Feature Films in English Language Teaching 9783823369523

Table of contents :
Table of Contents
Foreword
Introduction
Fostering Film Literacy in English Language Teaching: Britta Viebrock
Australia
The Reflection of Social Rules in Australian Rules: Britta Viebrock
Employing Scenic Interpretation in Teaching Yolngu Boy: Jan-Erik Leonhardt & Britta Viebrock
‘Our’ and ‘Their’ History: The Challenge of Teaching Historical Backgrounds with the Example of Rabbit-Proof Fence: Eva Wilden
New Zealand
Whale Rider: A Deep Dive into Māori Culture: Nancy Grimm
“Wanna See Michael Jackson Dance Moves?” How Popular Culture and Maori Heritage Meet in Boy: Henriette Dausend
A Cross-Cultural Perspective on Romantic Love Made in New Zealand: My Wedding and Other Secrets: Katharina Delius
South Africa
Boy Called Twist: A Re-Adaptation of Oliver Twist in an Early Post-Apartheid South Africa: Gabriele Blell, Lina Hartmann & Katharina Wiese
“I Am the Captain of My Soul” – Invictus in the EFL Classroom: Grit Alter
Understanding Skin against the Backdrop of South Africa’s Pre-1994 Apartheid System: A Time-line Based Teaching Approach: Matthias Munsch & Teresa Schwehm
USA
A History of Violence: Productive and Creative Methodology in Teaching 12 Years a Slave: Jan-Erik Leonhardt
Life Is Strange – Life Is Change: Dallas Buyers Club in the EFL Classroom: Viviane Lohe
A Broken Oven, a Dysfunctional Family and a Missing Turkey Leg: Thanksgiving in Peter Hedges’ Pieces of April: Maike Grau
Great Britain
Being Bangladeshi British: On the Situation of First and Second Generation Immigrants in the Film Brick Lane: Annika Kreft
Identity, Intercultural Relationships and Growing up in the 1970s: Teaching Anita and Me to Promote Inter- and Transcultural Learning: Britta Freitag-Hild
Developing ‘Intercultural Communicative Competence’ with Ae Fond Kiss: Marja Zibelius
All or Nothing: Mike Leigh’s Film about Deprivation and Redemption in the Advanced English Language Classroom: Elisabeth Bracker & Helene Decke-Cornill
Glossary
The Authors

Citation preview

ISBN 978-3-8233-6952-3

Viebrock (ed.) Feature Films in English Language Teaching

Feature Films in English Language Teaching deals with the use of motion pictures in the advanced EFL (English as a foreign language) classroom. It provides a general introduction to film literacy and explains the rationale, methods, and objectives of working with feature films. In addition, the book contains in-depth considerations on sixteen selected films, which are grouped regionally (Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, USA, Great Britain). Each chapter describes the topical focus of the film and its central theme and provides background information on social, historical, political, and geographical issues. A profound analysis of selected scenes lays the foundation for considerations on the teaching potential of the film. In a download section, the chapters are complemented with ready-to-use teaching materials on film-specific aspects (narrative, dramatic and cinematographic dimensions), which are organised as pre-/while-/post-viewing activities. A glossary on technical terms for film analysis completes the volume.

Britta Viebrock (ed.)

Feature Films in English Language Teaching

Britta Viebrock (ed.)

Feature Films in English Language Teaching

Dr. Britta Viebrock ist Professorin für die Didaktik der englischen Sprache und Literatur an der Goethe-Universität Frankfurt/Main.

Bibliografische Information der Deutschen Nationalbibliothek Die Deutsche Nationalbibliothek verzeichnet diese Publikation in der Deutschen Nationalbibliografie; detaillierte bibliografische Daten sind im Internet über http://dnb.dnb.de abrufbar.

© 2016 · Narr Francke Attempto Verlag GmbH + Co. KG Dischingerweg 5 · D-72070 Tübingen Das Werk einschließlich aller seiner Teile ist urheberrechtlich geschützt. Jede Verwertung außerhalb der engen Grenzen des Urheberrechtsgesetzes ist ohne Zustimmung des Verlages unzulässig und strafbar. Das gilt insbesondere für Vervielfältigungen, Übersetzungen, Mikroverfilmungen und die Einspeicherung und Verarbeitung in elektronischen Systemen. Gedruckt auf säurefreiem und alterungsbeständigem Werkdruckpapier. Internet: www.narr-studienbuecher.de E-Mail: [email protected] Printed in the EU ISSN 0941-8105 ISBN 978-3-8233-6952-3

Table of Contents Foreword .........................................................................................................................................7 Introduction....................................................................................................................................9 Film in the EFL classroom Fostering Film Literacy in English Language Teaching (Britta Viebrock) .................. 13 Australia The Reflection of Social Rules in Australian Rules (Britta Viebrock) .......................... 31 Employing Scenic Interpretation in Teaching Yolngu Boy (Jan-Erik Leonhardt & Britta Viebrock) ..................................................................... 43 ‘Our’ and ‘Their’ History: The Challenge of Teaching Historical Backgrounds with the Example of Rabbit-Proof Fence (Eva Wilden)................................................ 55 New Zealand Whale Rider: A Deep Dive into Māori Culture (Nancy Grimm) .................................. 69 “Wanna See Michael Jackson Dance Moves?” How Popular Culture and Māori Heritage Meet in Boy (Henriette Dausend) ................................................................ 87 A Cross-Cultural Perspective on Romantic Love Made in New Zealand: My Wedding and Other Secrets (Katharina Delius) .................................................... 101 South Africa Boy Called Twist: A Re-Adaptation of Oliver Twist in an Early Post-Apartheid South Africa (Gabriele Blell, Lina Hartmann & Katharina Wiese) ........................... 115 “I Am the Captain of My Soul” – Invictus in the EFL Classroom (Grit Alter)............ 129 Understanding Skin against the Backdrop of South Africa’s Pre-1994 Apartheid System: A Time-line Based Teaching Approach (Matthias Munsch & Teresa Schwehm) .................................................................... 143

6

Table of Contents United States of America A History of Violence: Productive and Creative Methodology in Teaching 12 Years a Slave (Jan-Erik Leonhardt) .................................................. 155 Life Is Strange – Life Is Change: Dallas Buyers Club in the EFL Classroom (Viviane Lohe) .......................................................................................................... 167 A Broken Oven, a Dysfunctional Family and a Missing Turkey Leg: Thanksgiving in Peter Hedges’ Pieces of April (Maike Grau) .................................... 181 Great Britain Being Bangladeshi British: On the Situation of First and Second Generation Immigrants in the Film Brick Lane (Annika Kreft).................................................... 195 Identity, Intercultural Relationships and Growing up in the 1970s: Teaching Anita and Me to Promote Inter- and Transcultural Learning (Britta Freitag-Hild).................................................................................................. 207 Developing ‘Intercultural Communicative Competence’ with Ae Fond Kiss (Marja Zibelius) ........................................................................................................ 217 All or Nothing: Mike Leigh’s Film about Deprivation and Redemption in the Advanced English Language Classroom (Elisabeth Bracker & Helene Decke-Cornill)............................................................. 233 Glossary ......................................................................................................................................247 The Authors ...............................................................................................................................251

Foreword Based on my experience as a university lecturer educating future secondary school teachers in the field of TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language), I have been meaning to compile a book like this for years. For various reasons (teaching, the need to secure my position at university, demands to acquire research funding, other publications and not least family obligations) I kept postponing it over and over again. It was not until the brilliant exam of one of my graduate students in autumn 2015 I started putting my plans into practice. I was truly inspired by his insights, which even impressed my co-examiner, a traditional literary scholar quite critical of the teacher training branch of our institute. He conceded: “Now I understand what TEFL theory and methodology is good for, if it is done properly,” the point of criticism being here that, in his view, teacher training too often focuses on methodology, practicality, and functionality and too little on content knowledge and a profound and well-structured topical approach. Perhaps this incident was one of the rather seldom moments of epiphany for university teachers when the input provided in various seminars indeed triggers the desired effects and encourages the students to explore the subject area even further, combine insights from different fields of study and take up an elaborated, autonomous position. In any case, for me this was the flashpoint to put together some of my knowledge in a more systematic fashion and indeed focus on the integration of content matter and methodology. It was clear from the beginning, however, that I would not be able to write up the volume all by myself. Fortunately, I found a lot of colleagues willing to contribute and share some of their film treasuries and teaching ideas. I am much obliged to their commitment, without which this book would not have been possible. I would also like to thank Jan-Erik Leonhardt for co-editing many chapters as well as my dear colleague Mariella Veneziano-Osterrath for her meticulous proof-reading. Again, this project (and many others) would not have been possible without her flexibility, dedication and support. Furthermore, I am indebted to Ariadne Peinemann, who is responsible for the design of the ready-to-use materials in the download section that accompany each chapter of this volume (www.narr-studienbuecher.de). Kathrin Heyng and her colleagues at Narr Publishing House have responded positively to my concept. They have been very helpful in providing advice on the formalities of the manuscript and supervising the production process. It remains for me to express a certain amount of hope that book at hand proves to be as inspiring for students, teacher trainees, in-service teachers of English, and university colleagues as I intend it to be. Britta Viebrock

Introduction Films are a much appreciated medium in foreign language education which aspires to be up-to-date, meaningful and relevant for today’s learners. The implementation of moving pictures within the context of language teaching also reflects the importance that visual images have in our media-dominated society. Hence, the use of feature films in educational settings connects to the learners’ experiences outside the classroom and at the same time has the potential to equip them with a critical media literacy. Over the past ten years I have taught numerous classes on the use of film in English language teaching. They were valued by university students seeking to become teachers of English and more experienced in-service teachers alike. While often the participants of my classes were able to express their understanding concerning the narrative dimension of films, i.e. the stories that are told, the characters that are presented, and the relationships that develop through the course of events, their knowledge concerning film-specific elements and how these contribute to the viewer’s understanding of the story as well as the terminology needed to talk about cinematographic aspects was considerably lower. Repeatedly, the feedback on my classes included a particular appreciation of my insistence on studying form and function or form and content in an integrated way, which unmistakably allows for in-depth study and a more differentiated understanding of the material at hand. This also calls for an exemplary approach that applies general elements of film analysis to selected samples. The idea of English language teaching that forms the basis of this approach is not predominantly functional, but aspires to be of general educational value. While university students and teacher trainees are very much in search of methodological knowledge, teaching ideas and appropriate tasks, i.e. what to do and how to deal with films in class, my experience has taught me that they appreciate university seminars even more that also extensively consider the question of suitable content matter, i.e. which topics to focus on, which material to use and for what reason. In this respect, many of the films selected for this publication are not primarily entertaining, but particularly lend themselves for an introduction to cultural or regional studies. Of course, one always has to keep in mind that films are works of art that are constructed in a certain way in order to influence, and possibly even manipulate, the viewer’s perception. On no account are they genuine representations of reality although they maybe factual, truthful, and realistic. Nonetheless, the use of films proves to be a motivating and engaging way of teaching geographical, historical, political, or social issues and societal developments. Against this background, the publication at hand provides a chapter on feature films in English language teaching which serves as a general introduction to film literacy and makes topical the rationale, objectives, approaches, and methods of using film. The better part of the book deals with individual films featuring selected social and cultural aspects. The films are rather challenging in terms of language and content and should thus be used in upper secondary shool. They are grouped regionally according to their settings. In view of the danger of equating the representation of just one film with a differentiated and accurate portrayal of a particular nation or region, a selection of films has been made that allows for different perspectives, which can in turn be compared and coordinated. In practical terms, a topical selection of three films has proved to be a good amount for a university seminar of 14 weeks, allowing for general considerations on the use of film, a more detailed analysis of the selected examples,

10

Introduction the integration of background or context knowledge, and possibly even the development of classroom scenarios for English language teaching. Of course, the regional arrangement of films opted for in this book could also be replaced by alternative groupings that follow different criteria (e.g. according to the representation of universal topics, according to particular film aesthetics etc.). For no particular reason, the selection of films starts with Oceania, and then works its way around the world: through South Africa, and the United States to Great Britain. Unfortunately, the Indian subcontinent as a large community in the English speaking world is missing. The same holds true for Canada and other regions where English is spoken as an official language. The reasons for the selection of films and the inevitable limitations that come along with it originate in my own experiences, the contributors’ choices as well as the number of pages available for this book. As a future initiative, I would like to establish a webpage with additional suggestions that can be extended and updated easily. The films set in Australia make topical the situation of native Australians in different contexts. Based on true events, Australian Rules deals with the relationship between Aboriginals and white inhabitants in a remote South Australian town that, apart from Australian Rules football, does not offer many opportunities for the local young people. The drama shows how racial issues interfere disastrously with what set out to be the celebration of a sports event. In a similar fashion, Yolngu Boy deals with the options adolescent native Australian have, yet the film does not focus as much on racial issues, but rather on incongruences and conflicts between tradition and modernity. It follows the development of three Aboriginal teenagers who, on their journey to aldulthood, have to rely on traditional tribal knowledge. At the same time, they have to come to terms with the opportunities and challenges of an industrialised civilisation. RabbitProof Fence is a historical period drama that features the story of the Stolen Generation. Set in Western Australia in the 1930s it tells the story of three so-called half-caste girls (children of Aboriginal mothers and white fathers) who were removed from their Aboriginal families for re-education. The film follows the girls’ escape from the reeducation camp back to their native community 2,400 km further up north. Having been exploited for language teaching purposes before, the analysis of Rabbit- Proof Fence in this book particluraly focuses on the challenges of dealing with historical issues mediated through film. The films set in New Zealand also deal with possible tensions between tradition and modernity. Whale Rider takes traditional practices of the Maōri culture as a starting point and dwells on gender issues. Tradition has it that the first-born grandson, a direct patrilineal descendent of Paikea, the whale rider, should become the new tribal leader. However, Paikea (“Pai”) Apirana, the current leader’s first-born grandchild in the film, is a girl. Although she is willing to assume leadership, she does not receive any training or support from her grandfather, the current tribal leader. In spite of a female role model, Pai is determined to succeed. Boy is a slice-of-life, coming-of-age story that follows the young boy in the title and his brother in a Maōri community on the rural East Coast of New Zealand in the early 1980s. The film explores their growing relationship with a long-absent father, who turns up rather unexpectedly, as well as the influence of pop-cultural elements which enter the boys’ lives by way of the music videos of Michael Jackson, who also serves as a substitute hero for the boys. The third film in this part, My Wedding and Other Secrets, focuses on the more recent Asian immigration to New Zealand and the cross-cultural relationships that emerge from these new social constellations. The romantic comedy basically is a modern Romeo and

Introduction

Juliet story, where the daughter of Chinese immigrants falls in love with a white New Zealander in spite of her parents’ wish to live a more traditional life and get involved with a Chinese boy. While being set in a particular local context, the film is reminiscent of other popular films (such as Bend It Like Beckham or Ae Fond Kiss, which is also featured in this book). It certainly offers a number of universal topics that can be reflected on regardless of the specific setting. South Africa is a country that is extremely interesting for its recent past and the political and social developments after the end of apartheid. The first film in this section, Boy Called Twist, is set in a changing new South Africa, but mainly uses this setting to present a re-adaptation of Dickens’ classic Oliver Twist. Both tell the story of what in modern terms would be called a street kid. The film lends itself both for cultural studies as well as work on intertextuality and adaptation. Invictus makes topical the events preceding the final of the Rugby World Cup in South Africa in 1995. On the one hand, it is a sports drama, on the other hand it depicts Nelson Mandela’s leadership qualities during the end of apartheid and the development towards a more democratic society. Conversely, the film Skin is set within the context of apartheid and covers the period between the 1960s and the first free elections in South Africa in 1994. Focussing on the individual fate of Sandra Laing, a girl with a dark complexion that was born to white parents, it makes topical the inhumanity of the apartheid policy and how this effects the life and identity of a young girl/woman who falls victim to the whims of legislation. The films set in the United States of America are very diverse in nature. Obviously, this has to do with with the vastness of issues made topical in public and artistic discourse. The diversity is probably also an expression of the productivity of the American film industry, which still is one of the largest worldwide and certainly highly influential. The three films chosen for this publication are very recent productions. 12 Years a Slave is a historical period drama film. It is based on true events and tells the story of Solomon Northup, a freeborn Afro-American who is kidnapped and sold into slavery, where he has to work on plantations for twelve years. Even though the film might be difficult classroom material on account of its representation of violence, it has received widespread critical acclaim. In particular in view of repeated violent attacks against Afro-Americans until the present day, it is important to reflect on the legacies of the slave trade and ensuing social injustices. Dallas Buyers Club focuses on a social group that is discriminated against for different reasons. Again, the film relates to real events. It tells the story of Ron Woodroof, a homophobic womanizer, who is diagnosed with HIV and a life expectancy of thirty days in the mid-1980s. For want of access to effective medication, Woodroof enganges in drug trafficking across the Mexican-US border, which is penalised with draconic sanctions. In order to legally import medication for personal use, Woodroof establishes a buyers club that distributes the drugs “for free”, i.e. in return of a substantial monthly membership fee. The third film in this part, Pieces of April, again focuses on a totally different topic: a traditional American holiday. The comedy drama features a Thanksgiving dinner April Burns, the estranged daughter of a dysfunctional family, wants to prepare for her parents, her siblings, and her grandmother. April’s mother suffers from breast cancer, and this family reunion will probably be the last opportunity for mother and daughter to reconcile. Together with her boyfriend, April lives in New York’s Lower East Side, which poses a stark contrast to her family’s suburban surroundings. The film focuses on the family’s journey as well as April and her boyfriend’s desperate preparations of a Thanksgiving feast.

11

12

Introduction Different parts of Great Britain serve as the setting of the final four films discussed in this compilation, three of which focus on culturally heterogeneous societies, transcultural characters and intercultural relationships. Brick Lane tells the story of Nazneen, a young woman from rural Bangladesh, who is married off to a much older man, a member of the Bangladeshi British community in London. In a small flat in Brick Lane they raise two daughters, who as second generation immigrants have no affiliation to their parents’ country of origin. Apart from focusing on questions of home and belonging, or cultural identity, the film closely follows the process of Nazneen’s emancipation – from her husband, from her family background, from established gender roles. Aspects of a multicultural society to the extent of racist attitudes also feature in Anita and Me, a comedy drama about 12-year-old Meena, a Sikh girl, whose family lives in the fictional mining town of Tollington in England’s Black Country in the 1970s. Meena befriends Anita, a white girl two years her senior, whom she idolises. As a wanderer between her Indian heritage and the predominantly white, middle-class neighbourhood, Meena is sensitive to cultural differences and misunderstandings and grapples with her own identity. The process of coming to terms with one’s identity as a second generation immigrant is also made topical in Ae Fond Kiss, a romantic drama set in Scotland. It portrays the Khan family, who have come to Glasgow from Pakistan. Both of the parents wish for a traditional life style including an arranged marriage for their three children, but only the oldest daughter seems to comply. Casim, the only son, falls in love with Roisin, an Irish Catholic music teacher at his younger sister’s school. Casim and Roisin have to decide whether they can and whether they want to uphold their relationship even though this might include a break from their respective communities. The last film in this part of the book is of a different nature with its specific focus on class. All Or Nothing depicts the everyday commodities encountered by three working-class families in present-day London. The drama is particularly interesting for its several intertwined storylines leading up to the climax, the heart attack of the overweight son of one of the families. This incident leads to a relationship crisis among the parents, but also turns out to be the catalyst for breaking the silence that has muted the family for too long. Each of the book chapters provides a description of the film being focused on, its content and main issues. A brief discussion of socio-cultural, historical, geographical, or political backgrounds and contexts follows. Moreover, selected scenes are depicted and analysed in detail, especially focusing on the interplay of the narrative, dramatic, and cinematographic dimensions, before the teaching potential of the film is discussed. Methodological considerations and suggestions for pre-, while-, and post-viewing tasks follow. In order to complement the considerations in the book chapters, for each film material and worksheets for classroom use can be found in the download section (cf. www.narr-studienbuecher.de).

Fostering Film Literacy in English Language Teaching Britta Viebrock

This chapter serves as an introduction to the concept of film literacy in the context of English language teaching. While the subsequent chapters deal with individual feature films from different geographical regions and discuss their potential for teaching English as a foreign language, this section provides basic considerations on the use of film in the foreign language classroom. It explains the rationale of teaching film and defines the notion of film literacy. Furthermore, film-specific terminology as well as methodological considerations on the use of film in the classroom will be presented. 1

The rationale of teaching film and other moving images in the English as a foreign language classroom

Our world has become increasingly visual. In the field of literary and cultural studies, this development has been described as the ‘visual turn’ (Bachmann-Medick 2008), which at the same time is accompanied by a growing digitalisation, i.e. a ‘digital turn’. Particluarly in the Internet, today’s learners constantly encounter moving pictures and multimodal compositions that combine different semiotic systems such as sound, visual images, and written passages. As a consequence, a new understanding of text has emerged that leaves behind the idea of a printed text in a consecutive order and stresses the different modes of representation. Anstey & Bull (2006: 24f.) speak of “mono- and multimodal, interactive, linear, and nonlinear texts, texts in different languages, texts with several possible meanings, texts on paper, screens, or live, and texts that comprise one or more semiotic system.” In order to cope with this diversity of texts, today’s learners need to be equipped with an accordingly diverse literacy, i.e. with multiliteracies (The New London Group 2000, cf. also Elsner et al. 2013). While literacy originally describes the ability to read and write, to decode and produce a sequential order of written words, a new understanding of literacies advances with an extended notion of text. Not only do learners have to be able to read and write in a classical sense, they also have to be able to decode, and possibly produce, all kinds of visual images and all kinds of combinations of different semiotic systems: “[…] learners inhabit a world of burgeoning new literacies different in kind, scope, and purpose from conventional literacies and familiar language uses forged in pre-digital times” (Goodson et al. 2002: 126). It is within this context that feature films in English language teaching have to be considered. On the one hand, films are multimodal texts themselves that usually combine visual images and sound in a particular way. They would thus require an extended notion of literacy, which enables the learners to analyse and decode the different semiotic systems employed and their interplay. On the other hand, feature films are usually around 90 minutes long and consequently demand a different attention span of the viewer, even more so when presented in a foreign language, than many of the short clips to be found in advertising or elsewhere on the Internet. The

14

Fostering Film Literacy in English Language Teaching composition and structure of a feature film is certainly different from shorter formats which are often reduced to a specific punchline and conform to an ephemeral ‘best ofculture’ (cf. Thaler 2008: 15). Nonetheless, feature films are a regular part of today’s learners’ lives. The big cinemas enjoy great popularity as do DVDs for home entertainment or streaming and download portals. All kinds of feature films are basically available at any time. Even very young learners come to class with a fair amount of experience in watching films suitable for children. For better or for worse, films have become an integral part of today’s popular culture. Consequently, if relevance, topicality, and meaningfulness determine the appropriateness of teaching and learning content, films have to be taken into consideration (not only) in English language teaching (cf. also Blell et al. 2016). A careful selection would undoubtedly contribute to an increased learner orientation and, very likely, improve language learning motivation. The stories told by feature films as well as a reflection on how they are told are well-suited for extensive discussions in the classroom and versatile creative meaning-making processes. Similar to novels or other literary genres, feature films lend themselves for adopting and coordinating different perspectives and extending one’s own point of view. In addition, as authentic cultural products feature films can be exploited for cultural studies in at least two ways. On the one hand, they can be analysed as examples of a particular film culture or artistic tradition. On the other hand, they can be used for the study of the cultural, historical or regional phenomena they make topical. As mentioned in the introduction to this book, one always has to keep in mind that films are works of art whose composition influences, and possibly even manipulates, the viewer’s perception. On no account are feature films genuine representations of reality although they maybe faithful, accurate and true-to-life. Despite these confinements, well-selected films lend themselves perfectly for teaching geographical, historical, political, or social issues. However, an approach that uses feature films for cultural studies inevitably demands the simultaneous development of a critical film literacy, which equips the learners with the ability to critically analyse the composition of film and its functions. 2

Film literacy

Will Rogers, the US-American actor/comedian who lived around the turn of the 20 th century, is known for having said: “There is only one thing that can kill the movies, and that’s education.”1 This quotation hints at the contrast between the consumption of films for private and entertainment purposes and a more analytical approach in educational settings that aims at the development of a critical film literacy. In Rogers’ understanding, a dissection of the constituting parts of a film would take away much of its magic and attraction. While this might be true, a more educated approach contributes to the learners’ emancipation and their autonomy. In foreign language pedagogy, Decke-Cornill & Luca (2007) discuss how to combine analytical approaches (Filmanalyse) and the more holistic perception of films (Filmerleben) in educational settings. The analytical dimension comprises considerations on three different concepts: media criticism or social criticism, an aesthetic approach, and viewer 1

http://www.cmgww.com/historic/rogers/about/hollywood_andthe_movies.html 01.04.2016.

