Responding To Representations in Bran Nue Dae

1.      What qualities and values of people are privileged (presented positively)? The qualities and values of people that are privileged are friendly, helpful, knowledgeable and that aborigines act like ‘white’ Australians.

2.      Which groups are marginalised or silenced? (presented negatively or not represented in the movie) The groups that are marginalised within the movie are the aborigines, as they are forced to adapt the customs of ‘white people’.

3.      What aspects of Aboriginality are presented in a positive way? What words/images are used to portray them this way? The aspect of Aboriginality that is presented in a positive way is that can be quite friendly and helpful. The words and images that are used to portray this representation is that people would talk friendly to certain aborigines, give them a smile and treat relatively equally.  

4.      What aspects of Aboriginality are presented in a negative way? What words or images are used to portray them this way? The aspect of Aboriginality that is presented in a negative way is that aborigines are though to be criminals. The words and images that are used to portray the ‘criminals’ within Aborigines is the scene where Willie is about to get punished by the Reverend, where he says that he should’ve known it was an Aborigine.

5.      How are European Australians represented in the movie? What words/images are used to portray them this way? European Australians aren’t treated as equally as ‘white’ Australians however they do seem to have a more privileged life than what Aborigines do. Words and images that are used to show this is that in the scene where the European Australian wants to use the phone, they are kind of hesitant and keep a watchful eye on him, however they do eventually let him use it.  After that little scene, the police seem to give the Aborigines a harder time than the European Australian.

6.      How is Broome represented in the movie? (note down words used to describe it and how images portray it as different from other places). Broome is represented as this small rural place in Australia where they are lots of happy people that seem to get along with almost everyone. In the scenes where the bar is shown, everyone is having a good tie dancing and drinking to the music.

7.      How is Perth represented in the movie? (note down words used to describe it and how images portray it as different from other places). Perth is represented quite differently as there seems to be more homeless Aborigines and they don't come across as friendly as the Aborigines in Broome.

8.      How is Port Headland represented in the movie? (note down words used to describe it and how images portray it as different from other places). Port Headland is represented as a different and unique place in Australia. The residents seem to be a little more laid back and do a lot more daring things in their town (the condom tree is one example and the married lady having sex with Willie is another) 

9.      Select two of the characters and explain, using direct evidence from the movie, what type of ‘Australian-ness’ they represent. (How do they and others view themselves as Australian? This might include things that you think make them stereotypically Australian) Uncle Tadpole and Father Benedictus are two characters that show ‘Australian-ness’. Uncle Tadpole is the laid back man that is quite deceitful and can manipulate people quite easily. He sees himself as a typical Aboriginal Australian bloke. Aborigines are typically stereotyped as thieves and are not very friendly, and Uncle Tadpole shows the stereotype of a thief quite clearly, as he grabs the chocolate from Willie quite demandingly and when Willie wants his help at the beginning of the movie, he blows it off and acts differently. Father Benetictus is a typical ‘white’ Australian back n the olden days as he has a belief that Aborigines need to change and adapt to the lifestyle that ‘whites’ live, however he knows that beneath the fake ‘white’ people he makes with the Aborigines they are still thieves and will always have that ‘bad blood’ in them.

10.   Overall what representation of “Australian-ness” does Bran Nue Dae portray? (Attitudes/beliefs/ideas make someone an Australian according to the movie) The idea of someone being Australian according to the movie is that they have to be a ‘white’ Australian, or if they are not, then they are taught the ways so that they know how to act. The representation of being Australian in the movie Bran Nue Dae is that as long as you follow the rules and are educated properly, than anyone can be a ‘proper’ Australian, whether they are of Aboriginal background or not. 

English Homework article

2 representations that are presented in this article are a larrikins society and an equitable and just society

Larrikins society	Equitable and just society
Energetic Badly behaved young men Cheeky Disrespectful Goofball (dag) Bends the rules when it suits	Preserving ideals of a fair go Hard work Commit to principals of fair go Pulling your own weight Helping mates out

I do agree with the representations within the article ‘Larrikin has had his day’ because there are always 2 distinct groups of people in any society; one that are goal driven, and another that doesn’t want to follow the rules. Within the article, it gives a definition provided by the Oxford dictionary depicting what a larrikin is; which is a “boisterous, often badly behaved young man”. Being given a definition does create an image of what a larrikin is, and I have seen different people that fit in this category. I know there are other people in Australia that are the complete opposite of this, and the text supports that by saying, “what most of us…want is a safe place to live, to raise children if we choose, and to be justly rewarded for the work we do.” Both representations can be seen within communities because there are always some young men that can be cheeky, a little bit impolite and sometimes even a larrikin, and there are always men and women that are hardworking and want to do their best for their family and friends.  

