Cloudstreet challenging the dominant notion of what constitutes reality
Tim Winton’s alternative presentation of reality in Cloudstreet usurps the common belief of present Western society; which is that reality constitutes to what can be confirmed by the five senses or what can be scientifically proven. ... The creation of inhuman characters, like the Pentecostal pig, usurps the notion of human supremacy. ... The occurrence of supernatural events, including Fish and Quick glowing and Beryl fading, clearly point to a reality of an alternate reality. The use of point of view, with a displaced spiritual element of Fish as a prominent narrator, makes Winton’s created reality evident to the reader. By these means, Winton gives evidence of the existence of an alternate reality in Cloudstreet, one that challenges the dominant views held by today’s society. ... ” Winton confirms to the audience the reality of the pig’s talking through Lester. ... ” The pig is an important character in the novel, yet as he is an animal and not a human, Winton hence challenges his readers’ notion of reality. ... Indeed, he is something more, “a black angel” as Quick understands, who knows all, illustrated by his attempts to draw Quick back to Cloudstreet. ... Actually he said it was bad luck”, results in the acknowledged creation of a larger family community at Cloudstreet. The blackfella’s clear spiritual nature and his impact in the novel blatantly show an alternative reality to that which is socially accepted. ... The reality of this situation, i. ... ; that he is not dreaming, is acknowledges by the statement of “the waking world”, yet the extraordinary nature of Fish rowing a box on top of the wheat, even in light of Fish’s location (Cloudstreet), seems absurd. ... ” A common event is witnessed by more than one person near the end of Cloudstreet at which point it can hardly be dismissed as hallucination.