How does Paul Keatings speech, position the

audience to see the significance of The

Unknown Soldier to the Australians of the day
and the future?
Paul Keating utilises rhetorical finesse to position the audience in the
way in which they can visualise the The Unknown Soldier as a
symbol of identity as well as a representative of all the soldiers who
have died to protect Australian soil. In his eulogy Remembrance
day 1993 Keating implies that we may not know much about him
but for one thing for sure is we know he is one of us, an Australian.
This creates a sense of independence for all Australians. The
Unknown Soldier is a significant representative of both those who
have lost their lives in the war and the rest of the Australian people
thus creating unity with for the Australian People
A representative will leave an image in the audience which will show
the true identity of what they are representing. Keating implies that
there is no true identity of the Unknown Solider yet he is a
representative of all Australians past and present. Keating quotes
He is one of the 45,000 Australians who have died on the Western
Front. One of the 100,000 Australians who have died in the wars
this century. He is all of them. And he is one of us. This quote
introduces the fact we do not know who he is but what we do know
is he is one of us and has represented all of the soldiers as one. The
eulogy is about the Unknown Soldier but when one gives a eulogy
they know the person personally and can give an insight of his life.
Yet in this eulogy Keating is presenting is a eulogy of someone
without an identity not even Keating knows him hence the
Unknown Soldier. Keating therefore gives this Unknown Soldier
an identity, the identity of the whole of Australia. This is how Keating
portrays him as a representative of the past and present. Keating
emphasizes the fact that the Unknown Soldier is very significant to
Australia as he is the one of the main symbols of Australias courage
and independence.
Identity is what creates a person, it is how they are seen to the rest
of the world. Without an identity one is completely and utterly lost.
Keating quotes We do not know this Australians namehis family
is lost to us as we was lost to them. We will never know how this
Australian was. This sentence truly shows the impacts of losing
ones identity. They can never can found again. Identity is a part of
soul of each person. If we lose our sense of identity and if we aware

about self "identity", we will live in this world without our own soul.
The loss of identity is truly damaging as one becomes an outcast as
if they were never born. In this eulogy We dont know is repeated
many times therefore focusing the audience on that statement. It
clearly pinpoints on to the Unknown Soldier and emphasises the
fact that no one knows about his life and gives an in depth message
that no one is actually sure of this person. This can all be understood
by that one simple loss of identity. The significance is this person
has no identity yet there is a eulogy about him which is being used
to give the the Unknown Soldier a unique identity.
Unity is what bonds a nation together and levels everything from
freedom to justice. Keating connects the modern audience with the
life of the past generations who have fought for this country. Unity is
what puts everything together such as identity and independence.
Paul Keating supported the idea of becoming republican due to
bloodshed of Australian soldiers. The quote Because the Great War
was a mad, brutal and awful struggle the waste of human life.
Explains why Keating wanted Australia republican there was no
reason for such waste of life. Even tho his ideas were executed well
people argue the fact that without the war Australia will not be what
is it today. That there was a lesson from this war which has created
unity within Australia. The lesson is that everyone including this
Unknown Soldier are just regular people nothing special yet when
the brutal, mad and awful times of war approached these regular
people stuck together and gave it their all no matter the odds. This
Australians had the qualities of our modern era heroes. True courage
is shown as most of these soldier just believed it was an adventure
not something that would recreate history. Yet the regular soldiers
did a very fine job in being resilient and creating history that has
kept the future generations of Australia from harms way. His tomb
is a reminder of what we have lost and what we have gained. This
quote shows that from this inexcusable folly Australia may have lost
many lives but have gained a better and brighter future for next
generation of Australians.
What Australia is now is nothing compared to the Australia before
the war due to the ANZACs. The ANZACs have created this new
nation of peace with justice and freedom. It was due to the ANZACs
that this generation of Australians have not let anyone destroy what
the ANZACs have left us, their independence. The unity they have
created will last forever as the memories of the ANZACs is what
keeps Australia together and that even regular citizens even you can
put your life in for the next generation and keep Australia filled with

identity. These regular people have constructed a new national

identity for the Australian people. The Unknown Soldier is a
representative of the whole of Australia showing the courage and
independence that Australia holds in their society past and present.

Nafizul Hoque 10EG