Fostering Film Literacy in English Languag Teaching

response theory (as a film-specific analogy to reader response theory). Media criticism on the one hand, by way of comparing novels and their filmic adaptations, aims at a critical attitude towards visual media in opposition to a more positive attitude towards a culture of reading. On the other hand it uses the attraction of film to critically reflect on the mechanisms of the medium, which includes a profound acquisition of specific technical terminology for film analysis. While a categorial denial of the use of films in educational settings is rarely found today, critical objections are courteously considered: Cultural critics […] may object that films are just part of popular or mass culture. They are nothing but commodities whose sole purpose is to be sold, aimed merely at manipulating consumers, designed with pre-digested formulas and calculated effects, lacking in artistic beauty, not concerned with the truth. (Thaler 2014: 12)

The aesthetic approach Decke-Cornill & Luca (2007) elaborate on aims at analysing filmic devices and their functions without neccessarily including social critique. By way of comparing different film adaptations, or different films, a close analysis of selected scenes, or a detailed examination of the use of sound the learners are provided with insights into typical filmic compositions and devices. An aesthetic approach may also include a creative approximation to film studies, where the actual production of a film is used to develop an understanding of the mechanisms. The viewer response theory, initially applied to film studies by Bredella (2004), puts particular emphasis on the viewer and his roles in the perception of films and in meaning-making processes. He takes the role of a participating recipient who fills gaps in the plot with his own imagination. He takes the role of an observer who evaluates the story and the behaviour of individual characters. And he takes the role of a critic who is able to reflect on the process of perception on a more abstract level, i.e. how and why he was influenced by certain elements of the film and in which particular way. Whereas viewer response theory with its focus on the viewer could comprise elements of a more holistic perception, Decke-Cornill & Luca (2007) distinguish Filmerleben and the emotions involved in the reception process as a separate category. They advocate an integration of analytical and holistic approaches, which is equivalent to a consideration of both the subject (i.e. the viewer) and the object (i.e. the film) and thus fully compatible with the humanistic ideal of education. However, Decke-Cornill & Luca do not relate their considerations to English language teaching in particular, but to educational endeavours in general. In view of the specifics of the foreign language classroom, Filmerleben is probably hard to achieve: A naturalistic full-length presentation of feature films comparable to cinema showings can probably only be achieved in the higher grades, where foreign languages competences are welldeveloped (cf. also Council of Europe 2001). Certainly in the lower grades, insufficiently developed language competences might impair a sophisticated reception of the subtleties and intricacies of a particular film. The specific demands of the foreign language classroom have been taken into account more explicitly in Blell & Lütge’s objective of film literacy, which they define as “the ability to deal with films appropriately, critically, independently, responsibly, interculturally and creatively in the foreign language” (Blell & Lütge 2004: 404, my translation; cf. also Lütge 2012: 17ff.). More specifically, it comprises (at least) four dimensions: perceptive competences, aesthetic and critical competences, intercultural competences, as well as communicative competences. The perceptive competence aims at the development of pupils’ visual literacy. In view of the terminology used in this

15

16

Fostering Film Literacy in English Language Teaching chapter it would probably be more appropriate to speak of multimodal literacies, which – with regard to film – consists of general world knowledge as well as knowledge about the construction and organsation of film. Both aspects of knowledge are believed to foster meaning-making processes in the perception of films as well as a critical attitude towards filmic devices, cinematographic techniques and, ideally, the mechanisms of the cultural industry. A critical attitude is taken up again in the following aspect: aesthetic and critical competences. Blell & Lütge (2004) argue that film should not be mis-used as a mere trigger for topical discussions, but that the aesthetics should be dealt with in their own right in order to make the learners aware of possible manipulative effects of cinematographic techniques. This is not meant to argue in favour of an exclusively cognitive approach to film analysis. Similarly to the elaborations by Decke-Cornill & Luca (2007), affective responses are understood to be equally important in the meaning-making process. Blell & Lütge’s (2004) main objective is an aesthetic awareness in a broad sense. Furthermore, they argue that films are authentic cultural products which allow for the development of intercultural competences by reflecting on “one’s own” and “foreign” cultural phenomena. While above I have argued myself that feature films lend themselves for an introduction to cultural or regional studies, I am rather critical of Blell & Lütge’s choice of terminology here as it implies more or less clearly defined cultural collectives, which can be understood and related to. In view of the hybridity of today’s societies, a binary and static notion of culture has been called into question by many scholars (for example Doff & Schulze-Engler 2011, Delanoy 2013, Matz et al. 2014). Also in a more recent publication, Lütge (2012: 17, my translation) still speaks of the “target culture” as opposed to “one’s own culture”. Yet at the same time, she alerts the reader to the fact that the reception process may not be at the mercy of the alleged authenticity of film (cf. ibid.: 19), but needs to be independent, critical and well-informed. As a consequence, I would do without the concept of intercultural learning and work with the idea of cultural and regional studies instead, which include examinations of and reflections on the cultural self-concept of a society as represented or orchestrated in the film (cf. also ibid: 20). Last but not least, communicative competences are part and parcel of any foreign language teaching. According to Blell & Lütge (2004), films are understood to offer much more complex communicative structures than the limited and often artificial textbook texts. It is certainly true that the dialogues in films are not constructed for teaching purposes. They are not meant to convey a selected linguistic phenomenon or a specific grammatical structure, and thus are more realistic than texts for educational purposes. It is also true, that visual cues accompany the process of listening comprehension, which is usually helpful, but can also be challenging at times. If embedded in the right tasks, films certainly offer a great potential for the development of all communicative skills. However, in terms of the pragmatics of language use film dialogues are not necessarily a faithful representation of reality. Rose (2001), for example, in his study on the use of compliments and compliment responses in (American) film shows that women receive many more compliments than they would in real life. Hence, he concludes that “film language appears to be most representative of naturally-occuring speech from a pragmalinguistic perspective – particularly where major categories such as syntactic formula in compliments is concerned – and less so in terms of sociopragmatics” (ibid.: 309). Thaler (2014: 33ff.) approaches film literacy in a slightly different fashion and links his understanding of the concept to Byram’s (1997) highly influential model of

17

Fostering Film Literacy in English Languag Teaching

intercultural communicative competence (ICC; which is discussed in greater detail by Zibelius in this volume). According to Thaler, film literacy – just as ICC – is based on the three domains knowledge, skills, and attitudes. In contrast to Byram’s model, where these dimensions are geared at the reflection of ‘culture(s)’, whose definition again remains rather vague, Thaler relates them to film. That is to say, ‘knowlegde’ comprises an expertise in different domains related to film, such as film history, film theory, film genres, and cinematographic techniques. ‘Skills’ relate to both film analysis and film production, predominantly in classroom settings. For a proper film analysis, the learners need to develop mulitmodal competences, which combine listening comprehension and visual literacy, in order to reflect on the relationships between sound and image. They also need to be equipped with the appropriate technical terminology to talk about cinematographic devices. In a productive approach, creative processes are put into the spotlight. This could be anything from designing a film poster, filling a narrative gap in a film, writing a film script, developing a storyboard, setting images to sound, or even producing a (short) film. The attitudinal domain in Thaler’s model covers the polarity between a holistic perception or the enjoyment of films and a more critical attitude expressed in aesthetic judgments. The attitudinal domain also covers what has been called ‘intercultural competences’ in Blell & Lütge’s (2004) model, but the assumption that “films help to substitute for the experience of living in an English-speaking country” (Thaler 2014: 51; cf. also Shermann 2010) seems disproportionate, particularly in view of the constructedness of film, and remains to be debated.

film literacy: critical and autnonomous reception of films

film analysis (“Filmanalyse”)

perceptive competences: subject-object-interactions multimodal literacies aesthetic and critical competences: stylistic devices technical terminology

cultural studies or area studies / film studies

communicative competences (CALP)

communicative competences (BICS)

holistic perception of film (“Filmerleben”)

film as cultural industry Figure 1: Model of film literacy

Against this background I would like to propose a model (cf. figure 1) where film literacy designates the learners’ ability to critically and autonomously deal with feature films in the English language classroom, either in a receptive or in a productive mode. In particular, the process of film reception is characterised by a discrepancy between a more holistic approach (individual perception) and a cognitive approach (detailed

18

Fostering Film Literacy in English Language Teaching analysis). As such, film literacy comprises at least two competence domains: perceptive competences as well as aesthetic and critical competences. In accordance with Lütge (2012: 18), perceptive competences accommodate the interaction between film and recipient, between individual, yet not random meaning-making processes and a general understanding of the interplay of image, sound, camera perspective, mise-en scène, the use of colours etc. Perceptive competences lay the foundations for aesthetic and critical competences, which focus on film as a works of art and the specifics of the medium (production styles, stylistic devices, cinematographic techniques). In order to be able to a take a critical position towards film aesthetics and detect possible manipulative influences, the learners need to be able to recognise certain cinematographic features and describe their effects with the appropriate technical terminology. In my understanding, the exploitation of feature films for cultural studies and/or film studies is not necessarily part of a basic version of film literacy, but rather an additional dimension of a more elaborate concept, which is predominantly applicable to such films whose topics are not universal, but feature specific historical, political, or social events of a particular region. Communicative competences are a prerequisite and an objective of film literacy at the same time. A well-developed communicative competence is needed to understand the dialogues in a film (cf. Council of Europe 2001: 71), These usually consist of everyday speech, which, however, is characterised by idiomology, regional vernaculars, dialect and accents, a high speech rate, and demanding stylistic features such as irony, puns, and the like. In this respect, film dialogues are geared at a native speaker2 audience and might pose additional cognitive challenges on an international audience. Likewise, well-developed communicative competences are also needed to talk about the story featured in a film, the characters, and their relationships in the English language classroom. Using the destinction between BICS and CALP by Cummins (2008), the language competence needed for these kinds of conversations would be an expression of basic interpersonal communicative skills, which is characterised by a context-embedded and fairly concrete use of language. The language competence aspired to be the outcome of a film-based teaching unit would be in the realm of a cognitive academic language proficiency, which is characterised by a fairly abstract, context-reduced and cognitively demanding use of language including technical terminology. An additional aspect one needs to keep in mind is that, in contrast to drama, for example, film “is primarily an industry” (Benyahia & Mortimer 2013: 4). It is a significant aspect of popular culture, which reaches much greater audiences than theatre and is much more exposed to the machinery of profit-making. Hence, not only needs the film’s value be judged artistically, and in relation to the depiction of society or politics, but it also needs to be judged in view of commercial aspects. This property has also been hinted at by Fisch & Viebrock (2013: 125) in their discussion of the use of film posters in English language teaching: The advertising purposes of film posters serve as an important rationale for working with film posters in the EFL classroom. A critical analysis of the construction and

2

Being aware of the fact that the native speaker paradigm as the idealised linguistic norm is critically discussed or even discredited in the academic discourse, it proves to be a sufficient enough concept in this context (cf. Mukherjee 2005).

Fostering Film Literacy in English Languag Teaching

function of film posters as cultural products with a specific purpose can certainly contribute to the development of a critical visual literacy in the learner […].

The very same applies to the reflection and analysis of films. As a consequence, an understanding of the industrial dimension of film has to be included into the notion of film literacy. The model proposed here takes up elements of previous models, but rearranges and expands them. 3

The peculiarities of film

Film is an art form with certain peculiarities. It is similar to other modes of narration (such as novels or, less so, short stories) in the sense that it tells a story and develops a plot. It follows the development of a number of characters and their relationships. By the same token, film is similar to other modes of dramatic respresentation (such as plays or even talking books) in the sense that the story it tells is acted out and modulated by a particular use of voice and intonation. What makes film very specific, however, is the technical process of filming and editing the story in a particular way. Different camera perspectives and field sizes as well as different editing techniques provoke specific effects that influence the recipients’ perception and interpretations of a film. Therefore, the uniqueness of film lies in the interplay of the narrative, dramatic, and cinematographic or aesthetic dimensions of the medium (cf Henseler et al. 2011: 62ff., relying on the model proposed by Teasley & Wilder 1997). The narrative dimension, sometimes also refered to as ‘literary aspects’ (Henseler et al. 2011: 63), focuses on the plot of the story (for example, exposition, climax, turning points, denouement), and the characters (i.e. their traits of character, relationships, motives). This includes the analysis of character constellations (cf. for example Delius in this volume and her material in the download section), which illustrates the specific functions of certain characters: The occurrence of an anti-hero, for instance, adds to the superior appearance of the hero; a catalyst figure serves to trigger another character’s development (cf. Kreft in this volume). Moreover, the narrative dimension considers the setting and events of the story as well as the point of view of the narration. It also includes the study of recurrent themes, or motifs as well as an analysis of the representation of space and time. The dramatic dimension accentuates aspects that are of similar importance in theatre productions. It is concerned with the cast of a film, i.e. the actors, the quality of their acting/performance, their image, their credibility and so on. It is concerned with specific features of the figures, such as body language, gestures, and facial expressions as well as their make-up and costumes. In addition, questions regarding the film set, i.e. the locations and props, the use of lighting and colour shemes, or the arrangement of the elements to be seen in a shot (mise-en-scène) are part of the dramatic dimension. The cinematographic dimension brings into focus film-specific elements, either in view of the actual process of filming, where decisions concerning the position and activity of the camera have to be made, or in terms of the post-production, where the material produced is edited and arranged with specific effects. The ability to talk about cinematographic effects in an elaborated way requires the use of a fair amount of technical terminology (cf. Liebelt 2003), some of which will be explained below. An overview of the language of film can also be found in the glossary at the end of the book.

19

20

Fostering Film Literacy in English Language Teaching With regard to possible camera shots, one needs to distinguish between field size (Einstellungsgröße/Bildausschnitt), camera perspective (Kameraperspektive) and camera movement (Kamerabewegung). The field size denotes the proximity of the camera and the subject being filmed. Panoramas, for example, are filmed from a great distance and cover a large area. They establish an overview of the scenery and the film’s setting. In contrast, detailed shots are filmed as close-ups, which focus on a specific part of an object, such as a figure’s face, or even as extreme close-ups, which focus on a particular detail of an object’s part, for example the nose or an eyebrow. In this way, close-ups allow for the study of the subtleties of facial expressions. Extreme close-ups charge the depicted detail with particular emphasis. The different field sizes that are usually distinguished in film-making are defined and illustrated in figure 4.

Figure 2: Camera perspectives

tilting Figure 3: Camera movements

panning

zooming

3

Depending on the position and angle of the camera, objects or figures can be shown from different perspectives (cf. figure 2). If filmed from a low angle, a person appears to be very large. Often, this is associated with dominance and superiority (cf. the considerations on Australian Rules by Viebrock in this volume). If filmed from above (for example by means of a crane shot), an unsual perspective of things can be provided (top view). When the camera itself is tilted to the left or the right, this is called a Dutch angle (also: Dutch tilt or canted angle), an uneven horizon line that is not parallel with the camera frame being its main characteristic. Such an unnatural angle often leaves the viewer with a feeling of psychological unrest or tension. The effect of disorder (for example in a sports contest, cf. Alter as well as Viebrock in this volume) can also be achieved by the use of a hand-held camera, which produces shaky and unsteady images 3

The camera on tripod icon has been created by freepik (cf. http://www.flaticon.com/freeicon/vintage-camera-on-a-tripod_49690) as has the icon of the person (cf. http://www.flaticon.com/free-icon/relaxing-walk_10966#term=person&page=4&position =47). The top view of the camera has been created by Yannik (cf. http://www.flaticon.com/free-icon/video-camera_12243; all accessed 01.04.2016).

Fostering Film Literacy in English Languag Teaching

from changing angles, often with the purpose of generating a greater momentum which draws the viewer into the action. As a matter of principle, camera movements allow for more dynamic shots that also encompass wider spaces. A vertical camera movement is known as tilting (vertikaler Schwenk); a horizontal camera movement is known as panning (horizontaler Schwenk). Within a tracking shot (Kamerafahrt) the camera is put on rails and follows moving objects. Zooming, though technically not being a camera movement, but an adjustment of lenses, can also be used for approximating an object. When zooming in, the object seems to come closer; when zooming out it seems to move further away (cf. figure 3). The positioning of the camera is also influenced by the point of view the filmmakers want to represent (cf. figure 5). A point of view-shot (POV) creates a certain immediacy, which is based on the illusion that the viewer sees an image from the perspective of a figure or even directly through this figure’s eyes. The illustration in figure 5a) is a case in point. It is taken from East Is East and shows the perspective of one of the characters who is known to always wear a hood. The rim of the hood is used in this shot to frame the image looked at. An over the shoulder-shot is taken from behind a figure, using its head and shoulders to frame the image being looked at. It is often employed in sequences where two people interact. The illustration in figure 5b), for example, is taken from the short film New Boy and shows a boy who is introduced to his new class, with which he will have to interact. The image is also characterised by a shallow depth of field (Tiefenschärfe), which makes it impossible to discern individual pupils in the classroom. This could be interpreted in different ways: First of all, the focus is on the new boy in class. At the same time, the viewer can identify with the situation, the boy’s status as an outsider, and share his perspective of having to face a well-established community, which appears as a blurred and not exactly hospitable mass. These interpretations can be varified and extended with respect to the further development of the story. The use of colours and lighting in a film, if achieved by the use of filters or specific transition effects such as fading and dissolving (Überblendung), is also part of the analysis of the cinematographic dimension. Additional questions focus on editing and montage (Schnitt), for example concerning the length of the shots and their connections. What kind of transitions are used and for what purpose? Are the shots connected by a high rate of cuts, which evokes the impression of an accelerated speed, or are they rather lengthy? What effects are achieved with the chosen montage? An examination of the interplay of visual and auditory cues also belongs to the cinematographic dimension.

21

22

Fostering Film Literacy in English Language Teaching Extreme long shot (Panorama) Extreme long shots often show epic views and panoramas (such as a landscape or the silhouette of a city) with no or only very small figures. They are most commonly used as an establishing shot, which introduces the setting of the story. Long shot (Totale) Figures and larger parts of their environment are presented by long shots, whose function is to display the place of action and introduce the situational context of the scene. Full shot (Halbtotale) Medium long shots fully portray the figures and only selected details of their immediate surroundings. The viewer’s attention is shifted from the setting to the characters. American shot (Amerikanisch) The American shot, which displays the figures from their knees upwards, originates in Western films. It showed both a cowboy’s face and his weapon holstered at his waist. This shot is often used in dialogue scenes to embed the characters’ interaction into the immediate surroundings. Medium long shot (Halbtotale) There is no clear dividing line what constitutes a medium long shot as opposed to a long shot. As a rule, the upper halfs of the characters’ bodies are shown. A medium shot allows the viewer to focus mainly on body language and gestures. Head and shoulder close-up (Nah) Facial expressions can be studied particularly well in head and shoulder close-ups, which – as the name implies – display a figure’s face, shoulders and chest. Close-up (Groß) / Extreme close-up (Detail) Close-up focus on a figure’s face, other body parts or selected objects. They do not provide the viewer with additional context information or spatial orientation, but allow for a close analysis of specific details (for example, emotions). Figure 4: Camera shots and field sizes4

Fostering Film Literacy in English Languag Teaching

Figure 5: a) Point of view-shot5, b) Over the shoulder-shot (with a shallow depth of field)6

Auditory cues can be either voice, music, or noise. They can be part of the action (diegetic), either on-screen or off-screen. If they are not part of the action, they are called non-diegetic and always off-screen. Background music or a narrator’s voice would be a case in point. Sound and image can converge in the sense that one semiotic system paraphrases, and explains the other: A happy tune, for instance, would be applied to reinforce a figure’s high spirits. Sound and image can also diverge, either with the purpose of polarisation or with the purpose of counterpointing (cf. Pauli 1976: 91ff.). Polarisation (Polarisierung) describes the use of sound for the disambiguation of a neutral or indistinct image, for instance when the image does not reveal whether a figure’s intentions in a particular situation are good or bad. Counterpointing (Kontrapunktierung) describes the use of sound for contradicting visual images, for example when a happy tune is applied to a scene showing a war zone. The use of music in film has been reflected on in detail by Blell & Lütge (2012). 4

Curriculum issues and criteria for film selection

The use of films in the context of English language teaching has been taken up in many national and federal curricula. The national educational standards in Germany, for example, mention text and media competence as a central objective (cf. KMK 2012). They rely a broad notion of text, similar to definition by Anstey & Bull (2006) mentioned above, which includes continuous as well as discontinuous texts, oral or written texts, audio or audio-visual texts etc. Within this understanding, text and media competences designate the ability to independently understand and interpret texts in their historical and/or social contexts, to reflect on the conditions and methods of text production, and to recognise conventional and/or culture-specific characteristics of texts. Moreover, text and media competences include a reflection on individual processes of text reception and production. The interpretation of stylistic devices of

4 5 6

The illustrations in figure 2, created by Arĉjo incorporating elements of File:Ciudad.svg by Ecelan and File:Persons.svg by J.delanoy, have been licensed under Creative Commons (cf. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Film_shots_illustration.png 01.04.2016). The shot from East Is East (00:27:20) shows the perspective of Sajid Khan, the youngest son of a British-Pakistani couple, who always looks out on the world from inside his hood. The shot is taken from the short film New Boy (00:00:33) (cf. http://www.thisisirishfilm.ie/ shorts/new-boy; accessed 01.04.2016).

23

24

Fostering Film Literacy in English Language Teaching text in different media, which would include cinematographic elements, is explicitly mentioned as one of the abilities to be aspired. In the Common European Framework of Reference for Language (cf. table 1), the reception of film and TV programmes is subsumed under the category of audio-visual perception, which again makes clear that film literacy requires multimodal competences. The table also illustrates that film literacy is to be located on a fairly high level of language competence, especially when idiomatic and/or vernacular uses of language are involved. Moreover, it stresses that film literacy needs to be developed and build up over the course of a (secondary) school curriculum and possibly in an integrated way across different languages (cf. Blell et al. 2016). C2 C1 B2 B1

A2

A1 Table 1:

WATCHING TV AND FILM

As C1 Can follow films employing a considerable degree of slang and idiomatic usage. Can understand most TV news and current affairs programmes. Can understand documentaries, live interviews, talk shows, plays and the majority of films in standard dialect. Can understand a large part of many TV programmes on topics of personal interest such as interviews, short lectures, and news reports when the delivery is relatively slow and clear. Can follow many films in which visuals and action carry much of the storyline, and which are delivered clearly in straightforward language. Can catch the main points in TV programmes on familiar topics when the delivery is relatively slow and clear. Can identify the main point of TV news items reporting events, accidents etc. where the visual supports the commentary. Can follow changes of topic of factual TV news items, and form an idea of the main content. No descriptor available. Descriptors in the field of ‘Watching TV and Film’ in the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (Council of Europe 2001: 71)

In the process of selecting films for classroom use, different criteria can be applied (cf. Henseler et al. 2011: 32.f). It goes without saying that any selection depends on the teaching objectives. In general, the language level plays an important role in the context of foreign language learner. The topic of the film is equally important. Taking into consideration the aspect of motivation, it is advisable to choose films that relate to the learners’ experiences, but also allow for a critical reflection on established habits and perspectives. The questions whether the film lends itself for the identification with the protagonist or one of the other charaters is closely related to the choice of topic. Films that are dealt with in the classroom should also satisfy the learners’ needs for orientation in a complex world. Such orientation could either be achieved by reinforcing the learners’ experiences and points of view or by deliberately questioning established practices and viewing habits. Distinctiveness in combination with a certain amount of provocation is beneficial in this context. In addition to content-related criteria, a selection of films for the English language classroom can also be based on formalities, such as the structure of the narration, which also includes an unambiguous relationship of visual elements and sound. It is self-evident that in the course of a film curriculum,

Fostering Film Literacy in English Languag Teaching

clearly structured films should precede more complex ones. Another formal criterion for selection would be film aesthetics. Within the context of the argumentation of this chapter, which stresses the need for making learners aware of the specifics of filmic representation, original aesthetics would be a reason in its own right for dealing with a particular film. Intertextuality would also be a good justification for the selection of a film, since the comparision between filmic adaptation and original novel facilitates many methodological options in the classroom (cf. Gymnich 2009 as well as Blell et al. in this volume). Nevertheless, Henseler et al. (2011: 33) stress that films should also be respected as independent works of art and also insist on the use of original films. Within a fundamentally film-based teaching approach that makes use of feature films repeatedly and systematically, diversity becomes an important issue. This means that a plurality of perspectives needs to be represented, which may arise from the consideration of different regions (film from a variety of English speaking countries), different periods in the history of film-making, or gender issues, i.e. films with male and/or female directors as well as films with male and/or female protagonists. 5

Approaches to working with films in the EFL classroom

Depending on the circumstances and the objectives of working with a selected film, the teacher can choose different forms of presentation (cf. Henseler et al. 2011: 34f.). In a straight-through approach, the film is shown entirely. The complete screening of a film in the classroom most closely resembles a naturalistic cinema setting and allows for a holistic perception on the part of the viewer. However, the amount of information and new linguistic items in a full-length feature film might overburden the learners, even more so since a complete film screening may be attended by a certain passivity of the viewer. In this respect, a straight-through approach runs the risk of being mistaken for what Sherman (2010: 7) has called a “‘Friday afternoon’ approach”, an improvised and/or unprepared film screening with no particular educational goal. In a segment approach, the film is split up in a number of shorter intervals of 15 minutes or less and presented successively over a number of lessons. While a loss a suspense and a rather unnatural viewing pattern may result from the inevitable fragmentation, the segment approach facilitates the learners’ comprehension and understanding by integratings tasks for analysis and interpretation inbetween the intervals. By contrast, the sandwich approach refrains from the presentation of a complete film and alternates selected scenes with additional materials such as summaries, excerpts from the screenplay or passages from original literary texts etc. The main advantage of this procedure lies the opportunity to focus on the most important scene while omitting all others. Yet this may be realised at the expense of a sense of completeness. More specifically, the disintegration of a film that is at the core of this approach may hinder comprehension and understanding. Last but not least, a clip approach also refrains from the screening of complete films and makes use of selected scenes only that are shown for a particular purpose (for example, the analysis of cinematographic techniques). Unmistakably, the isolation of individual scenes provides a maximum contrast to a full-length feature film and takes away much of its entertainment value. The forms of presentation also depend on the context and place of film use, which may be a regular classroom setting, a project work, the school’s English film club, a self-study area (film library), or a monthly film afternoon. Many of these settings demand flexible forms of presentation which are accompanied by guiding tasks and material (cf. Thaler 2014: 24f.).

