These are from my own notes:
NOTE: I think this may give you some ideas for themes
The arrival, illustrated by Shaun Tan consists of one image. The image features a respectable looking man of caucasian appearance, observing the city below him. The man is standing in the foreground overlooking the city from a high angle. The caucasian man has his back facing the picture and is standing in the darkness.
This may be interpreted as the man literally trying to step out of the darkness to enter this unfamiliar, foreign and strange land. The man is wearing a dark coloured suit and a top hat in the image. Shaun Tan depicts curiosity, adventure and anticipation in this image.
The man in question is the most salient feature in the image as he stands in the centre of the image, he is the most centralised image and our eyes are instantaneously drawn to him. The Salience of the man allows the audience to quickly determine what is of great importance, by allow the audience to quickly rank information by importance, therefore giving attention to what is considered most important.
Salience stops an individual from becoming too mentally stimulated with everything that is occurring in the image, and allow the reader to concentrate on the main theme, the man.
The shading and the contrast gives the audience an impression that the man is standing in the dark, which juxtaposes the light from the city. The man is seen emerging from the life of tragedy, depression and emerges from his shell to step out from the world.
The world appears to have a lot of opportunity and is inviting him.
The tentacle seen in the bottom, dark, right hand corner may represent the monsters in his past that are trying to keep him in the dark.
The background also tells us a very interesting story, as Shaun Tan gives the audience many different concepts which are merged together to be one interesting background. We see the background in the eyes of the man.
The man perceives the city ahead of his as different to what he is used to.The man perceives this city as a new life which to us, is something which could be found out of a fantasy novel or different realm, in his perspective.
This image is also inside a frame, which could represent the man's past. This image could be a mere memory of what had happened in his past. The man's appeal to the city may originate from the fact that the city brightens from the foreground with the background being the brightest.
In conclusion, Shaun Tan uses this image as an extended metaphor to our own lives. We may be in a dark place in life at the moment, but if we do not allow our insecurities and darkness consume us, we may be able to see “the end of the tunnel” and enter the light. Shaun Tan purposely does not expose much information about the man which allows us to see a little bit of him in us, connecting with the audience. Shaun Tan allows us to see that our past may try to dictate our future, but will be enable to do so if we do not give it the power to. The man in the image is refusing to step back into darkness but seeks further opportunity to better his life.
