REPRESENTATION
AND


TEXTS

OUR
HISTORY

claireos


This
module
requires
students
to
explore
various
representations
of
events,

personalities
or
situations.
They
evaluate
how
medium
of
production,
textual

form,
perspective,
bias
and
choice
of
language
influence
meaning.
The
study

develops
students’
understanding
of
the
relationships
between
representation

and
meaning.
Students
analyse
and
evaluate
the
interplay
of
personal

experience,
memory
and
documented
evidence
to
broaden
their
understanding

of
how
history
and
personal
history
are
shaped
and
represented.



This
particular
study
builds
on
knowledge
and
skills
from
earlier
years
of

English,
uses
knowledge
from
other
KLAs
such
as
History,
Geography,
Society

and
Culture,
Drama
and
Visual
Arts.
It
also
aims
to
introduce
students
to
the

breadth
of
resources
and
their
appropriate
use
now
on
hand
through
their

laptops.




The
ATB
for
this
unit
will
be
a
website
designed
by
students
to
represent,

culminate
and
explore
the
ideas
and
concepts
from
this
unit
in
a
variety
of

mediums.



Key
student
outcomes:



3
 selects,
uses,
describes
and
explains
how
different
technologies
affect
and
shape

meaning

4
 selects
and
uses
language
forms
and
features,
and
structures
of
texts
according
to

different
purposes,
audiences
and
contexts,
and
describes
and
explains
their
effects
on

meaning

10

 questions,
challenges
and
evaluates
cultural
assumptions
in
texts
and
their
effects

on
meaning




INTRODUCTION


Over
the
last
20
years
there
has
been
notable
growth
in
Aboriginal
creation
and
control
of

their
own
cultural
representations
through
various
mediums
(autobiography,
life
stories,

documentary
and
feature
films,
poetry,
painting,
the
media,
music
and
dance).
This
subject

analyses
and
compares
Aboriginal
people's
representation
in
the
public
arena
to
develop
an

understanding
of
Aboriginal
culture,
cultural
continuity
and
change,
contemporary
identity

and
Indigenous
people's
rights
and
aspirations
in
modern
Australia.
The
subject
draws
upon

a
range
of
intellectual
disciplines,
including
history,
anthropology
and
cultural
studies

alongside
emerging
Indigenous
knowledge
systems
to
develop
an
understanding
of

Indigenous
Australian
perspectives
and
expression.
Critical
consideration
of
images
and

representations
provides
a
framework
for
engaging
with
Indigenous
issues.
Underpinning

this
approach
to
studying
representations
of
Aboriginal
people
are
social
theories
that

provide
a
broad
understanding
of
the
nature
of
racism
in
the
reproduction
of
unequal
power

relations
in
society.1


The
viewpoints
of
Aboriginal
people,
their
self‐representation,
and
their
perspectives
on

how
others
perceive
them
have
been
expressed
in
many
different
ways
over
time.
Their

voices
are
now
increasingly
being
heard
in
the
international
arena.
2



Similarly,
white
people’s
perspectives
on
Aboriginal
people
have
been
given
voice
in
their

literature
and
the
arts
over
time
and
these
have
ranged
from
the
racist
and
intolerant
to
the

conciliatory,
sympathetic
and
respectful.
In
this
section,
students
will
be
asked
to
read
and

discuss
texts
that
express
these
varying
attitudes.





ACTIVITY
1

p 


a) In
your
Notebook,
summarise
the
five
key
ideas
this
unit
(from
the
introduction
and

the
unit’s
title
page)
that
you
are
to
learn.


b) Define
in
your
own
words
the
terms
in
relation
to
the
study
of
English:
context,

meaning,
representation,
question,
challenge,
evaluates,
cultural
assumptions,

shapes
meaning
and
purposes.
Hint:
the
Board
of
Studies
curriculum
for
English

might
give
you
a
head
start.
If
you
wish,
accompany
your
definitions
with
images.


c) Define
in
your
own
words
the
following:
podcast,
blog,
vlog,
dynamic
site,
graphic,

cartoon
and
any
other
terms
you
think
might
fit
in
to
this
category.


d) Go
to
http://www.pm.gov.au/Media_Centre/Transcripts?tid=10
and
find
PM
Kevin

Rudd’s
“sorry”
speech.
Use
http://www.wordle.net/
to
create
your
own
word
cloud.

Design
your
word
cloud
using
fonts,
colours
and
layout
that
best
accentuate
the

themes
and
ideas
used
in
the
speech.

Save
your
image
to
your
notebook
and
use
it

in
your
ATB.