25

26

Fostering Film Literacy in English Language Teaching As a rule, films in educational settings are best approached in three steps, i.e. by means of pre-, while-, and post-viewing activities. Surkamp & Nünning (2008: 268, my translation) even go as far as to say that “any film should not simply be presented without preparation” in the English language classroom. Pre-viewing activities serve as an introduction to the topic of a film, but also to the language issues connected with it (for example topical word fields, expressions needed for film analysis etc.). They predominantly focus on the learners’ expectations and associations. Typical materials for pre-viewing activities are film posters, the trailer, freeze images from a film, or simply the title, which can be used for speculating on the content of a film. Depending on the detailedness of the material, the story, specific events, or the characters and their relationsships can be anticipated. Considerations concerning the genre of the film could also be part of the pre-viewing phase. While-viewing activities can take different forms depending on the chosen mode of film presentation and accompany the process of film reception. They primarily ensure understanding and focus on the story, the characters, and the development of the plot. A most basic while-viewing exercise would be ticking aspects that were shown in a film off a list or putting scrambled scenes into the correct order. More complex activities could also include hypothesising on the progress of the plot or filling narrative gaps, i.e. imagining situations, events, or characters that are not shown, but only alluded to in the film. Viewing logs and scene protocols can be used to collect more detailed information about specific aspects of the film and its aesthetics. By way of split viewing approaches, where half of the learners have to engage in silent viewing while the other half are presented with sound only, reflections on the film’s content and the multimodality of its representation can be combined. At this point, film aesthetics can also be taken into consideration. Not least, the learners’ individual reactions and responses to the film can be documented and discussed repeatedly as a while-viewing activity (cf. Henseler et al. 2011: 99). Postviewing activities concentrate on evaluating tasks, the in-depth analysis of selected aspects, or further studies of and/or additional research on designated subject areas. Basic activities would include different kinds of summaries as well as sequencing or correcting activites. More complex tasks would strive for a change or co-ordination of perspectives (for example re-telling the events through the eyes of another character, acting out selected events by means of role plays) and the transformation of events into a new medium (for example re-writing the content of the film in a newspaper report, turning it into a radio drama, or even developing ideas for a remake). More creative approaches would include designing (alternative) film posters and trailers, or preparing mock interviews and a press conference with the main agents of the film-making process (for more suggestions cf. ibid.: 100f.). The most comprehensive collection of methodological approaches to film, general teaching ideas, tasks and questions for discussion as well as the necessary language support can be found in Henseler et al. (2011). However, one has to keep in mind that universal ideas cannot be imposed on any possible scenario, but have to be applied reasonably and purposefully to a specific film in view of the objectives one wants to achieve in the foreign language classroom. 6

Legal issues

Up to this point, my considerations have concerned the specifics of the medium and possible approaches to working with film in the English language classroom in order to foster the learners’ film literacy. It should not go unmentioned that the screening of

Fostering Film Literacy in English Languag Teaching

films in educational settings is bound to legal regulations, specified in national laws such as the German Copyrights Act (Urheberrechtsgesetz). This law controls the use of intellectual property, literary and artistic products. Especially in times of their digital distribution, it is technically relatively easy to access, use or even modify media products such as films or clips. This makes it even more urgent, both for teachers and learners, to substantially reflect on and discuss legal (as well as illegal) applications of copyrighted materials. Coming full circle, the visual and digital turns of today’s society that were identified as an important rationale for the classroom use of feature films and moving pictures in the first place also serve as the rationale for the need of an increased awareness of copyright matters. The legal opportunities of screening films in educational settings depend on the particular context, i.e. whether film is shown within the boundaries of the classroom or beyond. Under the rules of §52a (Urhg) small excerpts of intellectual property, literary and artistic products can be made accessible to a restricted group of people in educational settings (for example, in school classrooms or in university classes) or for individual research, provided no commercial interests are involved. Accessibility can also be granted through a learning platform/intranet with password protection. However, only snippets of less than 12% or a maximum of five minutes of a film may be distributed.7 §52a (Urhg) also specifies that providing access to a motion picture requires the copyright holder’s consent within the first two years after its release in German cinemas. In “face-to-face” interaction in class, a teacher at a public school or non-profit educational institution may use a private, lawfully purchased or rented, copy of a film for instructional purposes without obtaining a license from the copyright holder or paying any compensation (§52 Urhg). This regulation excludes the presentation of films beyond the boundaries of the classroom, for example, at whole school events or in a school cinema. It is also limited to lawfully obtained media such as DVDs and does not apply to telerecordings, or downloads from the Internet. Television programmes may only be shown if day to day events are made topical. Internet videos may only be shown according to the general terms and conditions of the individual provider, which are usually restricted to live streaming and exclude previous storage. YouTube is a case in point here. The portal only allows real-time transmission, which would require the necessary equipment in the classroom (Internet access, media players etc.) for showing videos, films or clips. However, it is necessary to point out here that the prevailing interpretation of the legal text is not equivalent to a mutual consent on what constitutes a private as opposed to a public display of lawfully purchased media. Henseler et al. (2011: 252f.) hint at the fact that lawyers specialising in copyright issues take a different view on the use of DVDs and object to the understanding of the classroom as a quasi-private setting. Up to the present day, there has been no final ruling by the highest judicial authority on this issue. As a consequence, teachers using private copies of films in the classroom run the risk of committing copyright infringement. Alternatively, one can always rely on the certified collections of local or federal educational media agencies. However, these may not always provide a sufficient range of motion pictures or a particular desired film. It goes without saying that with regard to the presentation of films in the 7 Cf. https://lehrerfortbildung-bw.de/sueb/recht/urh/film/schule/, similarly http://www. teachwithmovies.org/copyright.html 01.04.2016.

27

28

Fostering Film Literacy in English Language Teaching classroom, each individual teacher has to make well-considered decisions and regularly has to update his/her knowledge on the respective legal issues. 7

Summary

This chapter set out to discuss the conditions and requirements for using feature films in the English language classroom. It has identified the visual and digital turns of society as the basic foundation for the development of flexible, context-specific and often multimodal literacies. Motion pictures are a particular expression of a multimodal text format which combines visual and auditory semiotic systems. This specific text format demands the development of film literacy, which equips the learners with a profound knowledge on the specifics of film, the interplay of its narrative, dramatic, and cinematographic dimensions as well as the terminology needed to talk about it in an educated way. Film literacy also includes reflections on the film industry and possible tensions between artistic demands and commercial realities. Films are a regular part of (inter-)national and federal curricula. From the learners’ point of view, they are easily accessible and routinely put to account. An orientation towards the learners’ experiences and their fields of interest would be important criteria to be applied in the process of selecting films for use in the EFL classroom. Methodologically, the typical pre-/while-/post-structure can also be applied to working with films in order to raise expectations, secure a basic understanding, and allow for in-depth studies. Depending on the context and the objectives to be pursued, different modes of presentation can be used such as straight-through, segement, sandwich, or clip approaches. As with any intellectual property, legal issues have to be considered when working with motion pictures in educational settings. Since jurisdiction in this field is not uncontroversial, teachers have to keep up-to-date with current developments. However, this should not keep them from using films for a modern, meaningful, and motivating approach to foreign language education. References Benyahia, Sarah Casey & Mortimer, Claire (2013), Doing Film Studies. A Subject Guide for Students. London, New York: Routledge. Blell, Gabriele & Lütge, Christiane (2004); Sehen, Hören, Verstehen und Handeln: Filme im Fremdsprachenunterricht. PRAXIS Fremdsprachenunterricht 6/2004, 402-405 und 430. Blell, Gabriele & Lütge, Christiane (2012), Musical Visions: Filmmusik im Rahmen der Entwicklung von Hör-Seh-Verstehen im Fremdsprachenunterricht. In: Reinfried, Marcus & Volkmann, Laurenz (Eds.) (2012), Medien im neokommunikativen Fremdsprachenunterricht. Einsatzformen, Inhalte, Lernkompetenzen. Frankfurt/Main: Lang, 99-111. Blell, Gabriele; Grünewald, Andreas; Kepser, Matthis & Surkamp, Carola (2016), Film in den Fächern Deutsch, Englisch, Französisch, Spanisch: ein Modell zur sprach- und kulturübergreifenden Filmbildung In: Blell, Gabriele; Grünewald, Andreas; Kepser, Matthis & Surkamp, Carola (Eds.), Film in den Fächern der sprachlichen Bildung. Baltmannsweiler: Schneider Verlag Hohengehren, 11-61. Bredella, Lothar (2004), Bend It Like Beckham: Überlegungen zu einer rezeptionsästheti schen Filmdidaktik. Der fremdsprachliche Unterricht Englisch 68, 28-32.

Fostering Film Literacy in English Languag Teaching

Bundesministerium der Justiz (1965, last amendment 2015), Gesetz über Urheberrecht und verwandte Schutzrechte. [Online: cf. https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/bundesrecht/ urhg/gesamt.pdf 01.04.2016]. Byram, Michael (1997), Teaching and Assessing Intercultural Communicative Competence. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters. Council of Europe (2001), Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, Teaching, Assessment. [Online: https://rm.coe.int/CoERMPublicCommonSearchServices /DisplayDCTMContent?documentId=0900001680459f97 01.04.2016] Cummins, Jim (2008), BICS and CALP: Empirical and Theoretical Status of the Distinction. In: Street, Brian V. & Hornberger, Nancy H. (Eds), Encyclopedia of Language and Education (2nd Edition, Volume 2: Literacy). New York: Springer Science + Business Media LLC, 71-83. Decke-Cornill, Helene & Luca, Renate (2007), Filmanalyse und/oder Filmerleben? Zum Dualismus von Filmobjekt und Zuschauersubjekt. In: Decke-Cornill, Helene & Luca, Renate (Eds.), Jugendliche im Film – Filme für Jugendliche. Medienpädagogische, bildungstheoretische und didaktische Perspektiven. München: Kopaed-Verlag, 11-30. Delanoy Werner (2013), From ‘Inter’ to ‘Trans’? Or: Quo Vadis Cultural Learning? In: Eisenmann Maria & Summer, Theresa (Eds.), Basic Issues in EFL Teaching and Learning. Heidelberg: Winter, 157-167. Doff, Sabine & Schulze-Engler, Frank (Eds.) (2011), Beyond „Other Cultures“. Transcultural Perspectives on Teaching the New Literatures in English. Trier: WVT. Elsner, Daniela; Helff, Sissy & Viebrock, Britta (Eds.) (2013), Films, Graphic Novels & Visuals: Developing Multiliteracies in Foreign Language Education – An Interdisciplinary Approach. Münster: LIT-Verlag. Fisch, Jonas & Viebrock, Britta (2013), Between Visual Literacy and Film Literacy: Working with Film Posters in the EFL Classroom. In: Elsner, Daniela; Helff, Sissy & Viebrock, Britta (Eds.), Films, Graphic Novels & Visuals: Developing Multiliteracies in Foreign Language Education – An Interdisciplinary Approach. Münster: LIT-Verlag, 121-138. Frederking, Volker (Hrsg.) (2005), Filmdidaktik und Filmästhetik. Medien im Deutschunterricht 2005 Jahrbuch. München: Kopaed-Verlag. Gymnich, Marion (2009), Romanverfilmungen im Unterricht. In: Hallet, Wolfgang & Nünning, Ansgar (Eds.), Romandidaktik. Theoretische Grundlagen, Methoden, Lektüreanregungen. Trier: Wissenschaftlicher Verlag, 219-234. Henseler, Roswitha; Möller, Stefan & Surkamp, Carola (2011), Filme im Englischunterricht. Grundlagen, Methoden, Genres. Seelze: Klett Kallmeyer. KMK Kultusministerkonferenz (2012), Bildungsstandards für die fortgeführte Fremdsprache (Englisch/Französisch) für die Allgemeine Hochschulreife. [Online: http://www.kmk. org/fileadmin/veroeffentlichungen_beschluesse/2012/2012_10_18-BildungsstandardsFortgef-FS-Abi.pdf. 01.04.2016] Liebelt, Wolfgang (2003), The Language of Film. Fachausdrücke Interpretationsfragen und Redemittellisten für die Arbeit mit Filmen im Englischunterricht. Hildesheim: Niedersächsisches Landesamt für Lehrerbildung und Schulentwicklung (NiLS). [Online http://www.nibis.de/nli1/bibl/pdf/tfm06.pdf 01.04.2016]. Lütge, Christiane (2012), Mit Filmen Englisch unterrichten. Berlin: Cornelsen. Matz, Frauke; Rogge, Michael & Siepmann, Philipp (Eds.) (2014): Transkulturelles Lernen im Fremdsprachenunterricht. Frankfurt/Main: Lang. Mukherjee, Joybrato (2005), The native speaker is alive and kicking: linguistic and language-pedagogical perspectives. Anglistik 16: 2, 7-23.

29

30

Fostering Film Literacy in English Language Teaching Rose, Kenneth R. (2001), Compliments and Compliment Responses in Film: Implications for Pragmatics Research and Language Teaching. International Review of Applied Linguistics 39: 4, 309-326. Sherman, Jane (2010), Using Authentic Video in the Language Classroom. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Surkamp, Carola & Nünning, Ansgar (2008). Die Arbeit mit Literatur in anderen Medien I: Film. In: Surkamp, Carola & Nünning, Ansgar (Eds.), Englische Literatur unterrichten 1 Grundlagen und Methoden (2nd edition). Seelze-Velber: Klett, Kallmeyer, 245-275. Teasley, Alan B. & Wilder, Ann (1997), Reel conversations. Reading films with young adults. Portsmouth: Heinemann. Thaler, Engelbert (2008), Internet-Videos: Fremdsprachenlernen für die YouTubeGeneration. Praxis Fremdsprachenunterricht 1, 14-18. Thaler, Engelbert (2014), Teaching English with Films. Paderborn: UTB.

Australia

The Reflection of Social Rules in Australian Rules Britta Viebrock

This chapter analyses the potential of the film Australian Rules (2002) for the EFL (English as a foreign language) classroom. Not having been exploited for this purpose before, the film proves to be a thought-provoking piece about racial issues and social relationships in Australia. It offers a great opportunity to combine film studies and cultural studies for advanced learners. After a short description of the film and its content as well as its historical and social backgrounds, selected scenes will be analysed and interpreted in detail. In addition, methods and activities for classroom use will be suggested. 1

The film: content, plot and characters

As the title implies, Australian Rules is set in Australia. Among other topics, the film features Australian Rules football. It can be considered a sports drama, which in equal measure combines a coming-of-age story with the study of social and/or racial aspects concerning the relationship between white Australians and the Aboriginal community. Released in 2002, it marks indigenous Australian director Paul Goldman’s feature film debut. The story of Australian Rules is based on the award-winning novel Deadly Unna? (1998) and its sequel Nukkin Ya (2000), whose author Phillip Gwynne is also partly responsible for the screenplay of the film. On account of the representation of medium level violence, adult themes and drug use (i.e. alcohol and glue sniffing), the film has been rated 15+ by the governmental Australian classification system. 16-year-old Gary “Blacky” Black is the main protagonist, who grows up in Prospect Bay, a remote and shabby coastal town in South Australia. Blacky’s family and the other white Australians live in ‘The Port’, while the Aboriginal community lives in a reserve out at ‘The Point’. The name of the town could not be more ironical: Apart from playing Australian football, hanging out with his mates and developing a first interest in girls, there is not much for Blacky to do. Perhaps that is the reason why he has become an insatiable reader with an obsession for improving his vocabulary. This trait of character is rather surprising when looking at his rowdy family background. His father Bob Black is a very violent character, who takes out his anger and frustration on his wife and five children. He is not particularly educated and has to make a living with fishing and handyman jobs. Blacky’s mother Liz, a housewife, is the primary victim of her husband’s brutality and unable to change her situation. Despite the hardships of her life she is an avid reader, too, and has become a fairly knowledgeable person, who has understood the importance of education. She supports Blacky in his attempt to improve his knowledge and develop refined language competences.

32

Australia Moreover, she is a tactical expert in Australian football and able to share her son’s interests in this field, which makes them very close. Blacky’s best friend is Dumby Red, an Aboriginal living at the reserve and the local team’s most talented football player, who probably has the potential to become a professional. Dumby’s sister Clarence, who is as intelligent as she is beautiful, enters a relationship with Blacky, which is not appreciated by many members in the white community, especially not by Blacky’s father. The story begins a week before the football team’s most important match as is explained by Blacky (voice-over) at the very beginning of the film: We’ve made the grand final. Next Saturday we play Gundaroo for the premiership. It’s the biggest thing that happens here in Prospect Bay since we won the second price in the South Australian tidy town competition – section B. Just shows what sort of town I live in. Bloody hopeless. Half our team is Aboriginal, boys from the mission. Without them, we wouldn’t be in the grand final. Without them we wouldn’t even have a team. Our coach, Mr. Robertson, is the local butcher. We call him Arks, behind his back of course.1

While this quotation shows Blacky’s open-minded attitude towards indigenous members of the community, it becomes clear early in the film that there are many resentments, above all among the white inhabitants, and racial tensions. When preparing for the final, one of the Aboriginal team members is arrested by the police, which minimises the almost non-existent chances of success for the team even further. To make matters worse, the arrested player occupies the central position of the ruckman, the most valuable player to contest at centre bounces, boundary throw-ins and ball-ups. For want of a better solution, Blacky is promoted to this position, not because he is a particularly promising tall and athletic player, but rather because he is dispensable. In the first quarters of the final, Prospect Bay quite expectedly does not stand a chance. It is only after an intervention of Blacky’s mother, who gives some tactical advice to her son over the break, the team manages to beat their adversaries in the dying minutes of the game. The whole town is in a state of euphoria after the team’s victory, which seems to have the power to overcome any previous racial tensions. Aboriginal and white inhabitants alike share the glory and meet in the local pub for celebrations. But things are about to turn ugly: While Blacky, the accidental hero of the game, is awarded the Best Team Man Award, his Aboriginal friend Dumby, clearly the best player on the ground, is denied any recognition. Instead, the Best on Ground Medal goes to Mark Arks, a white boy, who also happens to be the coach’s son. After this incident, a frustrated Dumby leaves the party, while the white community continues to celebrate, which involves the consumption of large amounts of alcohol. Blacky, crestfallen and disillusioned, also leaves to spend time with Dumby’s sister, Clarence. Later that night, Dumby and his cousin Pretty, who had been in conflict with the law before, return to the premises and – presumably out of disappointment – try to break into the pub. In some state of confusion, Dumby is shot dead by Blacky’s father although it does not become quite clear whether the shooting happened through oversight or with the awareness of possible fatal consequences. Blacky’s father claims it was self-defence and gets away with this. 1

The novel opens with almost identical sentences (Gwynne 1998: 1), a difference being that in the film the topic of white and indigenous Australians is introduced immediately.

The Reflection of Social Rules in Australian Rules

Grief-stricken, Blacky is the only member of the white community to pay his respects to Dumby. With the help of Clarence, he is able to attend his friend’s funeral in the reserve and places the Best on Ground Medal, which he has stolen from its display in the coach’s butchery before, in Dumby’s coffin. Repeatedly, it becomes clear that Blacky does not fit into his community any longer. When his father attacks him – also physically – for getting involved with the indigenous people (at Dumby’s funeral, but also through his relationship with Clarence), Blacky literally stands up for his beliefs and against his father, who then leaves the town. The end of the film suggests that Blacky and Clarence leave, too, to find their luck elsewhere. 2

Historical context

The real events that inspired the novel and its filmic adaptation took place in the late 1970s. Even though one could argue that the topics explored in the film are of a more universal nature, the study of cultural aspects is particularly meaningful when taking the historical context into consideration. In order to understand the racial tensions between white and indigenous Australians of the time, it is important to briefly recall Australian history after European settlement. As Dunn (2003: 4) claims: “Contemporary racism in Australia, and intolerance of specific cultural groups, is likely linked to historic constructions of Australian national identity.” More generally, “[r]acism is likely to be linked to dominant ideas about what the nation is, where it is, and who is popularly considered to be a citizen” (ibid.: 6). 2 Before colonisation commenced in Eastern Australia with the foundation of the colony of New South Wales in 1788, the country had been inhabited for more than 40,000 years by Aboriginal peoples. Since the indigenous inhabitants did not have social and political institutions or organisations that were familiar and thus understandable to the European immigrants, the country was declared terra nullius (nobody’s land) (for a more detailed analysis cf. Moreton-Robinson 2015: 3ff.). On the basis of this now discredited doctrine, the new settlers were able to claim land that originally belonged to the indigenous communities. The first decades of the 19th century saw the (not always irenic) expansion of European settlement and the foundation of additional colonies all over the continent (e.g. South Australia in 1836). As a result of the Australian frontier wars, which describe the series of violent conflicts between European settlers and the Aboriginal population over a period of more than one hundred years, many indigenous Australians had been relocated to reserves and missions by the turn of the 20th century, when the first federal constitution entered into force (cf. Hollinsworth 2006: 66ff.). Not only were indigenious inhabitants mistreated and had to suffer poor living and health conditions, they were also confronted with racist policies, social injuste or discriminatory laws, which deprived them of citizenship rights (e.g. suffrage). The White Australia Policy (roughly between 1901 and World War II), originally instituted to favour British immigration to Australia and restrict any non-European immigration, linked nation-building to whiteness and contributed to the maintenance of a mainly 2

Both concepts mentioned here – ‘nation’ and ‘race’ – obviously allude to “imagined communities” (Hollinsworth 2006: 28). Both are social constructions that do not have a clear physical or biological foundation, yet are inextricably linked to the notion of identity. This link is studied in greater detail in Perkins (2007).

