigration similar to real-life experiences.
🌍 The protagonist struggles with the cultural differences in the new country, including language, food, and even the animals.
🗺️ Despite having a map, the protagonist often asks for directions, leading to friendships and shared experiences with other immigrants.
👥 The novel emphasizes the backstories of side characters, each with their own reasons for leaving their home countries.
🟡 The use of color, particularly yellow, is significant in the novel, contrasting with grays and blacks to symbolize happiness and warmth.
🌆 The creation of a fake culture in the novel helps readers of any ethnicity empathize with the protagonist's experience.
🏡 The ending of the novel is positive, showing the protagonist and his family fully integrating into the new culture and helping new immigrants.

Q & A

What is the main theme of 'The Arrival' by Shaun Tan?
-The main theme of 'The Arrival' is immigration, focusing on the emotional and cultural struggles immigrants face when adjusting to a new country.
How does the author use monsters in the story?
-Monsters in 'The Arrival' symbolize various challenges, fears, and emotions that immigrants face. For example, a creature at the start represents the danger or issue causing the protagonist to flee, while other monsters symbolize the unknown and the unfamiliar.
What role does the new pet play in the story?
-The protagonist's new pet symbolizes his gradual adaptation to the unfamiliar culture of the new country. Initially, he is unsure about the creature, but over time, he becomes comfortable with it, reflecting his growing sense of belonging.
What is the significance of the ship journey in the novel?
-The crowded ship journey represents the hardships of immigration, with harsh weather and difficult conditions highlighting the struggles immigrants endure to reach a new country.
How does the protagonist navigate the new city?
-The protagonist struggles to navigate the new city, relying on a map and asking random strangers for directions. His interactions lead him to form friendships with fellow immigrants, who share their experiences with him.
What role do the side characters play in the story?
-Side characters in 'The Arrival' provide important backstories that reflect various immigrant experiences, such as escaping slave labor or oppressive governments. These characters help the protagonist realize he is not alone in his journey.
How is color, particularly yellow, used in the graphic novel?
-The color yellow is used to convey warmth, happiness, and hope in the story. It contrasts with the gray tones used in more depressing scenes, helping to create emotional depth and emphasize key moments.
What is the significance of the war flashback scene?
-The war flashback scene uses yellow to symbolize the soldiers' initial optimism before the war, which fades to gray as the reality of conflict sets in. It illustrates the harsh transition from hope to devastation.
How does Shaun Tan's creation of a fictional culture enhance the story?
-By creating a fictional culture with unique creatures, food, and language, Shaun Tan makes the experience of immigration feel more universal. This helps readers of any background relate to the protagonist's journey of adaptation.
How does the ending of 'The Arrival' reflect the protagonist's journey?
-The ending shows the protagonist fully integrated into his new culture, symbolized by him playing a local game with others. The arrival of his family and their eventual adaptation highlights the theme of building a new life while cherishing old connections.

Outlines

00:00

📅 Catching Up After a Month Away

The speaker apologizes for not uploading for a month, explaining they were busy during August but now have time to create content. They introduce their plan to analyze a graphic novel titled *The Arrival* by Australian author and artist Shaun Tan, which is a metaphorical exploration of immigration.

05:02

🌍 Immigrant Struggles and Symbolism in The Arrival

The speaker begins analyzing *The Arrival*, explaining that it is an allegory for immigration. The story follows a man who leaves his home country due to a gigantic creature symbolizing the hardships and emotions faced by him and his family. The graphic novel uses monsters to represent fear, unfamiliarity, and the positive aspects of exploring new cultures. The protagonist's evolving relationship with a pet symbolizes his growing comfort in the new environment.

🚢 Journey of Immigration: Challenges and Adaptation

The speaker describes Chapter 2, where the protagonist faces a difficult journey to a fictional country. The ship is crowded, similar to real immigrant ships, and the weather is harsh. The novel emphasizes the difficulty of adjusting to a new culture, with the protagonist struggling to navigate the unfamiliar food, language, and environment. He eventually bonds with other immigrants who share their backstories and hardships, reinforcing a sense of community and shared struggle.

🛠️ Side Characters and Backstories

The speaker highlights the significance of the side characters in the protagonist's journey, explaining how their stories reflect various hardships faced by immigrants. Each character's backstory, such as fleeing from slave labor or war, adds depth to the narrative and underscores the protagonist's feeling of not being alone in his struggles.

🌞 Symbolism of Yellow and Gray in Emotional Shifts

The speaker discusses the use of color in the graphic novel, particularly the contrast between gray tones in sad scenes and yellow in happier moments. The color shift is especially poignant in a flashback scene, where the initial brightness of a pre-war adventure fades as reality sets in during battle. The visual representation of emotions through color enhances the reader's connection to the story.

🏙️ A Fantastical Culture to Evoke Empathy

The speaker praises Shaun Tan's creation of a fictional culture in *The Arrival*. The fake language, creatures, and customs help readers from any background relate to the protagonist's feelings of alienation. The fictional world contrasts with the more realistic portrayal of the protagonist’s home country, making his journey even more relatable.

