A sense of belonging is a direct manifestation of shared experience with

other people, a lack of this resulting in a loss of social identity and

consequently belonging, as demonstrated in Tara June Winchs Swallow
the Air (2006), John Greens The Fault in Our Stars (2012) and the 2011
film The Help, directed by Tate Taylor. This loss of belonging is due to the
lack of understanding displayed particularly by those who have not shared
similar hardships, and therefore are unable to allow others to belong,
impacting on the social identity of these alienated individuals and further
accentuating their isolation.
In her bildungsroman novel Swallow the Air, Winch clearly establishes the
necessity of shared experiences in order to belong. As the protagonist,
May Gibson, progresses through her journey around New South Wales the
motif of water is symbolic of drowning in river[s] of tears and struggling
for survival, mirroring her alienation from society. However this natural
imagery shifts its meaning to one of life and rebirth when she recalls that
one day, early in the morning peering at the tilting sun and cloud stream,
there would be a single tiny green bulbus. This parallels Mays realisation
that she must return to her family the people with which she has shared
experiences in order to truly belong, reflecting her transformation from a
state of ignorance to one of enlightenment. This is also exhibited when
May meets Johnny; they reminisce on imagined memories, represented
through the positive tone and extensive use of metaphors and imagery
when they dig hollows in the wet sand and become snakes, silting
through the swampy streams. This mutual belonging, however, is only
temporary because these memories are constructed from their own
individual fantasies. In this way, the novel underlines the pivotal role of
shared experience in forging and maintaining connections with others.
The Fault in Our Stars exhibits the vital role of shared experience and
social identity through exploring both the alienation and belonging of the
protagonist Hazel Grace. Hazel, a teenager diagnosed with cancer, finds
herself unable to connect with society due to the hardships caused by her
illness. She feels an unbridgeable distance between herself and her
prior classmates due to three years removed from proper full-time
schoolic exposure, metaphor underlining their inability to comprehend
the adversity she has endured, damaging her social identity and
alienating her. Moreover, Hazel believes society views cancer victims as
less human than other people, the paradoxical statement amplifying her
perceived disconnection from society. However, she finds peace through
the metafictional novel An Imperial Affliction, the author, Peter Van
Houten, seem[ing] to a) understand what it's like to be dying and b) not

have died, bicolon and antithesis empowering her statement and

emphasising the feeling of belonging it gives her. This sentiment is
ultimately possible as the novel is a reflection of Peters late daughter,
who died of cancer, Peter and Hazels connection mirroring that displayed
between May and her family in Swallow the Air. Thus, the significant effect
of shared experience as well as social identity on belonging is
demonstrated through the social implications of Hazels illness.
Furthermore, Swallow the Air explores the societal opinions within its
modern setting that influence Mays social identity and consequently her
sense of belonging. The exclusion of Aboriginal people from wider society
as well as the hostility and racism displayed towards them exacerbates
her sense of isolation. Mays description of her neighbourhood, Paradise
Parade, highlights the irony of its name through her juxtaposition of half
a million dollar beachfronts owned by Europeans with a little slice of
scum populated by Aboriginal people in public housing. Her words reflect
the prominence of societal hierarchy in her community, these common
attitudes acting to physically and psychologically separate her from the
mainstream. Additionally, she internalises racist and cultural imperialist
ideas. Her need to reject her race, culture and heritage in order to belong
is shown when she begins to hide [her] skin, her futile attempt to
conceal her Aboriginality causing a contradiction similar to The Fault in
Our Stars and isolating her further. Therefore a loss of social identity
severely impacts belonging by excluding both individuals and minority
groups from wider society, observed through Mays separation from
mainstream Australia.
Taylors The Help addresses severe racial prejudice still existing in a mid20th century American society, the absence of shared experience between
the Europeans and African Americans exacerbating the racial segregation
that occurs through the denial of coloured peoples social identities. This
is established in the first scene, where a maid, Aibileen, recounts her
experiences, stating that after [her] boy died [she] just didnt feel so
accepted anymore. The connection her voiceover forms with the
audience starkly contrasts these experiences of discrimination, further
highlighting how the absence of shared experiences can strip individuals
of social identity and thus their belonging. Furthermore, the wide angle
shot taken when a maid, Minny, is sitting opposite a European girl, Celia,
causes antithesis of their exceptionally dissimilar social identities, the
table in between them metaphorically representing their separation
through a lack of shared experience. Similar to May in Swallow the Air,
Minny also internalises societys cultural imperialist ideas further stripping
her of her social identity, displayed when she asks Celia to move to the

dining room rather than eat at the same table as her, a maid. Therefore,
through examining racial discrimination in The Help, it becomes evident
that social identity and, in extension, belonging can be heavily damaged
through an absence of shared experience with other people.
In conclusion, both shared experience and social identity have a
significant influence on belonging, presented through the texts Swallow
the Air, The Fault in Our Stars and The Help.