33

34

Australia “British” Australian identity that excluded indigenous inhabitants. 3 The establishment of so-called Protectors of Aborigines after 1838 gave great powers to the government and individual executives to control residence, employment, education and marriage of indigenous inhabitants (cf. ibid.: 97ff.). One impact of this has been made topical in the film Rabbit-Proof Fence, which studies miscegenation in the Stolen Generation, referring to so-called half-caste children – of Aboriginal mothers and white fathers – who were taken away from their tribal families to be educated in a British way and eventually to ‘breed out their colour’ (cf. Wilden in this volume). It was not until after World War II that racist policies began to abate and society’s attitudes began to change. The 1950s and 1960s, reflecting similar social advancements in the USA and South Africa, saw the rise of the Aboriginal Civil Rights Movement in Australia, culminating in a 1967 Referendum, which removed any discriminatory clauses in the federal constitution and determined the inclusion of indigenous people in the census (cf. Hollinsworth 2006: 128ff.). The right to vote had already been granted by the Commonwealth Electoral Act in 1962. Other legal reforms have reestablished the traditional occupation of territories (Aboriginal Land Rights Act 1976). Without being able to go into greater detail here, many of the legal reforms carried way into the 1970s. The process of coming to terms with its national history has taken the Australian society even longer. Despite the political reforms and substantial financial support, the legacies of colonialisation can still be found among many indigenous people until today. In this sense, history invariably “reverberates in the lives of the living” (Hollinsworth 2006: 20). Against this backdrop, the events of the film Australian Rules have to be interpreted. While in late 1970s the official policy granted indigenous Australians equal rights and opportunities, this attitude may not yet have been shared by the inhabitants of a rather unprogressive fishing village. Social structures of separation that had built up over the years were not changed overnight. What is more, the majority of white males in the film epitomise ‘ocker’ characters, the Australian emblem of an uncultured, primitive, offensive male chauvinist. They display manners and mindsets that do not live up to the standards of a more sophisticated public discourse and perpetuate traditional or static notions of class, race, gender, and the like. In this context, parochialism is also addressed in the film. 3

Main themes of the film

As can be seen in the description of the content, several themes are explored in the film. The main focus is on social and personal relationships, which are notably intertwined in the figure of Blacky. On the social level the most important topic is racism although its depiction in the film has not been met without criticism: Australian Rules (2002) is a simplistic story with good characters comprising all Aborigines, bad characters comprising all white adult fathers, victims (of white men) comprising white women, and children. As a result of such stereotyping, the film loses any credibility as an interrogation of the issues of relations between Aborigines and others in Australia. (Moran & Veith 2005: 41) 3

For a comprehensive account of the impact of the White Australia Policy on different national communities see Hollinsworth (2006: 86ff.).

The Reflection of Social Rules in Australian Rules

While there is some truth in this judgment, it is also based on a simplistic reading of the film. A closer study of the individual characters in combination with a historical contextualisation contributes to a better understanding of their motives and options. Blacky’s father or Arks, the coach, who are both white, certainly exemplify the notion of a bad character. Moreover, the fact that also indigenous Australians in the film resort to crime – while again being stereotypical – certainly does not mean that they are only the good characters. In contrast, Blacky is the odd one out in the white community and persistently remains a morally upright person, who strives to be educated, kind and open-minded. To give another example, the decision at presentation night to unjustly award the coach’s son the Best on Ground Medal is not appreciated by all white football aficionados. Some of them certainly would have let any racial issues aside and select the player solely based on his performance. Yet when it comes to Dumby’s funeral, a clear divide between the white community and the inhabitants of the indigenous reserve can be seen. Except for Blacky, nobody finds it necessary to take particular notice of this event or express their sympathy to Dumby’s family. In view of the problems of stereotyping and unwarranted simplification, it is beyond doubt that the question in how far the characters are/can be a fair representation of any social group needs to be made topical with one’s learners in the EFL classroom. Racism also plays into the relationship Blacky enters with Clarence. While first love and first sexual encounters are treated rather lightly in the film and could be studied as typical elemtents of the phase of adolescence, the dimension of race adds additional tension. When Bob Black finds his son sleeping innocently in his bedroom with his indigenous girlfriend, he reacts violently, but Clarence manages to retain her dignity and stand up to Blacky’s father with silent resistence. Blacky also has to endure his white mates’ sneers: His childhood friend Pickles, the anti-hero in the film, mocks the young lovers’ relationship and engages in gossip with the other team members. In addition, Blacky is met with suspicion by the Aboriginal community. Clarence’s father Tom seems to be the only one who understands his good intentions and his upright character right from the start. Despite the horrible developments and the death of her brother, Clarence does not address any reproaches to Blacky, and the two remain close to each other. The film ends with a slightly pathetic scene, whose symbolic value has been described by Jetnikoff (2003: 38): It shows “the two young lovers romantically swimming in the clear waters, symbolically cleansing themselves of the grime and grease of prejudice, which had tainted their relationship until that point.” On a personal level, two other central topics of the film are Blacky’s relationship with Bob Black and his challenge to come to terms with his understanding of masculinity, which could not be more different from his father’s. On a fishing trip (00:28:57-00:31:26), when Blacky initially refuses to dive into the water to distangle the net from the propeller, he is made fun of by his father for his cowardice. Bob calls him a “gutless wonder” and – against the paradigm of an ‘ocker’ character – contructs him as an “emasculated self” (Jetnikoff 2003: 37). The whole family constellation with a brutal father, who does not even stop at raping his wife (an incident which makes Blacky and his siblings take cover in the henhouse over night), and a gentle mother, who is incapable of standing up to her husband’s outrages in spite of a fair amount of worldly wisdom and life experience, makes Blacky’s journey to manhood very painful. Initially, he seems to obey his father and try to live up to his expectations as well as he possibly can, but later Blacky more and more refrains from identifying with his father’s ideal. Not only the relationship with Clarence, but also Blacky’s attendance of Dumby’s funeral against the imperative of his father demonstrate an increasing lack of integrity

35

36

Australia towards Bob Black. The denouement scene when Blacky finally manages to hold his ground against his father and dominate him by sheer will without resorting to any violence is indeed very powerful, yet not undisputed (cf. the quotation by Gwynne below). Coming full circle, Australian Rules football is also featured in the film and can be made topical in the EFL classroom as an element of Australian pride or even identity. But the significance of the film’s title obviously extends a literal understanding and lies in its application to the social circumstances of the time. Similarities between the characteristics of the game or the players and characters of the film can be examined. In contrast to the situation in South Africa, where certain sports were clearly associated with individual social groups (cf. Alter’s description of the film Invictus in this volume), Australian football offered potential for identification across society. The film Yolngu Boy (cf. Leonhardt & Viebrock in this volume) also deals with the connection of indigenous adolescents and Australian football. 4

Cinematography and close analysis of selected scenes

This part offers a close analysis of the specific cinematographic features of selected scenes of the film. What is most striking is the brownish-golden complexion of the entire film, which is realised by the use of a chocolate filter. Interestingly, the director states not to have applied this technique for achieving nostalgic effects, but for a “contemporary, bold look” (cited from Tudball, no year). While it is true that the film’s complexion is not as sepia brown as many old photographs and while it is also true that the film’s themes appear to be timeless, which contributes to a feeling of contemporariness, the brownish-golden tint can be related to the backward community in Prospect Bay. In fact, the antediluvian attitudes to be found there are not exactly a reason for nostalgia, but they are an expression of the past, which might be an explanation of the film’s specific use of colouring. In any case, the question whether the filmmakers were successful in achieving the aspired contemporary look with their choice of filters can be discussed in class, which would certainly address a more advanced element of film literacy (cf. the general chapter by Viebrock in this volume). Naturally, the beginning of the film is considered to be especially important since it introduces the spectator to the fictional world and the most important characters (cf. Decke-Cornill 2015: 326f.). Australian Rules begins with a classic exposition and develops the plot in a chronological order. Initially, the focus is very much on sports and the preparation for the grand final. The first scene is set in the club’s dressing room showing a close-up shot of the coach from a low angle, suggesting that he is a person to be respected. The cut to Blacky’s face, which is shown from a slightly higher angle, allows for a closer look at his facial expressions, which seem to ridicule the coach’s anouncements. This effect is reinforced by the use of language of both characters: While the coach resorts to simple phrases and graphic expressions, Blacky stands out for his elaborate diction, which again ridicules the capacities of the coach. It seems that in absence of a better alternative he is accepted to the extent the he offers some distraction in an otherwise hopeless place. The vastness of the area where the story takes place is established by way of an extreme long shot (00:03:48), again a typical element in filmic representation. The viewer understands quickly that there are hardly any activities for adolescents except for engaging in football, which indeed seems to offer a prospect for high quality players such as Dumby to leave the place and pursue a career elsewhere.

The Reflection of Social Rules in Australian Rules

The grand final (00:37:22-00:46:44) is also interesting for its montage and the use of some typical elements of the filmic representation of football/soccer games (also to be seen, for example, in Bend It Like Beckham or Invictus): the use of a hand camera, slow motion, fast cuts, close-up shots of faces and other body parts or the ball, and a very dramatic orchestration of sound (music, cheering, bounces, and collisions). Overhead shots are used to offer an unsual perspective on the kick-off and add a dramatic effect. Ground level shots are used to focus on the foot work and underline the physical character of the game and its athleticism. The conversations over the break between the coach and his team, Blacky and his mother as well as Dumby and Blacky counterbalance the excitement of the game with some comic effects, which are mainly achieved by the script and the acting. In the first quarters of the final, a high angle camera position is used to ‘look down’ upon Blacky’s team members and denote their inferiority, which is reinforced by the physical supremacy of the opponents’ much stronger and thewy players. In the last quarter, after Blacky has been trying to play out his mother’s tactical advice, Prospect Bay prevails. Accordingly, the camera perspective turns to a lower angle, emphasising the increasing equality of Blacky’ team. The importance of Blacky as a ruckman being in charge of defending the opponent’s last attack and securing the final point (00:45:53-00:46:12) is highlighted with an axial cut (also called jump cut, where cutting is used as a tool for zooming). Alternating scenes of Blacky’s sceptical facial expressions and the onrush of the attacker culminate in an overhead shot of both players knocked out on the ground. Influenced by the peaceful music and a muted repetition of the coach’s previous ‘words of wisdom’, the viewer is tempted to believe for a split second that the final might have had a fatal ending. The following scene is presentation night, which marks the turning point of the film (00:48:19-00:51:54). In class, the film can be stopped at 00:51:00 to talk about the students’ expectations. The montage of the scene up to that point, with repeated closeups of Dumby’s face to show his excitement, makes the viewer believe Dumby will just have to keep his patience until he receives his well-deserved Best on Ground Medal. Taking into consideration the other characters’ body language, however, the skilled viewer also senses a tense atmosphere and a brooding threat. Once it has been announced that the trophy is awarded to a white player, another close-up of Dumby’s face indicates his utmost disbelief and anger. It becomes clear that the player’s feelings extend a merely sportmanslike disappointment. Several close-ups of Dumby’s extended family members also highlight the trophy’s significance for racial issues. The blankness that is shown in their faces reflects their age-long discrimination and deep-seated bitterness. The distribution of power is also reinforced by the use of light in the scene: While most of it is shot in darker tones, a fairly harsh spot is used to highlight the faces of characters on the stage. In particular, the use of shadow and light on the face of the owner of the local pub emphasises his role as one of the central figures of racial discrimination in Prospect Bay. The funeral scene (01:21:56-01:25:16) is impressive for its emotional intensity and mise-en-scène. By way of close-ups the intense grief of Dumby’s mother and also Blacky are shown. The funeral takes place in a remote bush area. Apart from a few cheap orange plastic chairs accidentally scattered around the simple wooden coffin and a battered brownish pick-up, there is nothing there. It becomes clear that the indigenous community does not have many material possessions, but seems to be very close with each other and able to support each other in this sorrowful situation. Despite the rather shabby equipment, the ceremony itself is characterised by dignity and respect. The community’s unity is also reinforced by the fact that all Aboriginal family members

37

38

Australia wear black mourning garments, which makes Blacky with his clean white shirt and tie stick out even more. When he arrives at the funeral on foot through the bush, initially Dumby’s cousins are offended by his presence. After all, he is the son of Dumby’s alleged murderer. However, the choice of clothing in the scene also accentuates a general racial dimension or demarcation here, which is overcome by Clarence’s appeal to humanity: She convinces the others that Blacky has come to the funeral for his private and personal reconciliation. That his attendance of the funeral is also an act of emancipation has already become clear in the scene before, where Blacky eats his father’s chocolate, which was kept in the refrigerator as a symbol of patriarchal dominance and not to be touched by anyone. The process of emancipation is carried further in the scene where Blacky manages to hold the ground against his father (01:25:48-01:28:25). After having been driven home from the funeral by Dumby’s father, who appositely calls him ‘son’, Blacky is denied access to his own home by his father. The interaction between the two fathers and between Blacky and his father – though almost entirely silent – is edited in a shotreverse shot mode typical of conversations in film. The angle of the camera, looking up to Bob Black, makes unmistakenly clear who the boss of the house is. When Bob throws his son off the stairs, with the rest of the family watching anxiously, an overhead shot draws attention to the fact that Blacky, still wearing his clean white shirt, is an outsider in this world, too. In terms of camera angle, Blacky does not reach Bob’s level of dominance, but by getting up and looking him straight into the eyes, he literally manages to stare his father down. The close-ups of Blacky’s mother and brother show their support for Blacky and underline how the entire family has suffered from Bob’s outbursts leaving the viewer with the insight that the family will most likely be better off without him. 5

Teaching ideas4

Resorting to the usual structure of pre-, while- and post-viewing activities, different film posters are used to prepare the screening of the film (cf. Mat No. 1). Posters are good speech prompts and provide an incentive to speculate about the film’s content and introduce or refresh topical vocabulary. Since they are static in nature, they appeal to the learners’ visual literacy, but are not as challenging as film trailers. In addition, they leave some more room for the learners’ creativity and imagination (cf. Fisch & Viebrock 2013). Another motivating pre-viewing activity that appeals to the dramatic level of film-making, is a replication of the casting process. Based on the description of selected characters in the novel, Dumby for example, the learners could try to find pictures or magazine clippings showing people they would consider to be appropriate actors for the figure. When watching the film they could compare and defend their choices to the ones made in the film and discuss reasons for modifications (cf. Mat No. 2). While-viewing activities predominantly aim at securing the learners’ understanding of the narrative structure of the plot. A straightforward viewing note table (cf. Mat No. 3) that allows for the precise documentation of the setting, characters and events is 4

Most of the teaching material documented here has been developed by Irmela de Bruijn (nee Kämpfer) under my supervision as part of her final thesis at Goethe University Frankfurt/Main (Kämpfer 2014). It has been used for this publication with her permission.

The Reflection of Social Rules in Australian Rules

particularly helpful for learners of English as a foreign language since they not only have to cope with the plot, but also with Australian accent in the film and typical slang expressions. It is helpful to keep a structured word list, too (cf. Mat No. 4). Initial cinematographic elements like sound and music can also be included in the viewing notes. Depending on which approach to film screening is adopted (straight-through, segment, interval or clip approach, cf. Viebrock in this volume), speculation exercises about what is going to happen next can repeatedly be included to secure and creatively expand the learners’ understanding of the events up to a particular point and beyond. A split-viewing activity could be employed when watching the shooting scene in the pub. The first group listens to the sound only and analyses feelings, associations, and effects evoked by the sounds (cf. Mat No. 5a). The second group engages in silent viewing and analyses cinematographic devices (camera movement and angles, field sizes, editing) and their functions (cf. Mat No. 5b). Later, both groups compare whether sound and image parallel or contradict each other and discuss the purposes of the choices made in the film. Another while-viewing activity refers to the clash between Blacky and his father towards the end of the film. According to Phillip Gwynne, the author of the original novels and screenplay writer, the scene “doesn’t ring true to him”. In the DVD commentary he goes on saying that: As far as I am concerned, it’s actually the only false tone in the film. I don’t like it. I don’t believe in it, not for a minute. Well, just the idea that it’s that easy. I know we are talking shorthand because of cinematic language, but it’s never that easy, it’s never that easy to get away from someone like that.

After having read Gwynne’s opinion, the learners could compare it to their own perceptions of the scene and judge its credibility. They could also come up with an alternative ending to the relationship between Blacky and Bob and defend their choices (cf. Mat No. 6). Working on characters and their constellations is important in the process of developing film literacy. This could be done in intervals as a while-viewing activity or more extensively in retrospect as a post-viewing activity. Mat No. 7 and 8 provide assignments for collecting information on Blacky and his mother Liz. Mat No. 9 focuses on the different types of fathers that feature in the film (Bob Black, Dumby’s father, the absent father of Blacky’s friend Pickles as well as neighbour Darcy, who takes the role of substitute father to Blacky). This task could be carried out in close connection to the film or open out into a more general discussion on fathers. In line with the common objectives of post-viewing activities to allow for more indepth analysis and supplementary considerations, the focus of the following materials is on the notion of ‘identity’, ‘masculinity’ as well as ‘racism’ as more abstract concepts. Of course, these concepts can initially be discussed with regard to the film, but they also offer opportunities for additional individual research and self-directed learning. The tasks and materials provided in Mat No. 10 take Blacky’s development in the film as a starting point for discussing the elements that contribute to the concept of ‘identity’. Subsequently, the different dimensions will be applied to the main characters in the film in order to achieve a deeper understanding of each figure’s identity. Against the background of a more profound understanding of the concept, the learners will be able to discuss the quotation by Jetnikoff (2003: 37): “The film [Australian Rules] is not about winning or losing, but the personal integrity of the play or the journey in the ongoing process of discovering identity.” Mat No. 11 links personal indentity with the concept of masculinity, which is particularly important in connection with Australian

39

40

Australia football. Historically, much of what might be called Australia’s national identity “has been constructed through the images of men” (Agnew 2011: 6), the ‘ocker’ character of Darcy or Bob Black being typical examples in the film. What is more, football of any kind was traditionally understood as a male sport contributing to the male identities of both players and spectators. Thus, for adolescent players Australian football can be seen as a masculinising sport where they are taught manly characteristics (such as physical strengths, toughness, emotional neutrality, assertiveness, control, individuality, competitiveness, or rationality) at a crucial point of time in their identity development. Australian football is a high contact sport played without any protection gear. It demands physical as well as mental strength and might even encourage natural aggression. The fact that it is a team sport contributes to qualities such as group loyalty and the denial of pain in favour of the team. In this vein, Australian Rules football has been closely associated with masculinity (cf. Agnew & Drummond 2011). Similarly, in societies that attach great value to sports, activities and games that provide opportunities for displaying the masculine characteristics mentioned above lend themselves for the “idolisation” and the “cultural glorification” of masculinity (Agnew 2011: 38). Taking an illustration as a starting point the learners are asked to think of typical characteristics of (professional) Australian football players and in how far these qualify as masculine. On the left, the illustration shows an injured soccer player presumably indulging in mock pain, while one the right it shows the head of a heavily bleeding Australian football player who simply seems to go on with the game. The caption reads: “Soccer players pretend they are hurt; AFL [Australian Football League] players pretend they aren’t.”5 This example would serve as a basis for more abstract considerations on the notion of ‘masculinity’ and its definitions (within the context of Australian football, but also beyond). In order to return to the film Australian Rules, the different concepts of masculinity embodied by Blacky and his father are discussed and compared to the definitions worked out before. To end on a rather personal note, the learners could discuss whether and why they see Blacky’s journey to manhood as painful. They could also draw comparisions to their own experiences and situations. 6

Summary

The purpose of this chapter was to introduce Australian Rules and explore its potential for the English as a foreign language classroom. It has been shown that the film offers a number of universal topics which are worthwhile discussing. At the same time, these topics are embedded in a particular social context, which can be exploited in order to make the learners familiar with the more recent Australian history as well as its colonial sources. The film can be challenging at times, not least because of the Australian English pronunciation and the slang expressions used by the characters. A greater appreciation of the film, which may initially not be accessible to the learners and even create some antipathy, essentially comes with a more detailed study of selected scenes and aspects. In this sense, the film is clearly educative material and does not lend itself for any kind of “‘Friday afternoon’ approach” (Sherman 2010: 7), i.e. for the purpose of entertainment or recreation alone. In the English as a foreign language classroom, this film is still innovative material even though some study guides and additional sources (for native speakers of English) can be found on the Internet (cf. Tudball, no 5

http://weknowmemes.com/2012/05/soccer-players-pretend-theyre-hurt/ 01.04.2016.

The Reflection of Social Rules in Australian Rules

year). Hence, the film is very suited for inventive and sophisticated teaching slightly off the beaten track. Film reference Australian Rules. Director: Paul Goldman. Screenplay: Phillip Gwynne & Paul Goldman. Australia: Beyond Distribution. DVD 2002. 98 minutes.

References Agnew, Deb (2011), Life After Football – The construction of masculinity following a career in elite Australian Rules football. Australia: Flinders University (PhD). [Online: http://theses. flinders.edu.au/uploads/approved/adt-SFU20111128.210808/public/02Whole.pdf 01.04.2016] Agnew, Deb & Drummond, M.J. (2011): A sense of belonging: sport, masculinity and the team environment. In: Dodd, Graham D. (Ed.), Moving, Learning and Achieving. Edited Proceedings of the 27th ACHPER International Conference. Adelaide, SA: ACHPER National, 267-273. Decke-Cornill, Helene (2015), “Allem Anfang wohnt ein Zauber inne”: Filmanfänge als Wegbegleiter von film literacy. In: Hecke, Carola & Surkamp, Carola (Eds.) (2015), Bilder im Fremdsprachenunterricht: Neue Ansätze, Konzept unfd Methoden (2nd ed.). Tübingen: Narr, 325-340. Dunn, Kevin M. (2003), Racism in Australia: findings of a survey on racist attitudes and experiences of racism. Paper presented to conference entitled The Challenges of Immigration and Integration in the European Union and Australia, 18-20 February 2003, University of Sydney. [Online: https://digitalcollections.anu.edu.au/bitstream/1885/ 41761/4/dunn_paper.pdf 01.04.2016] Fisch, Jonas & Viebrock, Britta (2013), Between Visual Literacy and Film Literacy: Working with Film Posters in the EFL Classroom. In: Elsner, Daniela; Helff, Sissy & Viebrock, Britta (Eds.), Films, Graphic Novels & Visuals: Developing Multiliteracies in Foreign Language Education – An Interdisciplinary Approach. Münster: LIT-Verlag, 121-138. Gwynne, Phillip (1998), Deadly Unna? Melbourne: Penguin Australia. Gwynne, Phillip (2000), Nukkin Ya. Melbourne: Penguin Australia. Henseler, Roswitha; Möller, Stefan & Surkamp, Carola (2011), Filme im Englischunterricht: Grundlagen, Methoden, Genres. Seelze: Klett Kallmeyer. Hollinsworth, David (2006), Race and Racism in Australia. Melborne: Thomson. Jetnikoff, Anita (2003), Australian Rules: a comparative review. Australian Screen Education 30: 36-38. Kämpfer, Irmela (2014), “Mit Filmen Englisch Unterrichten”: Entwicklung eines digitalen Study Guides zu Australian Rules. Goethe-Universität Frankfurt/Main: Staatsexemansarbeit. Moran, Albert & Vieth, Errol (2005), Historical Dictionary of Australian and New Zealand Cinema. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Scarecrow Press. Moreton-Robinson (2015), The White Possesive: Property, Power, and Indigenous Sovereinty. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. Perkins, Maureen (Ed.) (2007), Visibly Different: Face, Place, and Race in Australia. Bern etc.: Lang.

