First activity for Year 11 : Maestro Setting

Setting

The settings depicted in the novel are very important. Each provides a clear purpose in presenting ideas about Paul and his journey.

Darwin

Lush, sensual and exotic to the fifteen year old, Darwin is the main setting throughout the novel and, although Paul is not living there at the conclusion, it is where we see him for the last time. Paul returns to be with Keller when Keller dies and it is here that he reflects upon his life, his learning, his love and his music and decides that although his world was foolish and innocent he loved it “Endlessly, effortlessly.” Thus the story begins and ends in Darwin and during both his early days and his last visit, Paul finds it a lonely place but a town that he loves.
Darwin is presented in a negative light in many ways: the “city of booze, blow, and blasphemy”; the town to which, “all the scum in the country has somehow risen”… “All the drifters, the misfits…The wife-bashers…” Paul’s father, John Crabbe, tells stories of his daily encounters at the hospital with inhabitants who have drifted to Darwin as a place of refuge. This inclines the responder to include Keller as one of those immigrants.
There is an interesting parallel here with Keller’s journals, as if in his pursuit to collect evidence of human folly and stupidity Keller has sought to immerse himself in a setting most suited to his studies.
Contrasting with this negative portrayal of the inhabitants of Darwin are the powerful images used to create the lush, sensual and exotic mood of the setting. The “green five o’clock shadow” simile concludes the description of Darwin where “everything grew larger than life” including the people metaphorically described as “Exotic, hothouse blooms.” Again this contrasts with the earlier depiction of the inhabitants whose “drunken whistles…lived far beyond their sexual means”.
Within the setting of Darwin there are the sub-settings of the Swan and Paul’s refuge – the music room at the school. The Swan provides a number of contrasts - light and dark, noise and quiet and formal and informal. Keller’s room is dark because of the shutters which also block out the noise from the bar below while outside there is the brilliant sunshine, the noise of the bar and the “blue singlets” of the men who patronise the pub. The school, like the Swan, depicts the lower elements of society. The concrete and asphalt construction seems only to house the delinquent element which Paul avoids by escaping to the music room.
The contrasts present in the setting of Darwin can be aligned to Paul revealing the complexity of his characterisation and symbolising his awakening sensuality and his growth.

Adelaide

Adelaide is conservative, established and sophisticated; a reprieve from the dysfunctional inhabitants of Darwin. It is the city where the child Paul is sheltered within the family and able to indulge in the pleasures of his childhood for a time. However, when he visits with his “ensemble”, Paul has outgrown his childhood and finds the city dull and lacking passion.
The experience of Adelaide does, however, become a centre of learning for Paul. Keller’s gift of the Czerny first edition acts as the catalyst for Paul, and his mother, to investigate and learn a little about the story of Keller’s life. It is here that he learns bits and pieces about Keller; he learns about his supposed death and he sees Keller’s tattoo. Paul also comes to a better understanding of himself as a person and his musical ability but not fully.

Vienna

Vienna represents the old world, history and culture. Vienna was Keller’s home where for him the beauty of life was destroyed by the people and events of World War II. Vienna is where the mystery of Keller’s past occurred and it is here that Paul finally learns the full truth about Keller, including the mystery of his severed finger.

Question 1: After reading these notes, answer this question:

How do the different settings of 'Maestro' help tell the stories of Keller and Paul?
300 words.