1

www.teaching.austlit.edu.au/?q=node/11696

2

www.macquariepenanthology.com.au/files/unit_3.pdf

 c 




CLASS
DISCUSSION

Brainstorm:
How
do
you
think
Aborigines
have
been
represented
over
time?
Do
you
think

representations
of
Aboriginal
people
have
changed
or
generally
stayed
the
same?
Has
there

been
a
gradual
or
sudden
change?
Try
to
think
of
examples.



Brainstorm
representation
techniques.



ACTIVITY
2


Students
select
an
image
from

http://www.kooriweb.org/foley/images/history/1980s/82games/gamespxdx.html

Download
this
and
open
it
up
in
Photoshop
Elements
and
use
the
tools
there
to
annotate

the
image
with
the
elements
listen
below.
Then,
in
your
OneNote
notebook,
paste
your

image
in
and
complete
the
focus
questions.




FOCUS
QUESTIONS

a) Discuss
how
this
photo
has
been
composed.
What
is
the
effect
of
this?
Consider
such

elements
as:

• cultural
reading

• clothing

• angles

• vectors

• composition

• body
language

• facial
expression

• body
positioning.



b) How
is
this
person/the
people
being
represented?
In
a
positive
or
negative
light?

What
message
is
conveyed?

c) Read
through
links
on
the
website
to
discover
the
context
of
your
chosen
image.
Use

this
information
to
add
more
depth
to
your
analysis.
What
do
you
think
the

composer
of
the
shot’s
perspective
of
the
issue
at
hand
was?



ACTIVITY
3

a) Students
go
to
http://slv.vic.gov.au/ergo/indigenous_australians
and
click
“download

all
images”
and
“comparing
images”
on
the
right
hand
side.
Use
the
worksheet
and

the
website
to
analyse
two
of
the
images.


b) Copy
and
paste
the
images
and
the
worksheet
into
your
notebooks
and
complete.
If

you
can’t
copy
the
comparing
images,
just
use
the
boxes
as
subheadings
or
create

your
own
table.
Don’t
forget
the
website
has
some
contextual
information
you
can

use!

c) Go
to
http://www.kooriweb.org/foley/images/history/histpicdx.html
and
choose

another
image
or
article
to
analyse
in
a
similar
way.





ENCOUNTERS



Early
impressions
of
Australia’s
indigenous
people
were
not
flattering
and
based
on

complete
misunderstanding
of
Aboriginal
people.
This,
of
course,
was
typical
of
the
time.

Our
greatest
insult,
apart
from
invading
their
land,
was
to
build
our
townships
on
the
prime

food
gathering
sites.
Being
a
hunter/gatherer
nation
they
were
immediately
forced
out
of

their
own
land.
The
indigenous
people
had
much
to
teach
us
however
European
white
man

had
little
appreciation
of
any
coloured
skin
–
considering
them
all
as
‘primitives’.
These
early

writings
on
Australian
Aboriginal
people
provide
an
historical
insight
into
18th
and
19th

attitude.
We
are
obviously
slow
learners.
3






ACTIVITY
1

q 


Refer
to
http://www.warrenfahey.com/indigenous‐2.htm
to
answer
the
following
questions.

a) Read
the
various
“encounters”
over
the
two
pages.
Which
do
you
think
were
most

reflective
of
their
context?
Which
do
you
believe
transgressed
beyond
the
normal

bounds
of
thinking?
Give
evidence
for
both.


b) Find
online
some
other
diary
entries
from
Captain
Cook
that
refer
to
Aboriginal

people.
Discuss
Captain
Cook’s
view
of
the
Aboriginal
people.
Was
he
different
from

other
explorers
of
the
same
time?
In
retrospect,
many
people
are
disparaging
of

Captain
Cook
and
his
encounters
with
Aboriginal
people.
Why?


c) Choose
at
least
one
diary
entry
from
“Colonial
times”
to
include
in
your
website.

Analyse
the
use
of
language
in
the
entry.
How
does
their
word
choice
in
particular

reflect
their
perspective?




m e

3

http://www.warrenfahey.com/indigenous‐2.htm

WRITING
OUR
HISTORY
–
REFLECTING
OLD
AND
NEW
INFLUENCES


Australian
literature
reflects
a
range
of
influences,
from
English
literary
traditions
to
the

storytelling
of
Indigenous
Australians
and
the
European
settlers
and
convicts
who
arrived
in

Australia
in
the
late
18th
century.
Today’s
writing
also
reflects
the
cultural
diversity
of

contemporary
Australian
society.