41

42

Australia Sherman, Jane (2010), Using Authentic Video in the Language Classroom. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Tudball, Libby (no year), Australian Rules Study Guide. ATOM (Australian Teachers of Media). [Online: http://actf.com.au/assets/the_learning_centre/actf_ar_study_guide.pdf 01.04.2016]

Australia

Employing Scenic Interpretation in Teaching Yolngu Boy Jan-Erik Leonhardt & Britta Viebrock

This chapter explores the possibilities of integrating productive methodology, scenic interpretation and film analysis using the Australian feature film Yolngu Boy (2000) as an example. Torn between tradition and a challenging modernity, the three teenage main characters – the rather traditional Lorrpu, aspiring football player Milika, and Botj, who is on the verge of becoming a criminal and losing his allegiance with the Yolngu people – journey through Arnhem Land in search of their identity. This chapter explores the potential of the film’s content for the foreign language classroom. After a synopsis of Yolngu Boy, some considerations on the representation of Australian Aboriginal culture through this film will follow. The third part will outline how scenic interpretation can be applied in film studies. Then, productive pre- and while-viewing tasks for an interval viewing of Yolngu Boy will be introduced. The fifth part will feature several scenic interpretation exercises as post-viewing activities; the final part will shift focus on selected scenes and how to work with them in the classroom, again requiring the students to act and improvise in the process of understanding cultural traditions and values represented in film. 1

Film synopsis

Yolngu Boy, directed by Stephen Johnson, has been described as “a hybrid of an adventure-quest film mixed with the strong cultural and historical coordinates of social realism” (Collins & Davis 2004: 90). It begins with the introduction of the main characters: Lorrpu, who functions as the narrator, Milika and Botj, who have grown up as Yolngu children in Arnhem Land in Australia’s Northern Territory; as boys, they have shared the dream of becoming great hunters one day and have learned the necessary skills from their elders as is shown in short flashback sequences in the film. Together, Lorrpu, Milika and Botj have been initiated under the protection of Baru, the crocodile spirit of their people. Now in their teenage years, Botj has been imprisoned for stealing a motorcycle and he returns to the community at the beginning of the film. However, subsequent events show that he is still a troubled character: He is not allowed to see his mother (his father is not part of the narrative yet) and starts causing trouble in the community again. He immediately starts a fight at the local football game in which Milika participates. Milika himself also seems to have lost faith in the traditional Aboriginal culture, instead he is interested in Australian football and girls. Returning to Arnhem Land, Botj does not enjoy the protection of his current warden, Matjala, and he greatly fears that Dawu, one of the clan elders, will not nominate him to become a

44

Australia full member of the Yolngu people. Nevertheless, Botj convinces Lorrpu and Milika to break into a store to get some cigarettes. First celebrating their break-in inside the store, the mood soon changes and the boys begin to argue and fight. Botj is left behind by the other two; in misery, he starts to sniff petrol and hallucinates to the extent of setting the house on fire. He finds himself in hospital and excluded from the community. Lorrpu, the boy who seems closest to the traditional Aboriginal ways of his people, decides not to abandon Botj; he manages to break Milika’s resistance, frees Botj from hospital, and together the boys begin to journey through Arnhem Land in order to go to the city of Darwin. Here Lorrpu hopes to talk to Dawu, who may help Botj. They begin to travel in an old canoe, and having lost it at one point, continue on foot. During the trip, Lorrpu, Milika and Botj face many challenges nature poses; however, they manage to rely on the old ways of hunting and trekking through the land in order to survive. Despite many setbacks such as an arm injury that Botj suffers from and many intrusions by Western culture (beginning with a Snickers bar and a walkman, and ending with a crocodile hunter’s camp), they eventually manage to reach Darwin. In spite of the success and Botj’s improved state of mind, the teenager fears that Dawu will report him to the police. After talking to the elder, Botj leaves the rest of the group. The recipient follows him to an Aboriginal camp of drug addicts and lost souls in Darwin. It is here where Botj sees his father, who, battered by drug abuse, does not recognise his son. In fear, Botj flees the camp and, while the others search for him, is killed on another petrol sniffing trip, falling off a bridge. Whether this was a fatal accident or a deliberate attempt to commit suicide is not made exactly clear in the film. In the last sequences of Yolngu Boy, Lorrpu, Milika, Matjala and Dawu find and bury his dead body. In contrast to Botj, Lorrpu and Milika have found their role within the tribe and are initiated as grown-ups to the Yolngu people at the end of the trip: If Botj shares the tragic fate of many on the frontier between two cultures, then Lorrpu and Milika represent two paths towards a more reconciled future where the Law into which they are being initiated stands for self-determination and difference within modernity. Although untranslatable difference is carefully respected in the collaborative process, Yolngu Boy refuses to position Yolngu Law as something archaic threatened with extinction by modernity. (Collins & Davis 2004: 90f.)

As the synopsis has shown, Yolngu Boy allows a high emotional connection of a young audience with the heroes of the film. “Yolngu Boy and, later Beneath Clouds were the first to tell stories about teenagers, the people who most often buy movie tickets and at whom, as a result, the majority of commercial films are aimed“ (Wood 2008: 187). Characters with high potential for identification are a clear indication for a film’s suitability for the language classroom for it will be easier to empathise with them, as well as to imagine scenes and situations in which they appear (cf. Surkamp & Nünning 2009: 197). Identification with the main character(s) also ensures emotional involvement of the students which is prerequisite for participation in activities and classroom discussions (cf. Lütge 2012: 23). 2

Approaching Aboriginal cultural traditions through the film

Yolngu Boy shows the audience traditional Aboriginal life where cultural knowledge is passed from generation to generation by way of stories. These stories “[…] explain the

Employing Scenic Interpretation in Teaching Yolngu Boy

Aboriginal genesis in different parts of the country and reveal the shaping of a formless land by great ancestors” (Broome 2010: 5). Aboriginal traditions, and especially their connection to the land, have always been characterised as their specific cultural heritage; James Cook, the discoverer of the continent, has already observed: They live in a Tranquility which is not disturbed by the inequality of Condition. The Earth and Sea of their own accord furnishes them with all things necessary for Life. They covet not Magnificent Houses, Household stuff, etc; they live in a Warm and fine Climate; and enjoy every Wholesome Air. (Cited in Collins & Davis 2004: 14)

Cook already understood fundamental differences between Aboriginal and western societies: While one pillar of the European culture is ownership (of land, of houses, et cetera) the Aborigines’ relation to nature and land prohibit them from owning it. Similarly, the film makes clear that “[…] there is now a popular awareness that the continent has been written over by Indigenous languages, songlines, dreaming stories and Law for 40.000 years or more” (Collins & Davis 2004: 76). The Aboriginal belief does not only include the idea that every member of the clan has a part of his or her nature that is eternal. Moreover, one becomes a living person by being born by a mother and, at death, the eternal part of each person melts back into eternal life again. Knowledge and tradition are passed down from one generation to the other; adolescents like Lorrpu, Milika and Botj look forward to being fully initiated into the Yolngu community through a ceremony guided by Yolngu elders. A great part of Botj’s struggle is related to his fear of not being initiated and rejected by the elders. At the beginning of the film, the three characters are still very close and in a first initiation ritual the children’s bodies are painted with the image of the protective spirit of the Yolngu people, the crocodile Baru 1. “Ancestral beings have supernatural power with the ability to morph into the form of another being, such as a human or a crocodile. It is this ability to morph between human and crocodile form that links the people within a clan to the saltwater crocodile [...]” (Fijn 2013: 12). Yolngu people are not afraid of the crocodile, rather it is an integral part of their society and belief as both are part of nature itself. However, nowadays “[...] Aboriginal mythology has undergone significant transformations in response to major social and cultural changes” (Clarke 2007: 141). Yolngu Boy features these themes, including the challenges for teenagers in Aboriginal communities today: drug abuse, a lack of perspective, and the loss of their cultural heritage which is threatened by Western ideals. The film explores Aboriginal life in the light of reconciliation towards the end of the 21st century. As politics try to provide “[…] practical and effective measures that address the legacy of profound economic and social disadvantage experienced by many Indigenous Australians, particularly in the areas of housing, health, education and employment” (Healey 2006: 1), Yolngu Boy explores the question of in how far the idea is realisable and meaningful. Cultural studies by means of film studies approach a number of general questions (cf. Lütge 2013): What does the film teach about a particular (foreign) culture or community? How does it depict this? How does this depiction influence the perspective and opinion of the recipient? In order to understand media manipulations, students do not only have to be able to empathise with the attitudes of certain characters, rather they have to understand how media productions come into existence as a whole, what 1

The spelling of Baru may vary in publications. Yolngu refer to the ancestral being as Baru (or Bäru), as well as to the crocodile (also bäru) (Fijn 2013: 12).

45

46

Australia their function in society is and which stylistic devices they use in order to achieve certain effects (cf. Potter 2005). Students have to experience cinematographic devices such as camera perspectives, field sizes and montage/speed, and analyse their effects on the viewer; they have to learn about the deliberateness of plot constructions, characters, narrative points of view and settings, and they have to study how cast, acting and dialogue can affect the film as a whole (cf. Nünning & Surkamp 2006: 251f.). Yolngu Boy fits such a comprehensive approach for it merges tradition and modernity not only in its content, also the film’s structure is closely related to its themes. It relies on “[…] rapid cutting, meaning-making montages, and accelerated helicopter shots” (Wood 2008: 188f.). The combination of traditional Aboriginal music interwoven with fast Western beats symbolises the cultural clash and reinforces the ultimate question of whether Aboriginal and Western culture can coexist. The film’s dialogue between Western influences and Aboriginal cultural traditions is also reflected in its cast: While the director himself is a Non-Aboriginal, the main characters’ cast consists of amateur Aboriginal actors who have actually experienced native Australian traditions and the challenges Western influences pose. 3

Using scenic interpretation in teaching Yolngu Boy

The ideas on teaching cultural studies with Yolngu Boy presented in this part aim at exploring the film’s content and cinematography by using scenic interpretation and productive methodology adapted for (feature) films, particularly addressing the students’ visual and critical literacies (cf. Elsner 2012). Tasks will include trying out camera perspectives in freeze images, acting without sound, or filling content gaps with improvised dialogues. Methods such as creative writing are included for more variety. Scenic interpretation was originally developed by Scheller (1996) to acknowledge the specific nature of dramatic texts, which are meant for staging, not for silent reading in a language classroom. The method allows students to experiment with possible ways of staging and to act out parts of scenes in order to empathise with different characters, to understand unfamiliar perspectives, and to act aesthetically themselves (ibid.: 23ff.). Waldmann (1999) includes productive (writing) tasks which eventually led to more analytical approaches to the text; students are to experience that literary texts are constructed deliberately as a system of choices in favour of or against certain structures by the author. Students should learn about the intertextuality of literary texts, and that all of them are carefully crafted (cf. ibid.: 134ff.). Film as a different form of text has its own characteristics, yet elements from the scenic interpretation methodology can be transferred, and, more importantly, enhanced due to the specifics inherent only to film. This holds particularly true when adopting a holistic perspective to film studies: Studying film is not merely a naming of parts – identifying a particular camera technique or transition, for example – but is more about developing an appreciation of the subtleties and nuances of aspects of film style, and the significance of creative choices in the making of a film text. (Benyahia & Mortimer 2013: 67)

Both scenic interpretation as well as the productive approach enable learners to experience the film (1) as a whole, and (2) as an object of art which is part of a specific cultural context. Films can be perceived from a very personal point-of-view. They enable viewers to identify with the characters, their journey and development. Also

Employing Scenic Interpretation in Teaching Yolngu Boy

films can be looked at from the analytical angle, especially in a classroom context, in order to understand how the medium itself works. With regard to scenic interpretation approaches it is paramount that (3) students can add their very own perspective and understanding of what they see and therefore relate their own views to foreign perspectives as well as any analytical approach. This is what productive methodology is about: In order to understand a topic, it has to be exerpienced personally; and experiences – as the name implies – have to be experienced, they cannot be learned (cf. Waldmann 1999: 142). This is especially important when dealing with a film like Yolngu Boy, as the students learn about a cultural context very different from their own. 4

Topical introduction: pre- and while-viewing activities2

The Australian Aboriginal world presented in Yolngu Boy naturally is quite distinct from the experiences of the students in class. For this reason, rather broad pre-viewing activities are suggested here that focus on a general introduction of the (traditional) Aboriginal way of life, eventually aiming at a better understanding of the struggles of the main characters in the film. One way to understand the great connection between Aboriginal people and their land – in comparison to what land and land-ownership means to Western cultures – is to look at their music; in fact, Yolngu Boy’s director, Stephen Johnson, is known for making music videos for the band Yothu Yindi, too, which combines traditional Aboriginal music with Western instruments (cf. Wood 2008: 188). Two music videos, Bapa and Gathu Mawula (Revisited), featuring the popular singer Gurrumul, can be chosen for viewing in class (Mat No. 1). As they are for the most part sung in Yolngu Matha, the native language of the Yolngu people, students have to rely on sounds and the visual realisation: The visual realization of “Bapa”, Gurrumul’s lament over the loss of his father, alternates simple line animation of the singer performing the song, with fleeting images of the animal realms of sky, sea, and land, as well as a dancer, glimpses of ancestral faces, idyllic images of a child splashing by the ocean, hunting, and so on. (Webb & Fienberg 2011: 36)

Webb and Fienberg have introduced Bapa and Gathu Mawula (Revisited) into music classrooms in order to learn “[…] about Yolngu sound worlds and the ways these connect with Yolngu cosmology” (ibid.: 36ff.). The task design has been adapted for language classrooms to shift focus to cultural learning; questions to Bapa include the visual style of the video (especially the transitions between the images), the realisation of the animals and their significance, as well as a comparison to the animal’s meaning in Western cultures. Whereas in Yolngu Boy, the crocodile appears as a protective spirit that guides Lorrpu, Milika, and Botj through many parts of their journey, it is usually seen as a dangerous animal in Western societies. The second video, Gathu Mawula (Revisited), is a collaboration between Gurrumul and Blue King Brown, including modern beats and a medley sung in English. Here, students can seek to understand the lyrics:

2

The teaching material to accompany this chapter has been developed by Jan-Erik Leonhardt.

47

48

Australia Now don’t you go forgettin’ O the land that you were born you got some place to go you got some place to belong and when you're feeling lonely put your feet down in the earth reconnect with your soul, reconnect with the world […]. (00:02:17-00:02:31)

Bapa is more traditional, whereas Gathu Mawula tries to unify Aboriginal music and Western sounds. However, aside from a comparison between the videos, questions can include a look at the singers and dancers: What do the students know about their cultural background already? After having activated their knowledge on Aboriginal Australia, the focus can be shifted to the videos’ visual realisation: What colours are used? How are cuts and camera movements used in order to affect the recipients’ feelings? Expanding on the musical introduction to Aboriginal culture – which also has the side effect of activating the students’ knowledge about video analysis – the given Dreamtime legend about Min-na-wee, a girl who, because of her viciousness, turned into a crocodile, can be used (cf. Mat No. 2); again, this can later be related back to the totemic crocodile appearing in the film. A summary of the story will reveal the Aborigines’ belief of the connection between the land and its people; the students will learn about the Dreamtime belief, how the world came into existence and how the laws were created by mythic beings and animals who share nature with humankind (Clarke 2007: 142). Here, an analytic comparison between stories known to the students, for example fables, can reveal many similarities and differences; students will realise how complex and difficult it is to understand Dreamtime for non-Aborigines. An additional text will provide input on Dreamtime and Songlines, which are legends that mark a physical path across the land. The students can relate this knowledge to Yolngu Boy, where a Songline is sung by Botj once he has recovered partially on the trip to Darwin. The third pre-viewing exercise draws on the method of scenic interpretation promoted in this chapter (cf. Mat No. 3). Adapted from the methodology of Boal (2002: 177), the students are asked to represent the image of a word in a freeze image: “[T]the participants form a circle and, at a given signal, all simultaneously depict with their bodies their version of the subject. Then as a second stage, still holding their poses, they look round at what everyone else is doing.” The words, for example ‘fear’, ‘best friend’, or ‘father’, relate to the major themes of Yolngu Boy. The evaluation of the students’ performances will be revisited after viewing the film. The exercise also functions as a warmimg-up activity to prepare body and mind for scenic interpretation and acting activities with fellow students (cf. Mangold et al. 2007: 8). The subsequent while-viewing tasks focus on observation exercises to secure the understanding of the content of Yolngu Boy. The film will be shown in intervals stopping at important passages:  It will be stopped after the beginning sequence (00:08:47),  after the break-in (00:15:40),  and when the boys reach Darwin (01:06:23). The first steps towards film comprehension will include a look at the character constellations (cf. Mat No. 4): What are the characters’ main traits; what are their objectives and challenges? How are they related? The second stop after Lorrpu, Botj, and Milika broke into the store, provides the opportunity to create a freeze image of the boys’ relationship with one another: Lorrpu tries to support Botj who is in deep trouble, Milika is weary of this, though at the same time quite passionate about the

Employing Scenic Interpretation in Teaching Yolngu Boy

pleasures in life. As these images are shown in class, students can compare their understanding of the main characters. Here, scenic interpretation will help to clarify the content of Yolngu Boy; ideas focusing on cinematographic elements will follow. The next sequence, the trip itself, is a very long passage during which cultural clashes are central. The students can be asked to take notes on the symbols and the demarcating representations of Aboriginal and Western culture, and on any audiovisual clues for the realisation of cultural clashes (cf. Mat No. 5). The analysis will reveal that the discords between tradition and modernity are also represented in the struggle within each character. Like every adolescent, Lorrpu, Milika and Botj question their identity and belonging, an increasingly difficult task since the answer is affected by two completely different cultural systems. The trip also reveals a change in the boys, who grow closer to nature in order to survive, which, in the end, raises the question of whether or not it is possible for them to find reconciliation in Darwin. One possible answer might be ‘yes’ because they have come to know more about their Aboriginal heritage, or it may be ‘no’ because Darwin’s Western culture will force Western values upon them again, and Botj will show recidivist behaviour, which is what happens in the film. Before the screening is completed, again resorting to scenic interpretation methodology, students can speculate about a possible ending (cf. Mat No. 6). They will have to draw upon their previous viewing experiences and understanding of the main characters in order to invent two scenes: First, the boys are talking to Dawu whose response will be central, and second, the boys show a reaction to this conversation as the ending of the sequence. Working together in groups, the students will have to take notes on possible dialogues, practise, and finally present these two short, partly improvised scenes in class. Now, two options are given: The first is to focus on comprehension and content analysis, the second on filmic realisation. The first option allows the viewers to interrupt the improvised scene by calling a character’s name, who then has to invent a short monologue describing his or her inner feelings and thoughts (cf. Scheller 1996: 26). The second option allows the students to record the scenes, for example on their mobile devices. In doing so, they are to pay close attention to the camera angle they use. Upon viewing different interpretations of the same task, the students will learn about the effects each camera angle has on the representation. Many students are already sophisticated in the use of film-making applications and programmes (less complicated ones include Apple’s iMovie and Microsoft’s Windows Movie Maker), with which they may edit the material, add cuts and music. Recording scenic interpretation exercises will help students to reflect on their own performances as well as on the method of recording itself. What is the difference between seeing a performance live and seeing it filtered, through camera? 5

More scenic work: post-viewing activities and close-up analysis

The students will now have seen Yolngu Boy completely. Based on the previous exercise, they can now compare the ending of the film to their imagined resolution (cf. Mat No. 7). In the sense of Waldmann (1999: 138ff.), the students learn about the deliberateness in the construction of a plot; it is a series of choices against many and in favour of one specific plotline. Similarly, the students learn about specific filmic realisations of the plotline which is a series of choices in favour of one particular camera angle and field size etc. and a deliberate choice against all others.

49

50

Australia Another exercise after having watched Yolngu Boy returns to scenic interpretation by asking the students to imagine a conversation between Dawu and Matjala, both reacting to Botj’s death and discussing the question whether anything could have been done differently (cf. Mat No. 8). The students are to understand the characters’ feelings after the fatal incident and to reflect on its meaning. Obviously, it symbolises the ultimate difficulty to integrate the Aboriginal way of life with the ways of Western societies. Tragedies like this are are almost an integral part of the Aboriginal community, which is not only plagued by cultural differences as such but by the ruthlessness with which the white communities have tried to force their systems of belief on traditonal Aboriginal cultures (cf. also Wilden’s considerations on RabbitProof Fence, which deals with the Stolen Generation, in this volume). When the scene of Dawu and Matjala is acted out in class, the observing audience will have to check the representation of the two characters: Is it faithful to how the characters are depicted in the film? Are their feelings well-presented? This task also allows for a recapitulation of the events of Yolngu Boy, and, at the same time, it lets students experience the work of dramatic advisors and actors. An alternative would be to act out the dialogue without actually speaking; the students would have to rely on posture, gestures and their facial expressions instead, learning about this particular aspect of theatricality, essential for both theatre and film; they will learn about the importance of spoken language and the importance of the body itself – in its physicality as well as its symbolic meaning(s) (cf. Fischer-Lichte et al. 2004: 18ff.). The last post-viewing task returns to the introduction of the themes in Yolngu Boy by using the ‘image of a word’-technique (cf. Mat No. 9). The same exercise as described above is repeated, also using the same key words to be imitated by the students. The students can now observe whether there are any alterations in the depiction. Is the word ‘drugs’ acted out differently than before? This exercise can be done either at the end of watching Yolngu Boy, as suggested here, or at the end of the the entire teaching unit. It will allow students to reflect on their experiences made with the feature film; they will learn to see how the film has changed (or not changed) their feelings about specific topics and themes. To conclude the work on the film, which has focused on literary and dramatic dimensions so far, close-up analyses of cinematographic aspects follow. Relating to the music video in the introductory tasks, the first analytical exercises focuses on sound and music, as the Yolngu Boy sound world connects Aboriginal and Western cultures, too, synthesising the boys’ hope for reconciliating the two. The second exercise focuses on the specific topic of petrol sniffing, common in many Aboriginal communities in the later years of the 20th century (cf. Brady 2011), and its cinematic representation in Yolngu Boy. Feature films “[…] can handily indicate ways music works in and as a culture” (Webb & Fienberg 2011: 31). In Yolngu Boy, a range of sounds and music of both societies convey “[…] something of the richness and complexity of social and cultural reality” (ibid.: 31) in Australia. Functions of music in film include the creation of atmosphere and the evocation of emotions; music directs and creates attention, and it can make visual clues seem unreal, it can parody, alienate, or, as in Yolngu Boy, support the flow of images. Above all, music and sound are studied because only through the connection of all semiotic systems represented in film – words, pictures, music, and sound – can audio-visual literacy be fully developed in the foreign language classroom (cf. Blell & Lütge 2012). The task design for the evaluation of the use of sound and music in Yolngu Boy is adapted from Webb and Fienberg (2011: 34ff.). The first scenes

Employing Scenic Interpretation in Teaching Yolngu Boy

of the film, the introduction of the main characters and the conflict (until minute 00:05:56), are viewed again (cf. Mat No. 10). The sequence is divided into four segments: the title screen, impressions of Arnhem Land, the introduction by Lorrpu, as well as Botj’s return. For each segment, students can now listen to sounds and music, and position them on a scale from the native Aboriginal sound world to Western style. This task allows students to relate sound and content. Also, the music presented in Yolngu Boy can be compared to the music videos seen prior to the film, revealing many similarities concerning visual content and audio realisation. For the second close-up analysis (cf. Mat No. 11), the boys’ break-in into the store and Botj’s petrol sniffing trip are watched again (00:13:22-00:20:22). The focus of the task lies on the drug trip Botj experiences. Petrol sniffing “[…] has been reported among Aboriginal Australians for more than 60 years”; it is a fringe drug, “[…] a substance used by a subset of young people who are themselves a minority group within society” (Brady 2011: 121f.). Botj is a representative of this problem, which has increasingly occurred in Arnhem Land in the 1990s. The following quotation describes the act of petrol sniffing itself, though it may easily be related to the visual style of the sequence in Yolngu Boy: Sniffers enhanced the experience of intoxication through shared, learned rituals: sitting with candles at night or watching scary videos. Each sniffer dared the others to confront ghosts or snakes and summon up ‘the horrors’. The effects were frightening, thrilling and oppositional. (Brady 2011: 126)

In the film, the scene is characterised by fast camera movements and a frightening use of illumination and colour, all of which imitate the experiences of drug (ab)use, as if the film’s recipients had taken the substance themselves. In order to understand how the haunting composition of images functions in Yolngu Boy, the students are to create a freeze image of Botj during petrol sniffing. Relating to the camera movement, students can now move around the image (best: one at a time); looking from below, top and a level position, moving fast and slow, they can try out different perspectives and ‘camera’ operations to answer the question of how camera movements influence their perception as a viewer. This scenic interpretation exercise adapted for films can be executed without additional technology; however, again the use of a recording device such as a smartphone or digital camera can help to compare the students’ work to the camera positions and movements in the film more closely. In order to try out different perspectives, photos can be taken. To try out camera movements, videos can be shot, and edited. Exercises like this allow for learning close to the medium at hand, both on its theatrical and technical levels. The last exercise functions as an addition and a transition to the methodology postulated by Waldmann (1999); it is a writing exercise where students have to write a dreamtime story of Baru, the crocodile spirit protecting Lorrpu, Milika, and Botj (cf. Mat No. 12). By dramatising a content gap, the text is experienced from a different perspective; students thereby learn to understand foreign creation myths. In addition, their imagination and creativity will be fostered (cf. Spinner 2001). 6

Summary: cultural learning and understanding media production

Productive methodology has more and more established itself in the language classroom. Not only is it appreciated for its student-centredness, but also for its

51

52

Australia versatility. It allows students to comprehend how different varieties of texts are composed, how they function, and how they may influence their recipients; students also learn to produce these forms of texts themselves. However, concerning the use of film – or any other form of text – there will always be a balancing act between the appreciation of art and its analysis: We must be careful to preserve the delicate balance between appreciating a film more because we understand the language, the culture, and the technique behind it, and killing the magic of the experience because we overdo the grammar, the vocabulary, or the pronunciation in the language and comprehension process […]. (Stempleski & Tomalin 2001: 9)

Productive, creative and scenic interpretation exercises may help to keep this balance. The exercises presented are not restricted to one particular example or cultural context, rather can they be adapted to any film fit for the language classroom. In the case of Yolngu Boy, the focus was put on the literary aspects of film and their meaning for cultural learning in class; dramatic and cinematographic aspects were also included. Yolngu Boy fits into any classroom with teenage learners. Its content is not overly ambiguous, but rather polyvalent in the sense that it leaves a lot of room for discussion, especially from a cultural studies perspective: The Aboriginal belief in Dreamtime and Songlines is a concept very hard to grasp for non-Aboriginal people; this lack of understanding has caused manifold problems in Australian communities as can be witnessed in Yolngu Boy. Petrol sniffing, youth criminality, and a lack of prospects for many members of the Aboriginal communities are depicted and represented by the struggle of the main characters Lorrpu, Milika, and especially Botj. Many Aborigines today chose to tell their stories in order to foster mutual understanding and to improve each others lives, and Yolngu Boy can be seen as one of these stories. Although the film was directed by a non-Aborigine, the process of film-making was much guided by the community. The choice of amateur lead actors from the Yolngu community further contributes to Yolngu Boy’s cultural authenticity. The singer Gurrumul, whose songs are also part of the teaching unit presented in this article, similarily tries to unite Western and Aboriginal culture; he has world-wide appearances to promote his music and the Aboriginal culture, and Dreamtime legends like that of Min-na-wee are now shared by Aboriginal elders. To understand the traditional Aboriginal belief and the concept of Dreamtime, it needs to be looked at from a variety of perspectives, and especially that of Aboriginal people themselves. Yolngu Boy alerts its audience with Botj’s death, even though it gives hope as Milika and Lorrpu have found a way of life during the film. The teaching ideas presented here try to recapture their feelings and struggles in a holistic way. They require students to act, experience the nature of film also physically, and engage in productive activities. Film reference Yolngu Boy. Director: Stephen Johnson. Screenplay: Chris Anastassiades. Australia: Australian Film Cooperation 2000. DVD 2003. 83 minutes.