Foster's Representation response

The representation of Australia and Australians that has been portrayed in Foster’s beer advertisement has broken the stereotypes people from other counties perceive Australians to be. Some of the ‘facts’ within the advertisement have been relatively accurate; however others were far off from the truth. The Australian personality that has been promoted by the text is that Australians aren’t big outback people and are very friendly and approachable people. The ad said that Australians don't own kangaroos as pets, nor do we wrestle crocs or wear those cork hats; this tells the audience watching the ad know that although there are enough kangaroos for everyone to be able to have one as a pet, we do not own one, it expresses that we are not all courageous and it shows that not all of us live in rural country.  Within the advertisement, it also states that Australians have certain characteristics and are missing others. The ad pronounces that the majority of Australians are tough, sporty, patriotic, friendly, not violent, multicultural, alcoholic, and that we are important. The Foster’s beer commercial has represented Australia and Australians in a way to show that not all Australians have certain attributes, and that the majority of Australians break the perceptions that other counties had labelled Australia with. 

English Answers

›  Go to http://blogoscoped.com/prejudice and look over the map. Read each part carefully

›  Answer the following questions in detail:

›  To what extent do you agree with the representations on the map? (give an example) I do agree with the majority of the representations on the map; however there are others that I am hesitant about. For example, I feel that the representation of Brazil is quite true, as they are known for some of their parades and females in bikinis, as well as their informality. However, the one I am quite hesitant about is the United States, as I feel that the United States is improving in their health (and walking) and there are some people from there that aren’t that friendly.

›  Do you find this amusing, helpful or outrageous? (Give reasons for your response)I think that it is amusing and a little outrageous because of some of the comments such as in the United States, it says “dislikes walking”, which is quite funny and is also a little bit outrageous. I don’t believe that this is quite helpful just in case people have never been to that place in the world and suddenly build a stereotype around those people, when not everyone in that area is like that.

›  What do you think about the comments about Australia? If you were asked to provide evidence of this what would you say? I think that some of the comments are relatively true; however some are a little bit inaccurate. For example, with the uncomplicated friendships comment, I feel that this is wrong because everyone can have either uncomplicated or complicated friendships, and with the obsessions of sport, I think that this can be quite true, depending on the sport (such as Rugby League finals). If I was asked to provide some evidence for the comments made about Australia, I would probably have some trouble to find evidence for directness, uncomplicated friendliness and no-nonsense, however I could probably show some statistics of crowd levels at some popular sporting events to show the ‘obsession’ with sport.

›  How accurate is the title ‘Prejudice Map’? Or should it be called ‘Stereotypes Map’? What is the difference between these two words? The accuracy of the title ‘Prejudice Map’ can vary, it can either be quite accurate for people who haven’t visited some of those areas however it wouldn’t be very accurate if they have already been to that place. For a more accurate name, the title should be ‘Stereotypes Map’. The difference between prejudice and stereotype is that with prejudice, it is an opinion that hasn’t been based on experience, whereas a stereotype is an oversized image/idea of a particular person or place.

Look at this map of Australia and answer the questions below

1.       Do you think that this is an accurate representation of Australia? Explain your reasons. I feel that this is not an accurate representation of Australia. Although the waters surround Australia are known for having sharks, crocodiles and jellyfish, it is not a full representation of what Australia is, but what animals are there. People and events such as Danni Minogue and the baby killer dingos were only one off actions and don’t represent what Australia is, however the artist now interprets that, for example, Tasmania is known only for deranged gunmen, which is not true.

2.       Who do you think may have drawn up this map? What do you think their knowledge of Australia is like? I think that the person who drew up this map was from a different country, as the labels placed around Australia are based on certain/specific things. Their knowledge of Australia, although pretty vast and kind of varied, is quite limited as it only refers  to some animals that are known for being located there, or certain events that have happened before in that certain location.

3.       As an Australian with an inside knowledge of the country select three areas (e.g. Sharks, Steve Irwin and Man eating koalas) and change them to a more accurate representation. In the area that says nothing, a more accurate representation would be to say Uluru, as that is the rough location of Uluru. Steve Irwin is in the location of the Great Barrier Reef, so Steve Irwin could be changed to the Great Barrier Reef. One of the things Tasmania is known for is the Tasmanian Devil, so the deranged gunmen representation could be changed to say Tasmanian Devil.