Australian
writers
have
produced
a
diverse
range
of
internationally
acclaimed
novels,
drama,

poetry
and
non‐fiction.
Their
works
have
increasingly
been
recognised
through
international

literary
awards.
Many
prominent
authors
have
sought
inspiration
in
English
and
European

literature,
and
these
cultural
relationships
remain
strong.
There
are
also
some
parallels

between
the
development
of
Australian
literature
and
North
American
literature.


The
oral
storytelling
of
Indigenous
Australians
and
convicts
and
settlers
contributed
to
the

development
of
distinctive
Australian
writing
styles.
Early
authors
explored
themes
of

Indigenous
and
settler
identity,
alienation,
exile
and
relationship
to
place.
Australia’s
vast,

dry
landscape
itself
became
a
character
in
early
Australian
works
of
literature.
Dislocated

from
their
countries
of
origin
in
the
early
days
of
Australia’s
settlement,
many
writers

struggled
with
notions
of
what
it
meant
to
be
Australian.
In
addition,
strong
sentiments
of

egalitarianism—a
wish
to
be
free
of
the
old
society
of
class
and
privilege—were
born
and

surfaced
in
Australian
literature
from
that
time.4


Remember,
Aboriginal
Australian
authors
are
not
unified
in
their
aims
and
approaches
to

writing.
The
diversity
of
Aboriginal
literary
perspectives
is
perhaps
best
illustrated
by
Black

Australian
poetry
in
English.
Whether
it
is
published
in
popular
Australian
periodicals
such
as

the
Bulletin
or
in
local
and
regional
Aboriginal
community
publications
like
the
North

Queensland
Message
Stick
or
the
Kimberley
Land
Council
Newsletter,
poetry
has
attracted

more
Black
Australian
authors
than
any
other
mode
of
creative
writing.
Whether
its

orientation
is
towards
Aboriginal
health,
education,
legal
matters,
or
government
policy,

almost
every
Aboriginal
newspaper
or
magazine
contains
poetry
on
a
regular
basis.
Verse
is

not
only
the
most
popular
genre
of
Aboriginal
creative
expression
in
English;
it
also
clearly

illustrates
the
wide
spectrum
of
Black
Australian
attitudes
to
the
practice
of
writing
and
to

the
social
purpose
and
utility
of
literature.5




f 


ACTIVITY
1

a) Research
and
summarise
five
key
influences
of
Australian
literature.

b) What
are
the
main
themes
that
early
Australian
authors
wrote
about?
Why
do
you

think
this
is
so?


c) What
seems
to
be
the
most
popular
style
of
writing
for
Aboriginal
authors?
Why?


d) Read
a
text
written
by
an
Aboriginal
author
and
a
text
by
a
non‐Aboriginal
author

selected
from
the
list
with
a
view
to
presenting
a
short
talk
to
the
class.
In
your
talk,

you
are
to
discuss
the
perspectives
offered
by
their
chosen
authors
on
the
Aboriginal

and
white
characters
and/or
the
relations
between
them.
Students
should
consider


4

http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/literature.html

5

http://epress.anu.edu.au/bwwp/mobile_devices/ch08.html
 how
context
has
impacted
on
the
representation
of
meaning
in
these
texts.

Students

will
talk
for
approximately
5
minutes.



Suggestions
below.





Aboriginal
authors:

Bayet‐Charlton,
Fabienne:
Finding
Ullagundahi
Island

Bird:
The
Stolen
Children,
Their
Stories

Davis,
Jack:
A
Boy’s
Life

Frankland,
Richard
J:
Digger
J
Jones

Heiss,
Anita:
Who
Am
I?
The
Diary
of
Mary
Talence,
Sydney,
1937
Lucashenko,
Melissa:
Too
Flash

Morgan,
Sally:
My
Place

Pilkington
Nugi
Garimara,
Doris:
Follow
the
Rabbit‐Proof
Fence

Pryor,
Boori:
Maybe
Tomorrow

White
authors:

Baillie,
Allan:
Songman

Crew,
Gary:
The
Rabbits
(picture
book)

Gwynne,
Phillip:
Deadly
Unna

Grenville:
The
Secret
River

Hooper,
Meredith:
The
Journal
of
Watkin
Tench

Hutchins,
Elizabeth:
Bring
Back
the
Songs

Hill,
Anthony:
The
Burnt
Stick

Kidd,
Diana:
Two
Hands
Together






y
 FILM
NARRATIVES



Throughout
the
latter
half
of
the
past
century
cinema
has
played
a
significant
role
in
the

shaping
of
the
core
narratives
of
Australia.
Films
express
and
implicitly
shape
national

images
and
symbolic
representations
of
cultural
fictions
in
which
ideas
about
Indigenous

identity
have
been
embedded.
Filmic
representations
of
Aboriginal
identity
are
influenced
by
socio‐
cultural
variables,
historical
factors,
and
dominant
discourses.