Employing Scenic Interpretation in Teaching Yolngu Boy

References Benyahia, Sarah Casey & Mortimer, Claire (2013), Doing Film Studies. A Subject Guide for Students. London & New York: Routledge. Blell, Gabriele & Lütge, Christiane (2012), Musical Visions: Filmmusik im Rahmen der Entwicklung von Hör-Seh-Verstehen im Fremdsprachenunterricht. In: Reinfried, Marcus & Volkmann, Laurenz (Eds.) (2012), Medien im neokommunikativen Fremdsprachenunterricht. Einsatzformen, Inhalte, Lernkompetenzen. Frankfurt/Main: Lang, 99-111. Boal, Augusto (2002), Games for Actors and Non-Actors (2nd Ed.). London & New York: Routledge. Brady, Maggie (2011), Fuel, Cars and the Geography of Petrol Sniffing. Humanities Research 17: 2, 121-133. Broome, Richard (2010), Aboriginal Australians. A history since 1788 (4th Ed.). Crows Nest: Allen & Unwin. Clarke, Philip A. (2007), Indigenous Spirit and Ghost Folklore of ‘Settled Australia‘. Folklore 118: 2, 141-161. Collins, Felicity & Davis, Therese (2004), Australian Cinema after Mabo. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Elsner, Daniela (2012), Muliliteracy Practices als Lernziel: Mehrsprachige Gedichte von Pat Mora und Antoine Cassar. In: Ahrens, Rüdiger; Eisenmann, Maria & Hammer, Julia (Eds.), Anglophone Literaturdidaktik – Zukunftsperspektiven für den Englischunterricht. Heidelberg: Winter, 409-424. Elsner, Daniela; Helff, Sissy & Viebrock, Britta (Eds.) (2013), Films, Graphic Novels & Visuals: Developing Multiliteracies in Foreign Language Education – An Interdisciplinary Approach. Münster: LIT. Elsner, Daniela & Viebrock, Britta (2013), Developing Multiliteracies in the 21st Century: Motives for New Approaches of Teaching and Learning Foreign Languages. In: Elsner, Daniela; Helff, Sissy & Viebrock, Britta (Eds.) (2013), 17-32. Fijn, Natasha (2013), Living with Crocodiles: Engagement with a Powerful Reptilian Being. Animal Studies Journal 2: 2, 1-27. [Online: http://ro.uow.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi? article=1069&context=asj 01.04.2016] Fischer-Lichte, Erika; Horn, Christian; Umathum, Sandra & Warstat, Matthias (Eds.) (2004), Theatralität also Modell in den Kulturwissenschaften. Tübingen, Basel: Francke. Healey, Justin (2006), Aboriginal Reconciliation. Issues in Society 234. Thirroul: The Spinney Press. Lütge, Christiane (2012), Mit Filmen Englisch unterrichten. Berlin: Cornelsen. Lütge, Christiane (2013), Global (Audio)visions: Teaching Cultural Studies thourgh Film. In: Elsner, Daniela; Helff, Sissy & Viebrock, Britta (Eds.) (2013), 141-153. Mangold, Christiane et al., Grundkurs Darstellendes Spiel 2. Braunschweig: Schroedel. Nünning, Ansgar & Surkamp, Carola (2006), Englische Literatur unterrichten. Grundlagen und Methoden. Seelze-Velber: Klett Kallmeyer. Potter, James W. (2005), Media Literacy (3rd Ed.). Thousand Oaks, London, New Delhi: Sage. Scheller, Ingo (1996), Szenische Interpretation. Praxis Deutsch 136, 22-32. Spinner, Kaspar H. (2001), Kreativer Deutschunterricht. Identität – Imagination – Kognition. Seelze: Kallmeyersche Verlagsbuchhandlung. Stempleski, Susan & Tomalin, Barry (2001), Film. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

53

54

Australia Surkamp, Carola & Nünning, Ansgar (2009), Englische Literatur unterrichten 2. Unterrichtsmodelle und Materialien. Seelze-Gelber: Klett Kallmeyer. Waldmann, Günter (1999), Produktiver Umgang mit dem Drama. Eine systematische Einführung in das produktive Verstehen traditioneller und moderner Dramenformen und das Schreiben in ihnen. Baltmannsweiler: Schneider Verlag Hohengehren. Werner, Lutz v. & Schulte-Steinicke (2003), Die deutsche Schreibkrise. Empirische Umfragen von 1994-2002. Baltmannsweiler: Schneider Verlag Hohengehren. Wood, Houston (2008), Native Features. Indigenous Films From Around the World. New York & London: Continuum, 178-198.

Australia

‘Our’ and ‘Their’ History: The Challenge of Teaching Historical Backgrounds with the Example of Rabbit-Proof Fence Eva Wilden

This chapter proposes a cultural studies unit for teaching the film Rabbit-Proof Fence (2002) by Phillip Noyce which has been distributed in Germany with the title Long Walk Home. The film is a popular resource for teaching Australia in EFL classrooms and a number of teaching ideas for both middle and secondary school have already been published. In the following, a new angle on teaching Rabbit-Proof Fence in the secondary EFL classroom will be suggested with a special focus on the challenging task of teaching the historical background of the film. More precisely, the unit will focus on the complex interplay between fiction and history, on how the historical background of the film is staged through filmic devices and on the general importance of the historical narrative in studying the past. Bearing in mind the target group of secondary level 2 learners, the suggested activities relate to more complex texts in addition to the film as well as providing cognitively challenging tasks such as changing perspectives and deconstructing historical narratives. The chapter is structured as follows: After characterising the most distinguishing features of teaching historical backgrounds, the history of the Australian so-called Stolen Generations will be briefly sketched out. Following this, the film Rabbit-Proof Fence will be summarised with further references to its educational potential. The major part suggests seven activities for teaching the historical background of Rabbit-Proof Fence aiming at the above mentioned learning objectives. 1

“The past is a foreign country […]” or: the challenge of teaching historical backgrounds

In this section the notion of ‘teaching historical backgrounds’ will be explored, which is a common phenomenon when reading fiction or watching films in present day foreign language classrooms. One example are the so called fact sheets in text books next to a short story, giving background information and dates on historical events which in some way or another are related to the short story. Another example are the pre- and post-viewing activities to be found in many film-teaching units, suggesting to have pupils read significant historical texts relevant to the story told in the film. The purpose of teaching the ‘historical background’ usually is to further the understanding

56

Australia of a fictional text by studying the non-fictional context of the fiction – or in other words: What did really happen at this point in time in contrast to what the author of the fiction has made up by sheer imagination? However, the question is what educators and text book designers actually mean when talking about ‘historical background’? “What is history?” (Carr 1961; quoted in: Evans 1997: 1) This almost proverbial quote by the British author Leslie Poles Hartley (1953: 9) from the beginning of his novel The Go-Between serves to shed some light on this question: “The past is a foreign country: they do things differently there.” It is noteworthy that Hartley does not use the term ‘history’ but ‘past’ instead, thus highlighting the difference between the two. The ‘past’ is a term referring to any events happening before the ‘now’. Already, the cup of tea someone had this morning is an event in the past. But is it also ‘history’, the cup of tea? It only becomes history when people start telling each other about that person having a cuppa in the morning – which in most cases is unlikely to happen. This example illustrates that in the academic sense ‘history’ is a narrative, a story people tell about past events – history is not the past itself. In his publication In Defence of History Evans (1997: 249f.) illustrates the constructedness of the historic narrative and the nature of its ‘truth’ as follows: We know, of course, that we will be guided in selecting materials for the stories we tell [about the past; E.W.], and in the way we put these materials together and interpret them, by literary models, by social science theories, by moral and political beliefs, by an aesthetic sense, even by our own unconscious assumptions and desires. It is an illusion to believe otherwise. But the stories we tell will be true stories, even if the truth they tell is our own, even if other people can and will tell them differently.

That is why the terms ‘story’ and ‘history’ not only share a word stem but actually overlap in their meaning. Likewise, the German word ‘Geschichte’ relates to both fiction and historiographic narratives about the past. Thus, by teaching the ‘historical background’ we are not teaching ‘what really happened’ at the time, rather we are teaching the narrative of what we currently think happened at the time, based on the inquiry, analysis and interpretation of historical sources. This aspect is not easy to grasp for learners and even occasionally confused by teachers (for more details see Kölbl 2012, Schönemann 2012, Staschen-Dielmann 2009: 17ff.). Looking back to the Hartley quote it is striking that he compares studying the past with travelling to a foreign country: As a ‘traveller’ to the past, one is going to observe people doing things differently than in the present, believing in different values and sharing different attitudes. For example, societies in the Western European Middle Ages were organised according to feudal principles which from the point of view of modern Western democracy is hardly conceivable. However, this should not lead to modernday arrogance or contempt as medieval people were not inferior to people in the 21 st century – rather their life was based on an entirely different set of values, beliefs and knowledge. Thus, in order to comprehend the past one first needs to make an effort in understanding that this mindset is very different from today’s way of thinking. In other words the study of the past requires a change of perspectives – similar to travelling to foreign countries in the present. In this sense studying the past – teaching ‘historical backgrounds’ – actually has significant overlaps with (trans-/inter-/multi-)cultural learning, one of the pivotal objectives of modern foreign language education (e.g. KMK 2003: 6). This implies that in teaching ‘historical backgrounds’ we tell stories of the past from our present perspective. Any historical narrative is thus influenced by its time and

‘Our’ and ‘Their’ History: Rabbit-Proof Fence

perspective. And as the stories are shaped by the present they are subject to change – when our present changes. Furthermore, as Evans (1997: 249f.) in the aforementioned quotation points out, “other people can and will tell them [the stories about the past; E.W.] differently”. This latter aspect points out another level of complexity in studying historical backgrounds in foreign language education: When for example teaching the history of the Australian Stolen Generations in a German school, ‘we’ are not looking at ‘our’ history – which is a questionable term in itself – but ‘we’ are are looking at ‘their’ history. As pupils will be studying the history of a faraway continent which most of them will never have visited, there is a further level of otherness involved with learners’ perceptions of Australia being influenced by the tourism industry, popular culture, stereotypes, etc. The feeling of distance or otherness which may already occur in the study of the past can in this context even be intensified resulting in a whole kaleidoscope of different viewpoints on past events. In this context, it is even more important for both teachers and learners to remember Hartley’s proverbial quote – which could thus be supplemented: “The past is a foreign country. [And this past happened in a foreign country.; E.W.] They do things differently there.” 2

A brief history of the Stolen Generations

The term ‘Stolen Generations’ relates to a part of Australian history which to this day is fairly unknown to many people in Germany. It refers to the practice of forcibly taking children away from their families and Aboriginal communities through government authorities as part of the Australian assimilation policy pursued between approximately 1910 and 1970. Only those children were kidnapped who had an Aboriginal mother and a white father. Either the children were taken to mission stations or welfare institutions far away from their homes, or they grew up with adoptive parents, who often did not know where the children had come from. In many cases, any further contact between the children and their families and home communities was entirely cut off. This practice was legally justified by the General Child Welfare Law and the Aborigines Act (e.g. passed in Western Australia in 1905) making the Chief Protector of Aborigines the legal guardian of every Aboriginal child under sixteen. It first primarily targeted girls, whereas after the Second World War mainly boys fell victim to the assimilation policy. The main aim of the policy was based on the racist notion of ‘breeding out the colour’ (Hagemann 2004: 99). In order to exterminate so-called ‘halfcastes’ – in itself a racist term – the government attempted to prevent the children and adolescents, especially girls, from having sexual contact with Aborigines and thus having their own part Aboriginal children. An official government pretext for ‘stealing’ the children fuelled by contemporary racist notions of white European superiority (McCarthy 2004) usually was to increase children’s well-being and improve their opportunities to do well in life by giving them an education. Thus, many of these ‘stolen’ children worked as domestic servants, farm or industrial workers. “Welfare law authorised the white authorities to take automatically away any child from its Aboriginal parents that was found ‘neglected’, ‘destitute’ or ‘uncontrollable’ while white middle class standards were applied” (Kutsch 2004: 8). Furthermore, this neglected the fact that in the process of colonising Australia in the 18th and 19th century, the Aboriginal population had been drastically reduced through killings and diseases; the remaining population had been largely uprooted, dispossessed and exploited and

57

58

Australia many communities had been disrupted or destroyed (for a more detailed historical overview see ibid.: 5ff.). The practice of stealing children from their families caused traumatic experiences for both children and parents as well as having disastrous effects on Aboriginal communities. Aside from losing contact to their people, the stolen children were not allowed to speak their first languages as well as continue with their cultural traditions and customs. As a consequence a lot of these children suffered serious psychological damage, for those who lived in prison-like institutions never experienced love or affection but a ruthless discipline, physical, psychological and sexual abuse instead, and 12% of girls and 8,5% of boys – even those who were selected for adoption – were sexually abused. […] The results were disastrous, for these children not only lost their links to their past, but also suffered chronic depression, were traumatized or became alcoholics. A lot of them ended up in prison or committed suicide. It stands to reason that in this way whole families were torn apart and a whole race uprooted. (ibid.: 9)

Until recently, this part of Australian history and its effects on Australian society at large were neglected. This changed with the global human rights movements in the 1990s which caused the Australian government to form the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission. It was entrusted to write the Bringing Them Home report which for the first time gave an unsettling account of the experience of more than 500 children and their families: In that time not one Indigenous family has escaped the effects of forcible removal (confirmed by representatives of the Queensland and WA Governments in evidence to the Inquiry). Most families have been affected, in one or more generations, by the forcible removal of one or more children. (Commonwealth of Australia 1997: 31)

It was presumed that between 1910 and 1970 approximately 100,000 children were separated from their families and forced to assimilate. The authors of the report suggested to initiate a national Sorry Day which for the first time took place in 1998 and can be seen as part of a larger reconciliation movement. For a long time, the Australian government did not apologise for the crimes committed to the Stolen Generations, especially the conservative Prime Minister John Howard was not willing to officially apologise to the indigenous Australian people. In 2008 Kevin Rudd (Labor) was the first Australian Prime Minister to officially apologise to the Australian Aborigines for the injustice they suffered. Studying the Stolen Generations affords the opportunity to study the history of conflicts between indigenous people and colonial powers with the example of this little known part of Australian history beyond tourist attractions and popular culture. This in itself can be seen as a motivating factor for pupils who are often surprised and a little shocked not to have known yet of this cruel aspect of Australian history. Thus, this topic lends itself as an example of how the British Empire as a colonial power suppressed, disenfranchised and alienated indigenous people which can facilitate pupils’ insights into post-colonial literature, films and arts. Furthermore, a study of the racist terminology as used by the authorities in reasoning their actions can facilitate pupils’ understanding and awareness of the power domain of language (James & Garrett 1992: 14). Words and phrases such as *“halfcaste”, *”crossbreed”, “The native must be helped *in spite of *himself!” (all quoted in Commonwealth of Australia 1997: 24, 64, 238) can demonstrate how thinking

‘Our’ and ‘Their’ History: Rabbit-Proof Fence

according to the spirit of the time (colonialism, racism, Darwinism) becomes manifest in language use, thus turning language itself into a type of weapon. In all likelihood, pupils will be interested in studying how this occurred in other historical periods and places or in their own personal environment and society. 3

Rabbit-Proof Fence (2002) by Phillip Noyce – film and central topics

The film Rabbit-Proof Fence is based on the true story and experiences of Molly, Daisy and Gracie, three young Aboriginal girls, who were forcibly taken from their families in Jigalong, Western Australia, in 1931 and sent to the Moore River Native Settlement, where they were to be re-educated and trained as domestic servants. Feeling alienated from their family and community, the girls take the risk and escape from the settlement to walk the long way back to their families along the rabbit-proof fence cutting through Western Australia from North to South. The film Rabbit-Proof Fence is based on the novel Follow the Rabbit-Proof Fence (1996) by Doris Pilkington-Nugi Garimara1, who is the real Molly Craig’s daughter. The book is based on a true story; however, it consists of a mix of biographical records and fictional events. The film takes up many situations from the book, yet, in some cases they are told differently (for more details see Surkamp & Nünning 2009: 204). The film is framed by a documentary narrative: In the beginning, a voice-over by the then 90-year old Molly Craig introduces the main characters, the site of the story as well as the historical background. The voice-over is not spoken by an actress, but by the real Molly in the Aboriginal language with English subtitles. At the end of the film, Molly and her sister Daisy are shown as adults in documentary film sequences. Molly tells the viewer that as a grown-up woman she was again displaced to Moore River together with her two daughters Doris and Annabelle, escaped again and walked all the way back to Jigalong a second time. However, she had to leave her daughter Doris behind and could only walk back with her baby daughter Annabelle. Annabelle, though, was taken away from her three years later and she has never seen her again. The documentary frame serves to reinforce the authenticity of the film and illustrates to the audience from the start the story told is the ‘true’ life story of ‘real’ people. Aside from intensifying the emotional reactions to the film, this documentary frame also conveys the cruel brevity of the film’s happy ending, thus highlighting the disastrous and long-lasting consequences the policy of assimilation had on individual life stories and the Aboriginal community as a whole. (Curriculum) Topics covered in the film include:  Growing up, relationships (nature, family, friends, authorities), courage, determination, endurance, faith  Genocide, power struggles, assimilation policies, native communities and colonization  Australia: history, politics, geography, culture, Aborigines (then and now, spirituality, traditions, symbols, the Stolen Generations)  Film adaptation of a book, Autobiographic records vs. fiction. 1

Sources give different versions of Doris Pilkington’s/Nuri Garimara’s name. The latter is the name given to her by her mother after she was born. The former is usually used to identify her as author of the book Following the Rabbit-Proof Fence.

59

60

Australia Target group

EFL?

Bruck (2011)

Secondary level 2



Carrodus et al. (2001)

Middle to senior years

‒

Hartmann (2006)

Secondary level 2



Pusch (no date)

not specified

‒

Surkamp & Nünning (2009)

Secondary level 2



Wichmann et al. (no date)

Year 9



Focus

(only two lessons in a larger unit deal with the film Rabbit-Proof Fence) analysing the kidnapping scene, Mr. Neville’s racist policies, life at Moore River Settlement Reading parts of the book Follow the Rabbit-Proof Fence (Pilkington), history of the Stolen Generations, researching Mr. Neville and Moore River Settlement, analysing selected scenes History of the Stolen Generations, analysing racist motives, comprehending and analysing selected film scenes, practicing film language, analysing film adaptation of novel, analysing a film review Researching oppression of indigenous populations, (assimilation, tradition, genocide, taking responsibility), analysing the narrative style, practicing film language, analysing imagery, symbols, music & film techniques Reading Stolen (Harrison, 1998) and non-fictional texts about Australia, the history of the Stolen Generations, comprehending and analysing film sequences, changing perspectives (protagonists) Studying the film location, analysing life at the Moore River Settlement, creative writing (interior monologues), analysing atmosphere, reading and writing a film review

Table 1: Further publications on teaching the film Rabbit-Proof Fence

‘Our’ and ‘Their’ History: Rabbit-Proof Fence

4

Suggestions for teaching the historical background of Rabbit-Proof Fence

The intention of this teaching unit is to study the historical background of the film Rabbit-Proof Fence with a view on how the historical period depicted is staged through filmic devices. Further suggestions for teaching the movie with another focus, especially on film analysis or the film adaptation of a novel, are listed in table 1. In focusing on the historical background of the film, this unit contains interdisciplinary learning activities relating to both the curricula for teaching English as a foreign language and history. Prior to studying the major part of this unit, pupils should have watched the film (straight through approach; cf. Henseler et al. 2011: 36, Thaler 2014: 128ff.) to make sure they are familiar with the story and the main characters (especially Molly, Daisy, Gracie and Mr. Neville). Firstly, this ensures pupils have had the cinematic experience of reacting emotionally and feeling unsettled by the tragic fate of the children stolen from their families. Secondly, pupils will gain more from the historical film analysis if they have a chance to compare their analytical insights with their initial affective reactions to watching the film. This also means the activities suggested here can be done with pupils who already know Rabbit-Proof Fence and have studied it from a different angle. There is only one pre-watching activity intended to activate prior knowledge, trigger pupils’ curiosity about the film and introduce the general topic. In focusing on the historical background of the film Rabbit-Proof Fence, and especially the history of the Stolen Generations, these two main learning objectives are pursued: 1. Pupils understand that history is a constructed narrative, not ‘the truth’ about the past. 2. Pupils are able to change perspectives when studying historical backgrounds of fictional texts.

Even though the following activities have been designed for a unit comprising approximately nine 45 minute lessons (plus homework and optional extensions) to be taught in the order suggested, they can also be taught individually. This might be the case when teachers wish to touch upon the constructedness of historical narratives but have not got enough time for a full unit. 4.1

Introduction to the film (Pre-watching)

Prior to watching the film, the teacher splits up the class into three groups. Each group gets a sheet (cf. Mat No. 1) with either of these phrases: a. Rabbit-Proof Fence (original film title), b. Long Walk Home (film title in Germany) or c. The history of the Stolen Generations. Each group first speculates on the story being told in the film based on the information on their sheet. After pooling all ideas, the class guesses why different titles are used. It is advisable to document pupils guesses (e.g. on the board or on posters) to be able to go back to them after having watched the film. It is unlikely that pupils will have heard of the rabbit-proof fence. However, they might guess its function because they will know the word ‘fence’ and the phrase ‘water proof’. From the film title used in Germany, probably different from the original for marketing reasons, they might be able to deduce that the film is a kind of road movie with someone having to walk a long way to come home. In all likelihood pupils will be unfamiliar with the Stolen Generations, however, it will be fruitful to have pupils

61

62

Australia speculate about what they could be, who was stealing whom and why it is a plural phrase. After watching the film, the pupils look at their pre-watching speculations again to analyse how much they were able to anticipate about the film just by looking at the titles and the term Stolen Generations. 4.2

Researching the history of the Stolen Generations (Post-Watching)

After having watched the film there will be many questions as to the underlying historical events. Thus, for homework, pupils research (dictionaries, newspapers, video channels, history sites etc. on the Internet) the following terms provided by the teacher: Aborigines (definition, culture, places), Aborigenes Act in Western Australia from 1905 (regulation, consequences), Mr. A. O. Neville (position, policy), the Stolen Generations (definition), rabbit-proof fence (location, function), Bringing Them Home Report (aims, content), National Sorry Day (origin, aims), Sorry Speech (aims, content) (cf. Mat No. 2). In the following lesson, pupils in groups pool the information and documents they found about ‘their’ term. They prepare a group presentation to share and compare their findings with those of the other groups. In their presentation, pupils also relate their findings to the film Rabbit-Proof Fence if applicable. For example, they could name Molly’s totem, the eagle, as an example of Aboriginal culture. Or they refer to a particular film scene when explaining Mr. Neville’s position and policy. Teachers ought to make sure that after this activity pupils have a good understanding of the major events, people and positions regarding the history of the Stolen Generations as the subsequent activities will rely on this. 4.3

Story vs. history (Post-Watching)

As follow-up to pupils researching the Stolen Generations, the teacher writes the words ‘history’ and ‘story’ on the board and asks pupils to explain and compare their meanings in the think-pair-share mode (cf. Mat No. 3). Pupils should be encouraged to first note down their word associations and only then consult an online etymological dictionary with their smartphones (alternatively the teacher brings copies of dictionary entries to the class). The goal of this activity is to make pupils aware that both words a) share a word stem, b) are related in their meaning (fictional stories vs. stories about the past) and c) are different in that a ‘story’ is based on imagination and fantasy whereas a ‘history’ is based on events in the past. It can also be helpful to juxtapose the English words with their German equivalent ‘Geschichte’ to illustrate the relationship between phantasy-based fictional stories and histories based on inquiry into chronicled events and historical sources. Then, as a first activity to raise awareness of the narrative forms used in RabbitProof Fence, pupils in pairs list elements of ‘story’ and ‘history’ they remember from the film (cf. Mat No. 4). Many will remember the documentary film scenes from the end of the film and some will remember the historical information shown at the beginning and ending of the film (both: history). Pupils will have no difficulty in identifying fictional elements such as actors, dramatic music or the cross-cutting of scenes implying that Molly and her mother are touching the fence at the same time (all: story). These lists will be used again in another activity (The documentary frame).

