Discovery in Maestro by Peter Goldsworthy
Discovery and the process of it, is much more complex than the word itself. ... Some of the elements that aid discovery are curiosity, obsession, desire, hunger and passion. Sometimes things that hinder discovery also aid it. Some things that hinder discovery are secrets and concealment, people’s attitudes, dishonesty and lying, the passage of time, disaster and the degree of awareness or attention. When a discovery is made it can be either positive or negative. A positive discovery is one that makes you learn positive characteristics about yourself or learning and realising positive characteristics about others. A negative discovery manifests itself when someone has betrayed you, or your dream cannot be realised. ... In the novel ‘Maestro’ by Peter Goldsworthy it can be said that discoveries made by the characters are both negative and positive. Positive discoveries made in this novel are: Paul Crabbe realising his sexual orientation, the difference between love and lust, the discovery of Eduard Keller’s family and the extent of Paul’s musical abilities. ... This potent desire to be belligerent instead of passive makes this discovery a positive one. ... The process of this discovery is a long one. ... Another positive discovery made in this novel is when Paul realises that Keller had a family. Paul made this discovery on one June afternoon, “ I arrived at the Swan and found no sign of Keller in his room or in the bar below. ... ” This discovery caused many other questions to arise amongst the Crabbe family. ... ” This is a positive discovery because he gains a deeper insight into Keller’s motives and inspirations, “My love for you does not depend on these little things. ... Hiding the hypocrisy within…” Paul’s most important positive self-discovery would be when he realises about his limited musical talents. The discovery of his musical talents is a rather positive and helpful one to Paul’s soul, the fact he finally realises his potential. ... This discovery is a lengthy process which allows Paul to be aware of his musical abilities. ... Paul’s negative discovery is made when he finally realises that his parents have an illusion, and is unable to live up to the expectations of his parents. ... This discovery is closely linked to the realisation of Paul becoming aware of his sensuality. ... The other great negative discovery made by Paul is when he comes to understand about Keller’s past and his self-flagellation. Paul makes this discovery through joining information he has gathered so far and when he visits Henisch, in Vienna. ... ” A similar negative experience of self discovery is seen in the magazine article, from the Reader’s digest, “Afghanistan’s Great Leap Backwards” by Stephen Grey. ... ” This article can be linked with ‘Maestro’. ... The discovery that is made in this article by Shafika is that she will fight for freedom, she refuses to be passive and allow the Taliban to take over. This discovery is a positive one because she her self wants to see a result favouring the public of Afghanistan, she is against the evil. Another self-discovery is seen the poem “Time and Tide” by Tim Winton, from the “The Good Weekend.” This poem is about a rather volatile 13 year old boy making a negative discovery in life. ... It can be said the boy at this instant makes a negative discovery. ... This discovery of the young boy can be closely linked to the one Paul makes about Keller’s past. ... After this discovery of Paul’s it can be said that he turns his back on his own self-centred, egocentric attitude and sees Keller as a different person and appreciates his customs. Thus it can be seen from the close perusal of the text and supplementary material , that positive and negative experiences in Discovery are both evident. Characters incessantly learn and gain a better understanding of themselves through the process of discovery. These texts have given me a greater insight into the concept of discovery, and have proved to be a salutary learning experience.