Pictures,
whether
cinematographic
or
photographic,
always
use
the
media
as
a
vehicle
for

constructing
reality.
Film
assembles
images
together
to
disseminate
compelling
narratives
to

a
vast
audience
at
the
same
time.
The
scope
and
representation
of
Aboriginal
people
in

Australian
cinema
today,
depends
a
great
deal
on
image‐makers
carrying
messages
across
to

Australian
audiences.
Unfortunately
most
filmic
representations
of
Aboriginal
identity
create

Aboriginal
characters
who
are
‘figures
of
the
imagination’
and
perceived
as
being
distortions

of
actual
reality
(Langton).
Aboriginal
people
are
regarded
as
being
safe
characters
related

through
stories
told
by
‘former
colonists’.
These
representations
are
not
of
an
actual
world

of
people
but
only
images
that
non‐Aboriginal
Australians
find
acceptable.




Aboriginal
identity
is
constructed
at
various
levels
in
Australian
society,
imposing
particular

political
and
social
discursive
regimes
on
Aboriginal
people
around
a
series
of
false

dichotomies
and
forced
choices.
This
allows
for
an
intellectual,
cultural,
and
material

construction
of
white
colonial
hegemony
on
Aboriginal
culture
and
identity.
It
allows
and

continues
to
allow
Aboriginal
people
to
be
structurally
marginalized
from
Australian
histories

and
presents
the
strongest
argument
for
Aboriginal
exclusion
from
Australian
narratives,

including
filmic
narratives.
Aboriginal
exclusion
extends
a
colonial
perspective
on
Aboriginal

issues
and
ultimately
Aboriginal
representation
in
cultural
productions,
such
as
film,
where

Aboriginal
people
are
shown
as
nothing
else
but
victims,
alcoholics,
fringe,
and
slum

dwellers.
A
consistent
reinforcement
of
Aboriginal
racial
stereotyping
is
also
marked

cinematically
through
the
existence
of
binary
oppositions,
or
dualisms,
within
the
filmic

narrative.






ACTIVITY
1

g 


a) Consider
THREE
films
featuring
Aboriginal
people
you
have
seen.
Describe
how
they

are
represented
in
the
films.
Are
they
homogenous?
Do
they
represent
or
debunk

stereotypes?
Compare
and
contrast
the
context
of
the
different
films
and
how
that

impacts
on
the
representation
of
the
Aboriginal
people.
Remember,
context
is
not

just
when
a
film
is
made
but
also
what
audience
it
is
made
for.
Discuss
how
modern

filmmakers
are
dealing
with
the
relationship
between
Aboriginal
and
white
people
in

their
films.
Be
careful
to
consider
by
whom
the
films
have
been
written,
directed
and

produced
as
this
provides
a
lens
through
which
film
makers
view
Aboriginal
people

and
present
them
on
screen.


b) Chose
one
film
to
consider
on
your
website.
Write
a
script
for
a
vlog
or
pod
cast
that

explains
why
this
film
is
important
for
understanding:

a. How
Aboriginal
people
have
been
represented
over
time.

b. What
context
the
film
was
made
in
and
how
that
affects
meaning.


c. What
we
can
learn
from
his
text.


c) Find
some
stills
or
shorts
from
the
film
to
accompany
your
vlog/podcast.

 


Films
you
might
consider:

(Viewed
in
year
7)
Rabbit
Proof
Fence

(Viewed
at
the
beginning
of
this
unit)
Bran
Nue
Dae

(Viewed
in
class)
Babakieria

Australia

Mabo
–
The
Life
Of
An
Island
Man
‐

http://dl.screenaustralia.gov.au/module/1450/#resources

Blackfellas

Priscilla,
Queen
of
the
Dessert

Jedda

One
Night,
the
Moon
(2001)
Rated
M.
For
clips
see:


www.australianscreen.com.au/titles/one‐night‐moon/

The
Tracker
(2002).
Rated
M.
For
clips
and
Teacher’s
Notes
see:

www.australianscreen.com.au/titles/tracker/

Ten
Canoes
(2006).
Rated
M.
For
a
trailer
and
study
guide
suggestions
see:

www.tencanoes.com.au/tencanoes








w n
 TELLING
OUR
STORIES
IN
NEW
WAYS



The
viewpoints
of
Aboriginal
people,
their
self‐representation,
and
their
perspectives
on

how
others
perceive
them
have
been
expressed
in
many
different
ways
over
time.
Their

voices
are
now
increasingly
being
heard
in
the
international
arena.


