Known as the Black Prince, Darky Gardiner is a larrikin Sergeant in the Australian Army. His plight is representative of the worst excessives of brutality and deprivation in the POW camps on the Thailand-Burma Railway. His tragic death is the turning point in Richard Flanagan’s novel, The Narrow Road to the Deep North. A twist in the narrative in Book 4 makes his life, suffering and death even more poignant.

The Narrow Road to the Deep North - Activities for Book 4 Chapters 8-13.

The Narrow Road to the Deep North - Activities for Book 4 Chapters 1-7.

The Narrow Road to the Deep North - Activities for Book 3 Chapters 20-27.

The Narrow Road to the Deep North - Activities for Book 3 Chapters 10-19.

Unit of work based on Peter Temple’s novel, The Broken Shore and on the film of the same name. This unit of work includes: Activities for Section 1: Pages 1-47 Activities for Section 2: Pages 48-95 Activities for Section 3: Pages 96-147 Activities for Section 4: Pages 148-201 Activities for Section 5: Pages 202-250 Activities for Section 6: Pages 251-300 Activities for Section 7: Pages 301-345 Theme: Small Town Secrets Theme: Mental Illness Intertextuality in The Broken Shore Symbolism in The Broken Shore Character study: Detective Joe Cashin Character study: Dave Rebb Close study of a passage: Detective Joe Cashin searches Arthur Pollard’s terrace house Close study of a passage: Cashin interviews Mr Starkey Analysis of book covers Word search Analysis of film shots Video: Beneath the vest. Conversations about mental health Worksheet for video: Beneath the vest. Conversations about mental health Video: Worldwide Paedophile Ring Busted in Sting Operation Worksheet for video: Paedophile Ring Busted in Sting Operation Metalanguage mix and match Review: The Case for Peter Temple’s The Broken Shore Sequence the events Crossword True or false revision activity Who Said? revision activity Newspaper article: Peter Temple’s crime writing polished to perfection Crack the Code revision activity

Close study of a passage from Richard Flanagan’s novel, The Narrow Road to the Deep Northto examine descriptive language, setting, characterisation and atmosphere.

Metalanguage mix and match activity using key words and concepts from Richard Flanagan’s The Narrow Road to the Deep North.

Activities for The Narrow Road to the Deep North Book 3 Chapters 1-9.

Activities for The Narrow Road to the Deep North - Book 2 Chapters 20-27.

Analysis of book covers for Richard Flanagan’s novel, The Narrow Road to the Deep North. The analysis uses the principles of visual literacy to examine colour, people, content and critical response.

Analysis of a passage from Richard Flanagan’s novel, The Narrow Road to the Deep North. Students examine the words and phrases employed to paint a picture of an Australian Army camp in 1942, the portrayal of the character’s feelings, the specific use of concise statements to convey a stolen conversation held in secrecy and the use of ‘bookending’ to begin and conclude an incident.

Close study of a passage from Richard Flanagan’s The Narrow Road to the Deep North. Students examine the language features used to describe physical action, character intent, changes in tone and reaction of t reader.

Activities for Book 2 Chapters 10-19

Activities for Book 2 Chapters 1-9

Video and worksheet on the YouTube video, Hellfire. A Soldier’s Story. This video examines the construction of the infamous Hellfire Pass on the Thailand-Burma Railway and the establishment of a memorial facility and walking trail in the mid-1980s. Of particular note is a brief interview with Kevin Flanagan, father of Richard Flanagan, author of The Narrow Road to the Deep North.

Ramona Koval interview with Richard Flanagan, author of The Narrow Road to the Deep North. Flanagan discusses the influence of his POW father, Keith Flanagan, the central character of Dorrigo Evans who is based on his father, research he carried out in Thailand and in Japan with former prison guards, the theme of fraternal and erotic love and the difficulties he had in writing the novel. This resource includes the YouTube video and worksheet to accompany the video. It is designed to be part of the unit of work on Stage 6 English, Close study of a novel, The Narrow Road to the Deep North.

Lecture by Anna Funder at the University of Reykjavik, 22 September, 2012, Daily life under communism. Funder gives an insight into her work, Stasiland, including the dissidents and Stasi men that she interviewed and what they revealed about life in East Germany, 1945-1989. This resource includes the YouTube video and worksheet to accompany the video.

Analysis of the online book review of The Narrow Road to the Deep North by ReadingBukowski. The reviewer discusses the character of Dorrigo Evans, the perspectives of the Australian POWs and the Japanese guards, the fragmented and non-linear structure of the novel, the themes of surviving trauma, memory, how we memorialise things and the futility of war. She mentions that the railway is a metaphor for life’s journey, that beauty and horror are not mutually exclusive in the way that good and evil may be. This resource is part of a unit of work on Richard Flanagan’s novel, The Narrow Road to the Deep North.

Brief video by the New Yorker, Flanagan’s Island. The video is an interview with Richard Flanagan, author of The Narrow Road to the Deep North. It covers the setting where he writes his books, his process of writing, his background and his beliefs. This resource is part of a unit of work on Richard Flanagan’s The Narrow Road to the Deep North.