Raw

You have been invited to give a presentation at a youth forum on institutions in our society.

What do the texts you have studied have to say about the positive and/or negative effects of institutions?

Deliver your findings by refering to your prescribed text and at least TWO other related texts of your choosing.

Good morning. I have been asked to come and speak about institutions in our society. The term �institution’ is broadly defined as an organization or establishment for the promotion of a particular object, usually one for some public, educational, charitable or similar purpose; however, in my discussion it will be in relation to those institutions designed for correctional purposes, for example prisons, juvenile detention centers. The effects of institutions on individuals are varied, and depend on if the individual is prepared to change. The novel Raw, by Scott Monk, demonstrates birth positive and negative impacts of institutions upon individuals. Likewise, the film documentary �Nobody’s Children’ by David Goldie and the film �Dangerous Minds’ by John N. Smith both show the effects of different institutions upon individuals.

In Raw, by Scott Monk, we meet Brett Dalton who has been sent to this low security institution called the Farm. His first impression of the farm is that no matter hard this institution tries to reform him he is determined not to be changed, as his early comments suggest “Like every juvenile detention centre, it aimed to turn troublemakers like himself into model citizens, Brett snorted. As if.” He continues to critize the people who are in charge of the institution, this shows his attitude towards institutions are negative “They couldn’t be so stupid as to put so much trust in a bunch of delinquents, could they?” Well from the sounds of it they are. From the very start Brett sees the institution that of an enemy that needs to be beaten “He’d beat the system before it beat him. In the end Brett would win.” If we were to look at Brett Dalton at the earlier part of the novel it can be seen that the institutions negatively affect individuals.

The negative effects of institutions are seen in the film documentary �Nobody’s Children’ by David Goldie. In the documentary it shows the failure of institutions in relation to homeless children. Through a combination of narrative and interview excerpts, the extremely negative effects of the failure of the family as an institution are seen, “If I can’t trust my father who can I trust?” These children who are thrown out or run away from home turn to crime and prostitution to survive and a life of drugs and alcohol to numb their pain, “I have to have a drink or a sniff before I mix with people” Louise 17. The Government as an institution is also failing theses children “One homeless child in twenty qualifies for a government allowance….six week waiting period.” It can be seen that there are none, if any positive effects of the institutions.

Issues of drug abuse are also evident in Raw. Simply because these boys are at the Farm id doesn’t mean that they are reformed. Tyson who continues to be involved in criminal activities and does not take responsibility for his own life or his future- a key aspect of this institution Paul, Darren and Wayne are also examples of how the institution does not change everyone.

The idea of the institution being a negative effect on institutions can be seen in the film �Dangerous Minds’ by John N. Smith. In the film the negative effects of the failure of the school as an institution are shown. The students in the movie are called the academy class and are referred to as a �school within the school.’ The soundtrack fits perfectly with this movie with songs like Gangsters