The Turning: Tim Winton

The Turning
by
Tim Winton
Overview
The Turning’s stand-alone chapters cover a variety of themes, including
domestic violence, religious conversion, loyalty versus morality, childhood
secrets, adolescent confusion and family responsibility. As a collection, the
shorts meld to tell an overarching story of Australian life that is by turns
nostalgic, humorous, bleak and menacing, yet always rewarding.
Winton’s third suite of stories was published in 2004 and remains Australia’s
highest selling short story collection. Across seventeen tales, it tracks the
emotional journey of its main protagonist, Vic Lang, along with a host of
other characters. On the Western Australian coast, Vic has a troubled
adolescence largely as a result of his policeman father’s disappearance. Vic
retreats into himself and becomes a somewhat misguided protector of family
and friends. He develops an obsession with people’s problems and
imperfections, and as an adult finds it almost impossible to let go of his past.
The book’s stories traverse numerous themes, including the link between
sexual development and a sense of shame, family breakdown, religion,
violence, small-town narrowmindedness, addiction, social isolation, loyalty
versus morality, the power of secrets, and the ongoing effect of witnessing
accidents and mishaps. The Turning’s major theme, however, is how people
can be trapped in their adolescence, unable to grow emotionally. At the end
of the book, we see that Vic, despite being in his thirties, is ready to finally
make that vital step. He is ready to turn into an adult.
Short Story Cycle

Although it is usually labelled a short story collection, The Turning is a ‘short
story cycle’. Sometimes also called a ‘short story sequence’ or ‘short story
composite’, the short story cycle is a literary genre that stands at a midpoint
between the traditional collection of stories and the novel. A straightforward
collection of stand-alone stories includes only minor points of connection
between them, usually thematic. The novel, of course, is an extended piece
of fiction that unfolds sequentially and has a unified vision. If segmented at
all it is into chapters, which must be read sequentially for the novel to be
understood. Amongst numerous subplots and byways, the novel also usually
has an overarching storyline.
The short story cycle is a hybrid genre that includes key characteristics of the
novel and the short story collection. A work of literature is considered to be
in this genre if each story in the collection stands alone, yet also adds to a
cumulative effect of meaning not unlike what readers experience at the
conclusion of a novel. While the cycle’s stories could technically be read out
of order and still provide impact for the reader, the progressive and
cumulative effect would be lost.
A short story cycle often follows a main protagonist and focuses on character
development rather than narrative. There may be a main storyline, but it is
usually presented elliptically, and major events often occur ‘off-stage’.
Frequently told from numerous points of view and in a non-linear fashion,
the short story cycle can also contain numerous other linking devices,
including repeating characters, settings, events, symbols and themes.
Tim Winton’s book The Turning bears all the hallmarks of a short story cycle.
The stories can be read individually (many were published as such in journals
and magazines), but the book comes together into a narrative and thematic
whole. The cycle includes repeating characters, symbols, motifs, settings and
themes. It also follows the emotional journey of a central protagonist, Vic
Lang, while also delving to a lesser degree into the journeys of other key
figures: the rest of the Lang family, Frank and Max, and Boner McPharlin.
Other stories, such as ‘Aquifer’ and ‘Small Mercies’, are not directly
connected to the repeating characters or narrative spine, but they contribute
to the book’s thematic overlay. The life events that many characters in The
Turning experience also play a part in the overarching narrative. At its
simplest level, this narrative is represented by the drug-related events that
occur in Angelus, many of which Winton barely touches upon. This criminal
drama, however, is what effectively divides the Lang family and leads to the
central conflict that exists in Vic, namely the effect on him of his father’s
disappearance.

The Turning: Tim Winton

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

The Turning: Tim Winton

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

The Turning: Tim Winton

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

The Turning

Short Story Cycle

You might also like