‘Our’ and ‘Their’ History: Rabbit-Proof Fence

4.4

Stolen Generation’s Testimonies (Post-Watching)

To further pupils’ understanding that the film does not show the individual fates of three children only but is representative of the life stories of approximately 100,000 people and their families, pupils proceed by visiting the Stolen Generations’ Testimonies, an online museum displaying the personal testimonies of so far 45 Stolen Generations survivors. If possible, this activity should be done in a room with a smartboard, speakers as well as fast Internet access and earphones for all pupils. Alternatively, this activity could be changed into a homework. First, the teacher shows the website on the big screen to everyone. If possible the light in the room should be dimmed down, speakers switched on and there should be silence when the website is first opened up. This particular staging, which can be reflected on at a later point of time, intensifies the impact of the website. After watching the introduction to the website (photos of all 45 survivors, music, text: “The Voices. The Lives. The testimonies.”), one testimony is opened up by clicking on a photo. The teacher reads out the name, dates and places of birth and removal as well as the personal statement. After that, the video testimony of the person is played for a few minutes. Subsequently, the pupils feedback what they understood about the life story of this survivor. The teacher then introduces the following task in which pupils in small groups ‘go’ through the online museum looking at a few testimonies of their own choice (video, transcript, maps and photos) (cf. Mat No. 5). In doing so pupils focus on observing differences and similarities to the story told in Rabbit-Proof Fence and they reflect on why it might be important for the survivors to have such an online museum. Pupils will notice that the survivors had some very different and some very similar experiences from the incidents shown in the film. For example, one survivor had grown up with both her mother and father before being stolen. Also, the incidents in which the children were taken away from their families were very diverse, for instance from a mother taking her children to the station, to families being tricked into giving up their children and parents being away while their children were taken. Further to the testimonies, pupils also reflect on the design of the online museum (website with portraits of all survivors at the start, slow music, text overlay, background design, elements of Aboriginal artwork, setting and editing of video interviews, etc.). They analyse why the video clips start with a note that the “information in the testimonies are presented in good faith”. Pupils might realise that for some elements of these personal accounts there is no further historical source to back them up. Also, they might understand that people can have different recollections of the same event. Furthermore, pupils might notice that the website designers use similar techniques as film makers to stage the survivor stories, e.g. music, setting, eyelevel camera angle. This observation links back to the previous activity (Story vs. history) and pupils can discuss which narrative elements they can identify in this historical online museum. 4.5

The moment of being stolen (Post-Watching)

After exploring the variety of experiences of the Stolen Generation’s survivors pupils proceed studying how the same (or a similar) incident can be narrated in different ways. In doing so, pupils compare the abduction scene from the film with the matching extract from Doris Pilkington’s novel and an extract from the testimony of Donna Meehan (for summaries of all three extracts cf. Mat No. 6 & 7).

63

64

Australia Film & book

After watching the film scene (00:09:45-00:13:10) again in class, pupils individually summarise the sequence of events and make notes on filmic devices used (cf. Mat No. 6). For homework, they read the extract from the book (Pilkington 2002: 43ff.) and likewise summarise the plot. In the next lesson, they compare their two summaries with a partner and list differences and similarities between the incident told in film and book. Pupils will have noticed that in both versions it is Constable Riggs as the local Protector of Aborigines who arrives to abduct the three children. Another similarity is the wailing and self-injuring of the girls’ relatives to express sorrow. One major difference is the presence (film) and absence (book) of open resistance against the abduction. Whereas in the book Molly and Gracie stand up to go with Riggs, they try running away and physically resist the abduction in the film. Whereas there is much shouting and crying in the film all through the incident, the scene of the abduction as depicted in the book seems much quieter and more subdued. All in all, the film scene is much more dramatic, which is a result both of changing the plot and using particular filming techniques. It is thus worthwhile to have pupils discuss why the film may show the incident in this particular way. Pupils might hypothesise that Phillip Noyce wanted to stage the girls, particularly Molly, in a certain light as she becomes the strong-willed heroine during the walk home. Also they will realise that a dramatic narrative ‘works better’ in the cinema. In elaborating on this aspect the class might read and discuss the quotation from a critical review by McCarthy (2004: 12) which aims at explaining the popularity of the film. Pupils also will be motivated to share their opinion on whether they believe it is historically correct to change the original plot since the book is closer to ‘what really happened’. Here pupils might relate back to their knowledge of the survivors’ testimonies some of which are actually quite close to the film sequence. Another topic for discussion is the method of transportation to Moore River: Whereas in the film the children are transported in some kind of cage on a train, the actual transport was done by ship. In discussing this, pupils may notice a reference to the genocide committed during National-Socialism in Germany as trains have become almost symbolic of transporting victims to the death camps. Pupils will be motivated to discuss why Phillip Noyce chose this reference. Film & testimony

Together the students watch the extract from Donna Meehan’s testimony (Chapter 2: Letter/Train/Mum; the transcript could be used to facilitate comprehension) and in the think-pair-share mode list the differences between the film and Donna’s experiences (cf. Mat No. 7). They will especially notice the fact that Donna’s mother took her children to the station even though she did not want them to be taken away. They might also comment on the fact that this incident seems more ‘bureaucratic’ than the film since Donna’s mother reacted to a letter and even put on her best clothes. Also pupils might understand that it is because of her young age that Donna – in contrast to Molly – did not at first understand what was happening to her at the time of being stolen. To further pupils understanding and critical awareness regarding film narratives, they will turn Donna’s story into a story board, thus making decisions on how to stage and narrate a historic incident (cf. Mat No. 8). Time permitting, this productive film activity could also be extended to having pupils actually film their script with their smartphones at a nearby station with themselves as actors.

65

‘Our’ and ‘Their’ History: Rabbit-Proof Fence

4.6

The documentary frame: staging history and personal memories (PostWatching)

After exploring different narrative versions of similar events, pupils now proceed by analysing the juxtaposition of documentary and fictitious elements in Rabbit-Proof Fence. In doing so, they go back to their lists of story and history elements from the activity Story vs. history and briefly recapitulate their findings in relation to studying the Stolen Generation Testimonies as well as the different narratives on the moment of being stolen. Pupils then analyse the documentary frame of Rabbit-Proof Fence in detail by watching the beginning (00:00:00-00:02:55) again, focusing on the juxtaposing and blending of documentation and fiction (cf. Mat No. 9). In class pupils first list the sequence of film elements on the board (e.g. Aboriginal singing, history text, the ‘real’ Molly’s voice over, bird’s eye camera angle, etc.) and then colour-code the documentary and fictitious elements. The goal is to identify the barely noticeable moments when documentation changes into and sometimes mingles with fiction (e.g. when the ‘real’ Molly’s voice over ends and the actress playing Molly’s mother starts explaining the significance of the eagle; both speak in the Aboriginal language). Pupils then watch the ending again (01:20:05-01:24:20) and in small groups a) list and colourcode the sequence of events (e.g. the ‘real’ Molly’s voice over, Mr. Neville dictating a letter, film shots of the ‘real’ Molly and Daisy in old age, history text), b) comment on the effect the documentary frame has on the overall perception of the film and c) discuss the pros and cons of using fictitious filming for informing people about historical events. Pupils will understand the effect of the documentary ending in relativising the happy ending of Molly’s and Daisy’s return to Jigalong as well as contextualising the film story in the general history of the Stolen Generations. Also, they will be able to identify various pros and cons for historical film fiction such as listed in table 2, and will be motivated to discuss their personal opinions and preferences regarding other documentary and fictional films on historical events which they already know. Pros ‒ tells fictitious events representative for a specific historical period (Repräsentationsauthentizität; Pandel 2009) ‒ people like stories

Cons ‒ does not show historical sources ‒ shows events that did not really happen exactly like this ‒ could misinform people and even be used for propaganda

Table 2: Some pros and cons of using film fiction to inform about historical events

4.7

Language as a tool for staging historical events (Post-Watching)

In conclusion, pupils study how language is used in Rabbit-Proof Fence to stage the story of Molly, Daisy and Gracie in the wider historical context of the Stolen Generations (cf. Mat No. 10). The goal is to make pupils aware of the power domain of language and how it is explicitly used as a filmic device to reveal the attitude of the speaker. Pupils first study the two quotations from the Bringing Them Home report and identify words and phrases which reveal the racism underlying the ideas of the assimilation policy (examples are underlined). Words considered politically inappropriate from today’s perspective have been marked by *.

66

Australia Mr. Neville, Western Australia’s Chief Protector: The native must be helped in spite of *himself! Even if a measure of discipline is necessary it must be applied, but it can be applied in such a way as to appear to be gentle persuasion … the end in view will justify the means employed. (cited in: Commonwealth of Australia 1997: 238)

A local protector in Western Australia: The *half-caste is intellectually above the aborigine, and it is the duty of the State that they be given a chance to lead a better life than their mothers. I would not hesitate for one moment to separate any *half-caste from its aboriginal mother, no matter how frantic her momentary grief might be at the time. They soon forget their offspring. (cited in: Commonwealth of Australia 1997: 91)

Pupils then compare their findings to the terms ‘Bringing Them Home Report’ and ‘Stolen Generations’ to reflect on how they reveal an attitude contrasting the former Australian assimilation policy. Pupils will understand that explicitly using the term ‘stealing’ acknowledges the wrongdoing of removing and displacing children and that by ‘bringing them home’ an attempt was made to reconcile if not undo something which cannot be revoked. With the following quotation from the closing scene pupils in pairs then analyse how the film makes use of language in characterising Mr. Neville. When dictating a letter to Constable Riggs, Mr. Neville says: At present we lack the funds to pursue the missing *half-caste girls Molly and Daisy. I would ask to be kept informed of their whereabouts so that at some future date they may indeed be recovered. We face an uphill battle with these people, especially the bush natives, who have to be protected against themselves. If they would only understand what we are trying to do for them. (Rabbit-Proof Fence, 01:21:45-01:22:19)

Pupils will notice the film here uses almost an exact quotation of Mr. Neville referred to in the Bringing Them Home report. Also, they will be able to detect how his wording reveals the racist thinking of Mr. Neville as a character in the film, especially the fact that he believed to be doing something right and felt superior to the Aboriginal population. Pupils will also remember further examples from the film illustrating the power of language, e.g. the fact that the inmates of Moore River were not allowed to speak the Aboriginal language. This section can be concluded with a class discussion on Mr. Neville as a historical figure. Pupils will be interested in discussing how to judge Mr. Neville. Leading questions for the discussion are: How would you judge Mr. Neville? Do you think he was a product of his society and its values, or do you consider his decisions universally wrong? The Bringing Them Home Report refers to the forceful removal and displacement of children in Australia between 1910 and 1970 as ‘genocide’ – do you agree with this inspite of Mr. Neville’s intention to help? For the latter question pupils could research online the United Nations definition of genocide from 1948.

‘Our’ and ‘Their’ History: Rabbit-Proof Fence

5

Summary

In this cultural studies unit on the film Rabbit-Proof Fence for the secondary level 2 EFL classroom, pupils study the relationship between past events, the historiographic narrative and the fictional staging of history in films. In addressing various curriculum topics (both EFL and history), pupils explore the history of the Stolen Generations, the nature of history, characteristics of the historic narrative, filmic devices in staging history as well as language as a narrative and political tool. In addition to the film, the suggested teaching activities draw on various materials such as (online) history texts, personal testimonies of survivors, the book by Doris Pilkington, and the Bringing Them Home Report. Film reference Long Walk Home. Director: Phillip Noyce. Screenplay: Christine Olsen & Doris Pilkington. München: Universum Film. DVD 2004. 91 Minutes.

References Bruck, Peter (2011), James Moloney: Angela. Stuttgart: Klett Sprachen. Carrodus, Geraldine; Tudball, Libby & Walsh, Tammy (2001), Rabbit-Proof Fence. A Study Guide. Melbourne: Australian Teachers of Media. Commonwealth of Australia (1997), Bringing Them Home. National Inquiry into the Separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children from their Families. Sydney: Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission. Evans, Richard J. (1997), In Defence of History. London: Granta. Hagemann, Albrecht (2004), Kleine Geschichte Australiens. München: Beck. Hartley, Leslie Poles (1953), The Go-Between. London: Hamish Hamilton. Hartmann, Ulrich (2006), Rabbit-Proof Fence. Paderborn: Schöningh. Henseler, Roswitha; Möller, Stefan & Surkamp, Carola (2011), Filme im Englischunterricht. Grundlagen, Methoden, Genres. Seelze: Klett/Kallmeyer. James, Carl & Garrett, Peter (1992), The scope of language awareness. In: James, Carl & Garrett, Peter (Eds.), Language Awareness in the Classroom. London, New York: Longman, 3-20. KMK Kultusministerkonferenz (2003), Bildungsstandards für die erste Fremdsprache (Englisch/Französisch) für den Mittleren Abschluss. Sekretariat der Ständigen Konferenz der Kulturminister der Länder in der Bundesrepublik Deutschland. [Online: http://www.kmk.org/fileadmin/Dateien/veroeffentlichungen_beschluesse/2003/2003_ 12_04-BS-erste-Fremdsprache.pdf 01.04.2016]. Kutsch, Arthur (2005), Introduction. In: Kutsch, Arthur (Eds.), Stolen by Jane Harrison. With Additional Material. München: Langenscheidt, 5-17. McCarthy, Greg (2004), Australian Cinema and the Spectres of Post-Coloniality. Rabbit-Proof Fence, Australian Rules, The Tracker and Beneath Clouds. London: Menzies Centre for Australian Studies. Pandel, Hans-Jürngen (2009), Authentizität. In: Mayer, Ulrich; Pandel, Hans-Jürgen; Schneider, Gerhard & Schönemann, Bernd (Eds.), Wörterbuch Geschichtsdidaktik. Schwalbach: Wochenschau-Verlag, 30-31.

67

68

Australia Pilkington, Doris/Garimara, Nuri (2002 [1996]), Follow the Rabbit-Proof Fence. St. Lucia: University of Queensland Press. Pusch, Steffi (no date), Long Walk Home. Film-Heft. Medienzentrum Wiesbaden [Online: https://www.wiesbaden.de/microsite/medienzentrum/medien/bindata/Long_Walk_Ho me.pdf 01.04.2016]. Schönemann, Bernd (2012), Geschitsbewusstsein – Theorie. In: Barricelli, Michele & Lücke, Martin (eds.), Handbuch Praxis des Geschichtsunterrichts. Band 1. Schwalbach/Taunus: Wochenschau, 98-111. Staschen-Dielmann, Susanne (2009), Narrative Kompetenz im bilingualen Geschichtsunterricht. Didaktische Ansätze zur Förderung der schriftlichen Diskursfähigkeit. Frankfurt/Main: Lang. Stolen Generations Testimonies Foundation (no date). Stolen Generations’ Testimonies [Online: http://stolengenerationstestimonies.com 01.04.2016]. Surkamp, Carola & Nünning, Ansgar (2009), Filmunterricht als Kulturunterricht: Die Stolen Generation in Australien am Beispiel des Films Rabbit-Proof Fence, des Theaterstücks Stolen und weiterer Texte. In: Surkamp, Carola & Nünning, Ansgar (Eds.), Englische Literatur unterrichten 2 – Unterrichtsmodelle und Materialien. Seelze-Velber: Klett, Kallmeyer, 196–236. Thaler, Engelbert (2014), Teaching English with Films. Paderborn: Schöningh. Wichmann, Nicole; Fischer, Anja; Benz, Hubert; Becker, Carmen & Schäfer, Jens (no year), Rabbit-Proof Fence. Landesakademie für Fortbildung und Personalentwicklung an Schulen [Online: http://lehrerfortbildung-bw.de/faecher/englisch/bs/6bg/fb2/1film/ 01.04.2016].

New Zealand

Whale Rider: A Deep Dive into Māori Culture Nancy Grimm

Based on the 1987 young adult novel The Whale Rider by Māori author Sir Witi Tahe Ihimaera and directed by award-winning New Zealand film director, producer, and screenwriter Niki Caro, the film Whale Rider (2002, 97 min., FSK 6) may not yet have been frequently considered for teaching purposes by German teachers of English. The film is, however, well worthy of becoming part of the educational film canon as it presents a treasure trove for the EFL classroom – particularly, for teaching cultural aspects, traditions as well as present-day concerns of New Zealand’s largest minority group, the Māori. Presenting perspectives from within Māori culture and having a great potential to create intense emotional involvement, the film should be employed with a distinct focus on cultural and film studies. 1

Film content and central themes

With teachers required to re-define their role in the EFL classroom towards acting as “cultural mediators” (Delanoy 1993: 281), they are asked to enable their students to (1) reflect upon their own cultural perspectives and inherent preconceptions (cf. Freese 2002: 14f.), (2) to approach and learn about other cultures by changing their own perspectives and temporarily ‘stepping into the shoes’ of the ‘Other’ on the basis of a thorough understanding of their own cultural identities (cf. Freese 2002: 22f.), (3) to meet with the ‘Other’ in a dialogic situation (cf. Kramsch 1996: 235) and (4) to treat other cultures with respect (cf. Volkmann 2000: 17, Volkmann et al. 2002) without stepping into the pitfalls of romanticising the ‘other’ or either ignoring or overtly emphasising cultural differences (cf. Bredella et al. 2000, Volkmann 2010: 133ff.). Not only has the film Whale Rider the capacity for conveying the goals outlined above, but it also provides teachers with the opportunity to extend their teaching beyond the traditional cultural studies of the USA and Great Britain (cf. Grimm 2007a & 2007b, 2010a & 2010b). Furthermore, as an expertly narrated and directed film Whale Rider allows for creative and student-centred activities in the realm of media studies and film analysis, both of which have now become distinct requirements for the EFL classroom (cf. Surkamp 2004; Grimm 2009, 2013, 2015; Elsner et al. 2013; Thaler 2014). Both novel and film provide many specific details about Māori culture, history and present-day concerns from Māori perspectives. Therefore, Whale Rider lends itself perfectly for experiencing first hand the culture, traditions, and present-day life of a Māori community without painting a romanticised or exotic picture about their lifes.

70

New Zealand Whale tooOn the contrary, as a coming-of-age story, the film stresses universal human themes such as the troubles of adolescence, generational conflicts and the unequal division of male and female gender roles. According to Ihimaera, it was the latter point specifically that he wanted to address in his novel: “I hope that every young girl in the world embraces this story. It’s their own, because they have so many challenges to face.” (Whale Rider, “Behind the Scenes”, 00:25:45-00:25:55) Apart from these universal themes, the film thrives on the Māori legend of Paikea, the ancient Whale Rider. This particular legend is a central creation myth for the Māori community (largely from the Ngāti Porou iwi) in the village of Whangara on the East Coast of New Zealand’s North Island, the setting of the film. Accordingly, viewers are introduced to the film from the point of view of Paikea (Keisha Castle-Hughes), the film’s main female protagonist, by means of the following voice-over: In the old days, the land felt a great emptiness. It was waiting. Waiting to be filled up. Waiting for someone to love it. Waiting for a leader. And he came on the back of a whale, a man to lead a new people. Our ancestor – Paikea. But now we were waiting for the firstborn of the new generation, for the descendant of the Whale Rider, for the boy who would be Chief. There was no gladness when I was born. My twin brother died and took our mother with him. Everyone was waiting for the first-born boy to lead us. But he died. And I didn’t. My Koro [Paikea’s grandfather] wished in his heart that I’d never been born. But he changed his mind. (00:01:11-00:07:41, emphasis added, N.G.)

The voice-over – to a large extent – parallels the opening sequence of the film, in which Paikea’s mother dies during labour and with her Paikea’s twin brother, who was meant to be the future Chief. The above circumstances initiate the film’s storyline and its inherent conflicts, with Paikea and Koro (Rawiri Paratene) driving the plot. According to a Māori tradition, the first-born son of a generation is meant to be the successor of the current Chief. Koro, the present Chief, is determined to carry on Māori tradition, thereby preventing Paikea from fulfilling her destiny and aspirations. Although Koro shares many traditional Māori stories with Paikea and the two of them get along well at the beginning of the film, their relationship deteriorates when Paikea makes her claim to leadership as a female. Koro has set up a special school for all the first-born boys from the village. There he wants to teach them the skills and knowledge it takes to be a Māori leader, while Paikea is not allowed to attend. She tries in vain to gain acceptance and respect from her grandfather: She practices mai rakau, Māori stick fighting, with her uncle Rawiri (Grant Roa), she learns ancient Māori chants, prayers and calls as well as tribal lore and warrior techniques. However, the more Paikea tries to impress Koro, the more he gets upset with her. He does not want her to interfere with the traditional ways. Koro is so focused on finding his successor among the boys that he does not realise that Paikea is the one destined to be the new leader. When Pai, as she is called, is the one retrieving the whale tooth which Koro used to wear around his neck, from the ocean, the audience realises what Koro still needs to be convinced of – that having passed the ultimate test, Paikea is meant to be the next Chief. Only when a shoal of whales is washed upon shore, unable to move back into the ocean, does Koro realise Paikea’s true destiny. Although the entire village rushes to the shore to rescue the whales, it is Paikea, who – in a mythical line of narration that intrudes the otherwise realistic storyline – mounts a whale, rides on its back and dives away with it into the water, followed by the entire shoal of whales. For a short moment we are to believe that Paikea may have died in her attempt to rescue the whales, but

Whale Rider: A Deep Dive into Māori Culture

the audience soon learns that she is still alive and in hospital. There, Koro finally worships the unconscious Paikea as the one having the powers to succeed him as Chief. With that acceptance, the entire Māori community transforms from a state of stasis and deterioration into one of triumph, cherishing the renewal of Māori tradition. As the film ends, the Māori community is united in Porourangi’s (Paikea’s father, Cliff Curtis) waka (canoe), which has been refurbished as a symbol of the community’s revival and unity. A final voice-over by Paikea symbolises this: “My name is Paikea Apirana and I come from a long line of Chiefs, stretching all the way back to the Whale Rider. I’m not a prophet, but I know that our people will keep going forward – altogether, with all of our strength.” (01:33:18-01:33:40) 2

Film background and context

An arthouse film, Whale Rider was filmed on a budget of NZ$ 9,235,000 (financing came from the New Zealand Film Production Fund, ApolloMedia, Filmstiftung NRW, the New Zealand Film Commission and NZ On Air). It premiered at the 2002 Toronto International Film Festival and saw its theatrical release in 2003. It was sold to 96 countries and grossed US$ 45 million at box offices worldwide: “In 2003, Whale Rider was the second most successful independent film in the world by box office” (Gascoigne 2009: 8). The film has been praised for its mix of Māori culture, myths and heritage with the coming-of-age story of the teenage girl Paikea Apirana, who transgresses cultural as well as gender boundaries, thereby reviving and leading her people into the 21st century. Ihimaera was inspired to make Paikea Apirana the heroine of his book The Whale Rider, because he was disappointed in the apparent lack of heroines in many Hollywood films sticking to traditional gender roles – the male protecting and saving the helpless female: Niki [the director Niki Caro] created a marvellous transformation and she updated the story so that it is very relevant beyond the year 2003. It’s not just about a community that is faced with a particular problem of ancestry and succession, it’s also about women and how they need to find and make their own way in society. Pai has become this iconic young girl who is desperately trying to seek her own sovereignty and her own destiny in a male-oriented world. (Film Education 2003: 4)

Although eleven-year-old Keisha Castle-Hughes had no previous acting experience, her performance as well as her brilliant interaction with established Māori actors such as Rawiri Paratene and Cliff Curtis won the film numerous prizes and awards. CastleHughes was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress, becoming the youngest actress ever nominated for this award. 3

Film analysis and criticism

Whale Rider received critical acclaim, and so did Keisha Castle Hughes for her performance as Paikea. For example, her performance was lauded as follows: [The] prepubescent awkwardness endears Pai to the audience and makes her seem terribly vulnerable when she stands up to her disapproving grandfather. (He’s a scowling

71

72

New Zealand carved totem to her wisp of grass.) But it also serves another purpose: Pai’s un-selfconsciousness contrasts with her intense inner life. (Klawans 2004, cf. Beck 2004)

Another reviewer concluded that “Whale Rider is easily the strongest New Zealand film since the early 90s peak of Heavenly Creatures, Once Were Warriors and The Piano” (Matthews 2003), supporting this notion with the film’s “confident blend of tragedy, comedy and innate, intuitive mysticism” (ibid). The reviewer goes on to mention that “Paikea’s story comes to follow the natural hero’s trajectory, as though she were King Arthur or Luke Skywalker – the child that no one expected to carry the birthright and lead the people” (ibid). However, Matthews also sees shortcomings; comparing film and novel, he states that “[t]he book’s politics felt […] much more urgent and explicit” (ibid). Another review perceives the following message as central to the film: “The film tells us that culture always has been dynamic. […] We are reminded that culture and language can be transferred and lived in contemporary societies without compromising who we are as indigenous peoples.” (Gould 2004) Reviews focusing on the film’s narrative and cinematic appeal point out its “mythic dimensions” (Morris 2003: 18) and ‘cultural message’: Whatever popular success the film finds in the global village, however ‘universal’ the appeal of its story, Whale Rider is a profoundly New Zealand film. It issues a challenge to young Maori, who no longer draw their identity from their heritage; and to older Maori, whose rigid guardianship of cultural tradition contains it in the past. It issues a challenge to all New Zealanders, for whom history begins with Abel Tasman or Captain Cook, to find inspiration in the precolonial past and, implicitly, a way forward as a distinctive nation. (ibid.: 19)

The representation of ‘culture’ as well as the cultural influences that informed the production of Whale Rider have also been topics of rather heated debates. For example, criticism was directed at the distortion of “Ngāte Porou’s complex gender and generational relationships to pander to Euro-American liberal feminist mores” (Werry 2011: 218). Criticism from within the Māori community issues the following complaints: Caro can only ever be expected to use her own set of cultural filters in her role as director, and for this reason is unable to reproduce the peculiar nuances in the film that Ihimaera captured so well in the novel. […] [T]he power of the film is diluted. This is best understood from the viewpoint that the film is aimed at a global market and necessitated intervening on iwi (tribal) cultural reproduction, so as to transfigure the role of Māori elders and girls to align with the division of patriarchy and Eurocentric feminisms. To do so is to make the film more appealing and sexier for the global market. (Ka’ai 2005: 3, 12)

The most outspoken criticism was published by Barry Barclay in an open letter to John Barnett (2003), one of the producers of the film. With hardly disguised anger and cynicism, Barclay attacks Barnett with the following words: We are attractive subjects. Our stories are “universal”; they are “absolutely international”. Ah, those cheekbones; ah, the suppressed savagery; and ah, last but not least, the allure. […] John, don’t badger us that this is the glorious path which we must all go along, head to tail; don’t put us down when we raise our concerns about how nonIndigenous artists handle this type of material; and don’t go hyper-promoting, in any triumphalist way, “universal story” to the detriment of genuine Indigenous efforts.