🎮 Mastering a New Culture and the Joy of Belonging

The speaker describes the ending of the graphic novel, where the protagonist has finally adapted to the new culture. He plays a fictional game with locals, symbolizing his full integration into society. The warm yellow hues of the scene reflect his newfound contentment. Despite missing his family, the story ends on a happy note when they are reunited, and the family slowly adjusts to their new life.

💫 A Positive Message for Immigrants

The speaker concludes by reflecting on the positive message of *The Arrival*. Although adjusting to a new culture is challenging, the graphic novel shows that embracing a new environment can lead to beautiful outcomes. The protagonist’s journey of struggle and eventual integration resonates with immigrants and anyone facing change, delivering a hopeful message.

👍 Final Thoughts and Encouragement to Engage

The speaker wraps up the video by expressing their love for *The Arrival* and encourages viewers to engage with the video by liking, subscribing, and commenting. They mention their next video, teasing another analysis, and thank viewers for watching.

Mindmap

Keywords

💡Immigration

Immigration refers to the process of moving to a new country, often in search of better opportunities or to escape difficult circumstances. In the video, the graphic novel 'The Arrival' by Shaun Tan uses immigration as a central theme, focusing on the protagonist's struggles as he leaves his home country and adjusts to life in a foreign, fictional land.

💡Allegory

An allegory is a narrative in which characters, events, or settings represent abstract ideas or moral qualities. In 'The Arrival,' the story serves as an allegory for immigration, using symbolic monsters and foreign landscapes to express the emotions, challenges, and rewards of leaving one's home and assimilating into a new culture.

💡Monsters

In 'The Arrival,' monsters are used as symbolic representations of the fears and unknowns that the protagonist and his family face. These creatures are metaphors for issues like oppression and the emotional turmoil that drives people to leave their homes. They also symbolize the unfamiliar aspects of a new culture that the protagonist encounters.

💡Cultural adjustment

Cultural adjustment refers to the process of adapting to a new society’s customs, language, and way of life. In the video, the protagonist in 'The Arrival' struggles to navigate his new surroundings, including unfamiliar foods, animals, and languages, highlighting the difficulties immigrants face in becoming comfortable in a foreign land.

💡Symbolism

Symbolism is the use of symbols to represent ideas or qualities beyond their literal meaning. In 'The Arrival,' various elements like monsters, the protagonist’s pet, and color usage (e.g., yellow and gray) symbolize different stages of the immigrant experience, from fear and confusion to warmth and acceptance.

💡Community

Community in this context refers to the connections the protagonist forms with other immigrants. These relationships are crucial to his adaptation process, as he learns that others share similar struggles. The video discusses how the protagonist befriends an entire family and other immigrants, who offer him support and share their own stories of hardship and survival.

💡Isolation

Isolation is the feeling of being alone or cut off from others, a central emotional experience for many immigrants. In 'The Arrival,' the protagonist initially feels lost and alone in the new country, unable to understand the language or find his way. This sense of isolation contrasts with the community he builds later in the story.

💡Language barrier

A language barrier is the difficulty in communication that arises when people do not share a common language. In 'The Arrival,' the protagonist faces a language barrier upon arriving in the new country, making it hard for him to navigate the city or ask for help. This is a metaphor for the confusion and frustration many immigrants experience.

💡Color symbolism

Color symbolism refers to the use of color to convey deeper meanings. In 'The Arrival,' Shaun Tan uses colors like yellow and gray to enhance emotional scenes. Yellow is associated with warmth, hope, and happiness, particularly in scenes where the protagonist is adapting to his new life. In contrast, gray is used to depict more somber, difficult moments.

💡Fantastical elements

Fantastical elements refer to the use of imaginative, unreal components in storytelling, such as mythical creatures or fictional worlds. In 'The Arrival,' the author creates a fictional city with strange animals, food, and languages, making the protagonist's experience universally relatable. These elements help readers from any background empathize with the confusion and disorientation of being in an unfamiliar place.

Highlights

Introduction of the video, acknowledging the hiatus and explaining the busy schedule.

Analysis of 'The Arrival' by Australian author and artist Sean Tan.

Explanation of 'The Arrival' as an allegory for immigration, focusing on the main character's journey.

Description of the use of monsters in 'The Arrival' to symbolize struggles and emotions related to immigration.

Analysis of how the protagonist's interaction with a new pet symbolizes his gradual comfort in a foreign environment.

Discussion of the hardships faced by the protagonist in adjusting to a new culture, including unfamiliar food, language, and customs.

Emphasis on the importance of side characters and their backstories in highlighting the universal struggles of immigrants.

Analysis of how color, especially yellow, is used to convey emotional tones, such as warmth and happiness.

Specific example of a flashback scene using both yellow and gray to contrast emotions before and during war.

Appreciation for the creation of a fictional culture, making the story relatable to readers of any ethnicity.

Comparison between the protagonist’s home country, which is more realistic, and the fantastical setting of the new country.

The ending highlights the protagonist fully integrating into his new culture and playing a game with local civilians.

The protagonist's family finally reunites with him after a year, reinforcing the emotional struggles of separation.

The protagonist's family adapts to the new culture, with their child eventually helping other immigrants adjust.

Conclusion that while adapting to a new culture is difficult, embracing it can lead to beautiful outcomes.