Similarly,
white
people’s
perspectives
on
Aboriginal
people
have
been
given
voice
in
their

literature
and
the
arts
over
time
and
these
have
ranged
from
the
racist
and
intolerant
to
the

conciliatory,
sympathetic
and
respectful.







STARTER

d 


Answer
in
your
notebook:


What
would
you
consider
the
roles
of
Aboriginal
literature
in
Australia?
Give
examples
to

substantiate
your
claim.



ACTIVITY
1
–
IN
PAIRS

a) Log
into
http://www.abc.net.au/dustechoes/.
Explore
the
site
and
view
one
of
the

animated
films
on
it.
Then
answer
the
following
questions:


b) Summarise
what
the
film
is
about.
Don’t
just
retell
the
story
but
consider
what
the

original
purpose
of
the
story
would
have
been.
(Consider
the
following
possibilities;

to
teach
certain
laws
or
rules,
to
explain
relationships
and
identity,
teach
people

about
natural
events,
to
warn
them
about
dangers.)

c) What
does
the
film
help
us
understand
about
any
of
these
topics
or
aspects
of

traditional
Aboriginal
life
and
society?

• Food

• Work

• Family

• Society

• Law
and
rules

• Duties

• Spiritual/religious
beliefs

• Education

• Technology
(tools
and
weapons)

• Relationships
with
others

• Roles

• Emotions.

Write
one
sentence
for
any
of
these
that
you
think
is
touched
on
in
the
story.

d) How
does
the
film
add
meaning
to
the
story
as
a
whole?

Here
are
some
of
the
elements
or
parts
of
a
film
that
can
influence
you.
Integrate

these
answers
into
your
analysis.
Give
examples
where
possible.


•
The
film’s
graphic
style
–
What
do
the
people
look
like?
What
does
the
background

look
like?
What
colours
are
used?

•
The
film’s
use
of
music
–
Is
it
traditional
Aboriginal
music
or
modern
music?
How

does
the
music
influence
your
reactions?
Is
it
effective?

•
What
other
sounds
are
in
the
film
–
Are
natural
sounds
used?
Is
there
any
other

sound,
such
as
people’s
voices?

•
The
use
of
viewpoint
–
There
is
no
camera
filming
the
action
in
each
story,
but
you

can
see
the
artists
presenting
the
images
as
if
there
is.
What
are
the
‘camera’
angles

 that
are
used?
Does
the
‘camera’
remain
at
ground
level,
or
does
it
change
angles?

Does
it
move?
What
is
the
effect
or
impact
of
changing
our
viewpoint
as
we
watch

the
film?

•
Narration
–
Some
of
the
stories
have
a
narrator.

What
sort
of
voice
is
it?
How
does
the
narrator
tell
the
story?
Does
he
just
speak,
or

are
there
other
elements
that
he
includes?
Is
it
effective?






j h
 USEFUL
WEBSITES
FOR
YOUR
ATB
AND
THIS
UNIT


http://www.kooriweb.org/

Site
with
all
sorts
of
images,
links
and
discussions
about
the
representation
of
Aboriginal

people
over
time.



http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/discover_collections/history_nation/indigenous/eora/index.html

Eora
nation
images
and
history.


http://www.kooriweb.org/foley/images/history/toons/toonsdx.html

Cartoons.



http://dl.screenaustralia.gov.au/module/1450/#activities

Eddie
Mabo
film
and
activities.



http://www.rouge.com.au/6/aboriginal.html

Politics
of
representation
essay.



http://www.nla.gov.au/openpublish/index.php/nlasp/article/viewArticle/960/1235

Another
great
essay
talking
about
the
representation
of
Aboriginal
people
over
time.




http://www.macquariepenanthology.com.au/abor‐websites.html#2

Links
to
various
timelines,
Aboriginal
authors,
playwrights,
databases
and
so
on.




http://www.abc.net.au/indigenous/education/default.htm

Behind
The
News,
simple
explanations
of
Aboriginal
news
items.




http://www.warrenfahey.com/indigenous‐4.htm

A
collection
of
Aboriginal
stories
and
songs
throughout
history.




http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/Indigenous_peoples.html

Aboriginal
history
and
culture.