CAMBERWELL HIGH SCHOOL 2025 REVISION YEAR 11 ENGLISH UNIT 1

Flashcards for Year 11 English Unit 1 Revision based on provided lecture notes focusing on 'The Castle' and crafting texts about reality.

Darryl Kerrigan

The father, a blue-collar worker who loves his family and is determined to fight for their home.

Sal Kerrigan

The mother, supportive and loving towards her family.

Dale Kerrigan

The youngest son, who is also the narrator of the film.

Tracey Petropoulous (née Kerrigan)

The only daughter, a newlywed hairdresser.

Con Petropoulous

Tracey's husband, an accountant and amateur kickboxer.

Steve Kerrigan

The second oldest son, an apprentice mechanic.

Wayne Kerrigan

The black sheep of the family, serving time for armed robbery.

Lawrence Hammill QC

A retired barrister who takes on the Kerrigan's case pro bono.

Dennis Denuto

A bumbling lawyer who previously failed to defend Wayne.

Farouk

Lebanese neighbour to the Kerrigan familywho is also affected by the “compulsory acquisition.”

Family Theme in The Castle

Emphasises the significance of family and togetherness.

Australian Identity Theme in The Castle

The Kerrigan’s are intended to represent a ‘typical’ Aussie family. Warm-hearted – not an unkind satire of the Aussie ‘bogan’.

Suburban grotesque

Ordinary Aussies with oversized, ‘larrikin’ personalities.

Aussie Battler Spirit

Darryl claims to the local council that he has been treated unfairly as The Barlow Group did not form an “agreement with Darryl Kerrigan, 3 Highview Crescent, Coolaroo.” The “Kerrigan decision” is an allegorical representation of “Darryl versus Goliath” as it commends how the Aussie Battler Spirit can unite to fight against large corporate entities.

Class and Culture in Australia

“Aussies pretend to be an egalitarian bunch who’ve thrown off the constrictive shackles of class that define English society.

Land Rights Allegory in The Castle

The Castle can be read as an allegory for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander control over Country.

Darryl's Quote on Land Rights

“I’m really starting to understand how the Aborigines* feel… This house is like their land. It holds their memories. The land is their story. It’s everything. You can’t just pick it up and plonk it down somewhere else. This country’s gotta stop stealing other people’s land.” – Darryl Kerrigan

Lawrence Hammill Quote

you can acquire a house, but you can’t acquire a home

Lawrence Hammill Quote on the Constitution

It’s about the highest law in this country, the Constitution, and one phrase within it: ‘on just term’.