Additional texts for english... AGAIN!

Flay

Well, its that time again - I'm looking for pieces of material I can use to supplement the texts we've been prescribed for English. This time, our focus subject is the 'inner journey', and our core text (for the moment) is 'My Place' by Sally Morgan.

Some of the book's core theme's of the text are;

• Cultural Identity and Heritage
• Family and Family History
• Secrets and Denial
• Aboriginal Experiences and Discrimination

Here's some more information from amazon.com...

Growing up in Perth, Australia, in an impoverished, but lively and chaotic household dominated by her mother and grandmother, Morgan was 15 before she realized that she and her four siblings were of mixed Aboriginal descent. In this autobiography, she describes her efforts to identify with and record her family heritage. Oral histories gathered from her reticent and still fearful mother and grandmother, anxious to shield their children from the social stigma of their origins, are supplemented with accounts from relatives she tracked down in Northwest Australia's Aboriginal Reserves and livestock stations. They vividly describe the suffering caused by a government policy that took half-caste Aboriginal children away from their mothers. Although some Aborigines have successfully competed in Australian society, the author seems to agree with her uncle's contention that colonialism is not yet over and does not accord Aborigines either equalityes pecially land rights or freedom to pursue their own way of life.

What I need is books, films, poems, images and pretty much anything else that can be analyzed and interpreted to give a further understanding of the inner journey (that is, journeys of the mind and spirit that involve the exploration and development of self, in light of experiences which challenge and inspire) and can be related to 'My Place'.

While novels are helpful, it'd be good if people could suggest a wide variety of text types. I've already picked up a book called 'Lost Property' by James Maloney that I've started to make my notes on. Right now, I'm particularly looking for a good film, but I haven't got any ideas.

Anyways, thanks for any help you guys can offer.

The Cat

The Rabbit-Proof fence, book or movie. Ummm. There's a book by an early white pioneer in the outback that is interesting in how aborigines were viewed way back when, before a coherent white policy towards them was formed. fuck if I know what its called, but I'll see what I can turn up. A critical reading of news articles on the recent policy changes should be illuminating, too - for instance, the Australian has no problem identifying the full names and faces of young aboriginal girls who've become mothers very young or who have been sexually assaulted, while they'd never dare do that to a white girl. Both acts are pretty much illegal under privacy laws, but the odds of facing consequences? rather different. There's been at least one or two documentaries on SBS about fostered aboriginal kids, too - maybe hit their website.

For non-aboriginal stuff, I guess movies like The Beach?

Flay

The Cat wrote: »

The Rabbit-Proof fence, book or movie...

Oh gawd... Please don't make me watch that movie again...

*adopts the fetal position in the corner, rocking and whimpering slightly*

The Cat

hahaha. you're between a rock and a hard place, with di caprio on the other side :P I think any immigrant story would apply here. Try Wogfood, its a combo history and recipe book of the italian and greek immigration wave in the fifties.

Flay

C'mon... You guys are holding out on me.

Well, I've done some searching and so far haven't turned out anything definite. I do have a couple of ideas though... The film 'whale rider' sounds as though it may be following.

Just so you know, I'm not looking exclusively for pieces of material relating to indigenous Australians (although that is a good start). Pieces on the subject of family, identity and any other sort of cultural heritage are good too. And remember, the most important thing is that each piece of material represents some sort of inner journey!

AnteCantelope

I think that the best way to approach it is to look at some movies that you already like and have seen a few times, and then to see if there are any inner journeys within it. When I did imaginative journeys, I didn't look for texts that had imaginative journeys. Instead, I got a big stack of my favourite books, and thought about whether they would be applicable. It helps, because you already know the texts reasonably well, and you're interested enough in them to go a bit deeper.

On a side note, if I had to read 'My Place'... I don't know. I might have had to drop out of high school. It sounds awful.

mooshoepork

The Kite runner relates to family, identity, culture and it does show an inner journey.

Janson

English Passengers sounds like it might be applicable. I know it's a novel and not a movie but if you're having problems finding any materials at all...

Anyway, it's also a damn fine read so is probably worth picking it up regardless.

Flay

Hmm... What about short stories, or poems? Anyone got any good suggestions?

AresProphet

This wouldn't qualify for the fourth category (maybe in a very tangential sense) but Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys deals with cultural and racial identity, the idea of a family "curse," and there is denial and there are secrets. You're better off with it if you've read Jane Eyre already, but it works on its own too. It isn't particularly long.

Red Leg

Just to get out of the Lit box, if you can pull it off with your professor, I'd suggest using the Sandman graphic novels. I read the topic and honestly couldn't think of anything more perfect.

Flay

Although I used it last time, I just realized that 'Maus' would be the perfect piece graphic novel to use, so I don't think using another would be a very good idea.

I'm still on the hunt for poems, short stories, plays, artworks etc... though.