Whale Rider: A Deep Dive into Māori Culture

Above all, don’t tell us that we, as Maori, must like this film. It is every People’s right to make their minds up on that, particularly when it is their own world being shown up there on the screen. (Barclay 2003: 34, 36)

Such resentment from within the Māori community should certainly be taken seriously. However, one also needs to point out that “Itimera [sic] has always insisted on the universalism of the story he tells in the novel” (Weiland 2014: 125). It might indeed be more fruitful to acknowledge “[t]he intercultural processes involved in the making of Whale Rider” (Pitts 2014: 58), which may be read as “rejection of dialectical reasoning in the sphere of cultural difference in favour of the idea of a ‘third space’ distinguished by cultural multiplicity and exchange” (ibid.). This has resulted in an intercultural cinematic space, which “is occupied by the juxtaposition and intersection of different cultures, as well as the cultural products that arise from that relation” (ibid.). The author of this contribution – personally and from a subjective point of view – tends to agree with this perception and thus begs to differ with another reviewer’s reading of the film as “locking the Maoris [sic] into a stereotypical backward-looking past” (Hubbard no year). Still, teachers and pupils should avoid perceiving the film exclusively through an inevitably limited Western, European or German lens with its respective cultural conditionings. For this undertaking, sound cultural, socio-political and cinematographic knowledge as well as intercultural competence (cf. Byram 1997; Volkmann 2000, 2011; Freese 2002; Volkmann et al. 2002) is of utmost importance; the ensuing teaching sequence seeks to facilitate this. 4

Teaching potential, activities and tasks

Against the background of the film’s potential for both conveying (inter-)cultural knowledge and analysing cinematographic techniques, this contribution will outline pre-, while-, and post-viewing activities for a creative and student-centred approach to the film in the German EFL classroom (for ready-to-use worksheets see online materials and additional study guides listed therein). The ensuing suggestions for teaching the film from 10th grade up – along with sample answers and interpretations as well as methodological recommendations – are meant to broaden students’ knowledge about Māori culture, while also providing ideas for creative activities as well as the analysis of selected film scenes. Due to the emotional appeal of the film and before inviting student responses, Whale Rider should best be shown in full or, if necessary, be cut up into two larger sections of about 45 minutes each. 4.1

Pre-viewing

There are different activities for introducing a film and related topics to students in the EFL classroom (cf. Stempleski & Tomalin 2001, Surkamp 2004, Thaler 2014). Amongst many other suggestions, the following pre-viewing activity appears to be suitable for an introductory lesson to the teaching sequence on Whale Rider presented in this contribution. Different film posters (cf. Mat No. 1) could be used to introduce or speculate about plot, characters, etc. As ‘media texts’ they may also be the basis of a detailed discussion about and analysis of their particular characteristics, thus facilitating students’ visual literacy (cf. Fisch & Viebrock 2013, Elsner et al. 2013):

73

74

New Zealand  Picture frame and caption  Size and format (landscape- or portrait-format)  Composition (line, shape, colour, texture, rhythm, contrast, salience) Genre and motif  Point of view/perspective, angle, horizon, and space (visible – invisible, seen – unseen)  Position and size of subject on the page (Grimm et al. 2015: 201f.; cf. Jewitt & Oyama 2001, Wolf 2006: 20, Stafford 2011) Both film posters and trailer aim at drawing the attention of a potential audience to the film. While the trailer does so with a fast-cut sequence of dramatic and/or key scenes of the film, often leaving many gaps to fill and thus providing the chance to speculate about the film’s storyline, film posters employ different means to invite viewers to come and watch the film. Alongside the title of the film, the stars in and the director of the film, a film poster makes use of an appealing picture and a strap line meant to touch the viewer’s feelings. Strap lines on film posters for Whale Rider read, for example, “In the ways of the ancients, she found a hope for the future” or, “One young girl dared to confront the past, change the present, and determine the future”. This pre-viewing activity brings to the surface students’ expectations regarding the film’s storyline, which may or may not be verified while watching the film. 4.2

While-viewing

While-viewing activities are meant to provide students with a particular task or focus while watching the film. Since Whale Rider thrives on the relationships and conflicts between its protagonists, while-viewing activities focusing on the main protagonists (Koro, Paikea, Nanny Flowers, Porourangi, Rawiri) and their development during the course of the film are presented here. Character development

Based on a worksheet providing a table of characters in the film (cf. Mat No. 2), student teams or groups are asked to focus on one protagonist (actions and behaviour, interaction with other characters, motivation) and his/her development throughout the film. This activity pays due attention to the many round characters in the film – their actions and behaviour are presented as complex and multi-dimensional:  Paikea refuses to adhere to her grandfather’s traditional ways. She is the lead in a school play and is introduced as a very intelligent and inquisitive girl. When Koro opens up his ‘school for boys’, she tries in vain to gain acceptance and respect from her grandfather. She practices mai rakau, Māori stick fighting, with her uncle Rawiri; she learns ancient Māori chants, prayers, calls, tribal lore, and warrior techniques. However, the more Paikea tries to impress Koro, the more he gets angry with her. When Paikea gives her speech in honour of her grandfather, she is heartbroken because of his absence. However, when Paikea is the one retrieving the whale tooth from the ocean, Koro has to accept that Paikea is meant to be his successor. Thereupon, she rescues the whales and finally sits centre stage next to her grandfather in the waka.  Koro changes from being a loving grandfather into an increasingly stubborn Chief. Yet, at the end of the film, he worships Paikea and has found his peace with her becoming his successor. Koro has finally accepted that his granddaughter will be

Whale Rider: A Deep Dive into Māori Culture

the new Chief, and with that acceptance, the entire Māori community transforms from a state of stasis and melancholy into one of triumph, cherishing the renewal and revitalisation of Māori tradition.  Nanny Flowers (Vicky Haughton), Koro’s wife, is yet another strong female character in the film, a very strong and outspoken woman. At the beginning of the film, she even threatens Koro with a divorce, when he is unwilling to accept his granddaughter Paikea. Throughout the film she is very caring, comforting Paikea and continually trying to convince Koro that his ideals are outdated, that change is inevitable.  Porourangi, Paikea’s father, is shown as very insecure, especially when he is around his father. He had left the family and Paikea after the death of his wife and son and is somewhat caught between two worlds. His modern art photography is juxtaposed with the traditional waka, which he left behind unfinished. When he fails at taking Paikea with him to Germany, he tries hard to come to grips with his feeling of nonbelonging. At the end of the film, however, his waka has been refurbished and Porourangi is reintegrated into the Māori community. Even his German girlfriend, Anna, standing at the shore with the Māori community, is welcome.  Rawiri, Porourangi’s younger brother, is introduced as a very young boy, who – like Paikea – seems to have suffered from his father’s strong-headed adherence to tradition, especially regarding the role of the male in the Māori community. Grown up, Rawiri is shown as an obese and apparently unemployed man. He lazes about with his friends. However, when he teaches Paikea the arts of traditional Māori stick fighting, we learn that Rawiri used to be a master with the taiaha. Upon that moment, Rawiri grows more and more determined, trying to get back into shape. At the end of the film, he even leads the Māori community in their fight to rescue the shoal of whales beached at the shore. Character constellation

Follow-up activities may be comprised of drawing up a character constellation (cf. Mat No. 3). Students could be asked to sketch out a character constellation which visualises the relationships and/or conflicts between the characters by means of grouping them accordingly (proximity, alignment, etc). One realisation of such a constellation could be one with Koro positioned in the centre, as he is not only the Chief of the community, but also the source of the major conflicts in the film. With his stern adherence to tradition, especially to the direct patrilineal lineage of male descendants, he is in conflict with: (1) Paikea, because of her aspiration to be his successor, (2) with his wife, Nanny Flowers, who acts as a mediator between her husband and Paikea, (3) with his eldest son, Porourangi, for refusing leadership and (4) with his younger son, Rawiri, for failing at becoming a respectable Māori man. Alternatively, a diagram focusing on the conflicts arising from both the influence of Western culture on traditional Māori culture as well as from the divide between the two cultures, may shed light on intercultural conflicts (cf. Mat No. 4). Based on this diagram, students are asked to position each of the five main protagonists in the diagram (minor protagonists may also be included). While there is certainly room for discussion, students will probably find that most of the major and minor characters can be positioned in the in-between space between the two cultures, while only Koro and Paikea are deeply rooted in traditional Māori culture. Consider, for example, Porourangi, who is caught between the experience of a Western city, his modern-art

75

76

New Zealand photography and returning to his Māori village, from which he initially escaped because of its atmosphere of hopelessness and desperation. His brother Rawiri embodies the degradation of the village community. He represents a generation of Māori driven into unemployment and alcoholism, wasting their time and losing their cultural roots. This generation has passed on its careless outlook on life to the next generation, who also lacks appropriate knowledge about Māori traditions and thus fails at proving their ability to become leaders. While the film openly criticises this generation’s behaviour and presents it as a major source for the deterioration of traditional Māori culture, Koro’s and Paikea’s attempts at carrying on Māori traditions provide a counter-stance, which offers a sense of balance between the problems of present-day Māori life and their traditions, legends and language. Koro tries to pass on Māori traditions and knowledge in the community centre as well as in his school for boys. Paikea is the lead in a school play featuring the legend of Paikea and presents her knowledge about this founding myth in a speech held in honour of her grandfather. Thus, far from painting a bleak picture of present-day Māori life or presenting problems of the Māori community as entirely caused by the past and present influence of Western culture, Whale Rider succeeds in conveying a complex and balanced angle on contemporary Māori culture. Narrative structure

Another focus during viewing should be the film’s narrative structure: “[N]arrative can be defined as a ‘representation of a series of unified events (happenings and actions) situated in one or more settings.’ The events may be arranged chronologically or nonchronologically and may be factual, fictional, or a blend of the two.” (Phillips 2005: 249) The underlying narrative structure of Whale Rider can be compared to Freytag’s pyramid, the traditional narrative structure of drama, as well as to that of the Hero’s Journey (cf. Mat No. 5, 6 & 15, running schedule 21 to 24). 4.2

Post-viewing activities

Most of the activities presented here focus on the post-viewing stage of the teaching sequence. Some of them may, however, also be of use in the pre- and/or while-viewing phases. Based on the initial screening of the film as well as on re-viewing key scenes, the following activities aim at discussing and analysing the film’s content as well as cinematic techniques in greater detail. Central themes in the film

As the film deals with many different issues, groups of students may be asked to focus on the following central themes in Whale Rider: (1) leadership (for an overview of attributes of Māori leadership see Ka‘ai 2005: 10f.), (2) gender roles, (3) achievement, and (4) working together. After discussing where and how these themes are present in the film, student groups are asked to focus on one central theme in particular and to complete the creative writing task (cf. Mat No. 7; cf. Murray et al. 2003: 3). This student-centred activity not only requires of students to negotiate their individual findings and approaches with their fellow group members, but as a creative writing task meant to be presented to the class, it also provides an opportunity to practice oral and presentation skills.

Whale Rider: A Deep Dive into Māori Culture

Symbolism: the rope and the waka

A focus on symbols (central motifs) in Whale Rider will not only draw parallels to the analysis of narrative texts, but it will also provide students with a more thorough understanding of how films employ visual symbols to convey multi-layered messages. Working like metaphors in narrative texts, the symbolism inherent in ‘the waka’ and ‘the rope’ should be analysed and discussed in the EFL classroom (cf. Mat No. 8; cf. Murray et al. 2003: 2):  The waka (a Māori watercraft, usually canoes): Unfinished at the beginning of the film, the waka is another symbol for the community’s disintegration. It has been left behind by Porourangi, who himself has left behind his community and ancient traditions to start anew in the city. However, throughout the film, many scenes take place in the waka: Porourangi comforts Paikea; Paikea stands in it, singing traditional Māori chants and calling the whales; at the end of the film, the refurbished waka gracefully moves into the picture. The Māori community is united in the waka as a symbol for the community’s revival.  The rope: It is used by Koro to explain to Paikea how the Māori community works like a rope, which consists of little threads to make it strong. Like the rope, the Māori community will only be and remain strong, if each individual member is strong and works hand in hand with the others. However, using it to start a boat engine, the rope tears apart and as such is employed as a metaphor for the extent to which the local community has recently been disintegrating, how individuals have become weak and how this has caused the entire community to lose its strength. As the scene continues, Paikea is able to fix the rope and start the engine, which may be read symbolically as yet another hint at her ability to lead and reinvigorate the community. There are many other symbols in the film which may be analysed and discussed in the EFL classroom: Koro’s staff, the whales, Paikea’s bicycle, etc. (cf. Murray et al. 2003: 2). Cinematic techniques: opening sequence – Paikea’s birth

While films are often discussed with regard to their content, the EFL classroom needs to include analyses of cinematographic techniques used in a film on a more frequent basis (for detailed introductions to the analysis of films see Steinmetz 2003, Phillips 2005, Monaco 2009, www.mediamanual.at). Since media literacy is an explicit requirement in German curricula and a key qualification for today’s students, a focus on how to ‘read’ films on the basis of specific knowledge about cinematic techniques needs to be introduced to the primary EFL classroom and further developed in higher grades (cf. Stafford 2011). By choosing scenes or sequences of a film, which employ a wide range of cinematographic techniques to communicate meaning and/or produce a particular emotional response in the viewer, teachers may introduce and explain a selected set of cinematic terms along with the effect usually created through them. For the film Whale Rider, the opening sequence (00:00:20-00:07:41) lends itself perfectly for both an introduction of cinematographic techniques and an analysis of their respective effects (cf. Mat No. 9). The film starts with a narrative of Paikea’s birth. Fading in from a black screen and accompanied with dramatic music together with a voice-over by Paikea, the film’s first shot is of the deep blue sea and the image of a whale underwater. The film then cuts to the hospital and to the dramatic childbirth, in which Paikea’s mother and twin brother die. An extreme close-up on the mother and

77

78

New Zealand father during the act of labour shows minute detail and conveys the agony Paikea’s mother is experiencing. In addition, shots through a blurred lens, the use of slow motion and a Dutch angle (canted angle) of the camera add force to the eerie atmosphere of this scene. Parallel editing – cuts back and forth between the act of birth and the whale underwater – creates a metaphorical link between Paikea’s birth and the legend of the Whale Rider. Thus, the film foreshadows at its very beginning that Paikea is destined to be the next leader. This reading of the scene is underscored by an extreme close-up on the mouth of Paikea’s mother, whispering the name Paikea, and a direct cross-cut to the new-born baby girl and an image of her mouth. The entire sequence, accompanied by Paikea’s voice-over, also introduces the founding myth of the Whale Rider, which is central to the film. The sequence closes with a high-angle shot on Porourangi, caressing his deceased wife. This shot down on Porourangi suggests his vulnerability and loneliness as he is helpless in the face of death. While students should be able to recognise most of the techniques, describing the effects created through them depends extensively on the students’ visual literacy, their perceptive skills and their ability to decode the visual input presented to them. Since student responses to this scene will certainly be subjective and highly emotional, they should be allowed to talk about their personal readings of this scene. While a wide range of teaching material already contains a list of cinematographic terminology with an explanation of their effects, one should keep in mind that the techniques employed in a film may not always correspond to these explanations or that student responses may deviate from them. Yet, a teacher-guided in-class discussion comparing and negotiating student responses will certainly lead to a detailed understanding of the opening scene of the film Whale Rider. Creating a storyboard: Paikea rescuing the whales

Related to the activity presented above, the teaching sequence could continue with a productive task that not only deepens the students’ understanding of how cinematic techniques can be employed to convey meaning and produce emotional responses in the audience, but which also takes a closer look at the creation of storyboards as a specific pre-production phase in the making of a film. Storyboards consist of a series of frames (drawings) which depict a sequence in a film shot by shot. Storyboards are used to illustrate a shot and include both a sketch and a technical description of it, giving directors an idea of how a specific sequence will look when it is finished. In the EFL classroom, students may be asked to create a storyboard on the basis of the following excerpt from the novel The Whale Rider: She was the whale rider. Astride the whale she felt the sting of the surf and rain upon her face. On either side the younger whales were escorting their leader through the surf. They broke through into deeper water. Her heart was pounding. She saw that now she was surrounded by the whale herd. Every now and then, one of the whales would come to rub alongside the ancient leader. Slowly, the herd made its way to the open sea. (Ihimaera 2006 [1987]: 112)

Students should try to ‘translate’ each sentence into single frames in a storyboard. For this activity, both a sample storyboard as well as a storyboard template should be handed out to the students (cf. Mat No. 10). While students may initially be irritated about drawing in the EFL classroom, this interdisciplinary activity will accommodate both students who are good at drawing as well as those who have acquired a more theoretical understanding of cinematographic techniques. Once students have

Whale Rider: A Deep Dive into Māori Culture

overcome their initial surprise about this creative task, frames created for a storyboard may look like the sample frame created by a student for the first sentence from the excerpt of the novel (cf. Mat No. 10). While this activity requires of students to apply newly acquired cinematographic terminology in their function as storyboarders, it also deepens their understanding of the legend of Paikea as central to the film. In addition, students can compare their cinematic adaptations of the excerpt from the novel to the actual scene in the film, commented on by director Niki Caro in the director’s audio commentary (01:24:46-01:27:35). Paikea’s speech: redefining the role of the leader

Continuing the focus on the legend of Paikea, the following activity directs the students’ attention to Paikea’s redefinition of the Chief’s role. In a speech in honour of her grandfather (01:08:44-01:12:29), Paikea takes up the legend of Paikea once again, but adds a new dimension to the role of the Chief in the Māori community. Her speech reads as follows: E nga rangatira e nga iwi tena koutou, tena koutou, tena koutou katao. This speech is a token of my deep love and respect for Koro Apirana, my grandfather. My name is Paikea Apirana. And I come from a long line of Chiefs, stretching all the way back to Hawaiki, where our ancient ones are. The ones that first heard the land crying and sent a man. His name was also Paikea. And I am his most recent descendant. But I was not the leader my grandfather was expecting. And by being born, I broke the line back to the ancient ones. It wasn’t anybody’s fault – it just happened. But we can learn and if the knowledge is given to everyone, then we can have lots of leaders. And soon, everyone will be strong, not just the ones that have been chosen. Because sometimes, even if you are the leader and you need to be strong – you can get tired. Like our ancestor Paikea when he was lost at sea…and he couldn’t find the land, and he probably wanted to die. But he knew the ancient ones were there for him so he called out to them to lift him up and give him strength. This is his chant. I dedicate it to my grandfather.

Against the background of Paikea’s speech (cf. Mat No. 11), students should compare Koro’s and Paikea’s understanding of the role of leadership. While Koro has stuck to the part of the lone leader throughout his time in power, Paikea deems it necessary to distribute responsibility and power among all members of the community. Thus, Paikea redefines the Chief’s role, not expecting him/her to be the strongest in the community – only the support of the entire community will make a leader successful. It seems to be that Paikea’s way holds the most promises for the Māori community, as shared power will hold every individual responsible for the community’s survival and wellbeing. To continue the focus on cinematic techniques, students might also be asked to yet again take a closer look at the making of this powerful scene. Web Quest: traditional Māori Culture

Another activity in the post-viewing stage of the teaching sequence could be a WebQuest on specifics of Māori culture. However, WebQuests need to be planned

79

80

New Zealand meticulously. Students should be introduced to the general goal of their research and then be provided with both a specific task and websites for their group’s research activities (cf. Mat No. 12). Finally, students should be sure of what is expected from them when presenting their findings to the class in an in-class presentation. Teachers also need to provide essential technical equipment and guidelines for student presentations. In the WebQuest suggested here, students research the following Māori terms which feature frequently in the film:  Waka (canoe): a Māori water craft used for fishing, river travel, or oceanic voyages. A large waka may be manned by up to 80 paddlers (01:32:15-01:33:45).  Haka (a Māori dance): a Māori posture dance accompanied by singing and shouting. The haka is performed for various ceremonial reasons (01:31:30-01:32:00).  Wharenui (meeting house): main building and focal point of a marae (meeting place), a place where guests are accommodated (00:10:25-00:14:20).  Paikea (whale/Whale Rider): the name of an ancestor of the Ngāti Porou, a Māori iwi at the East Coast of New Zealand’s North Island. The name was assumed by Kahutia-te-rangi because he was assisted by humpback whales to survive an attempt on his life by his half-brother Ruatapu (00:10:00-00:11:19).  Taiaha (fighting stick): a wooden weapon used as a close quarter’s weapon for short, sharp strikes during stick fighting. It is one of the weapons used for mau rakau, Māori martial arts (00:37:05-00:38:05). For their presentation, students should create a multimedia presentation including appropriate visual material and a scene from the film, which features their research item (cf. Mat No. 12). The Story of Paikea and Ruatapu

This activity focuses on the importance of creation myths to the Māori in particular and to cultures in general (cf. Mat No. 13). Societies have defined themselves by, committed themselves to, and even been willing to kill and be killed in support of their myths. There are, of course, fundamentalists in all religions who insist on the literal reality of their myths. But there are others who see in their sacred narratives not literal truth but metaphorical and symbolic power and significance without which their lives would become meaningless, rootless, or even intolerable. In either case, a culture’s myths are true to the culture because they are embedded in its psyche, as much a part of its reality as its people and its physical landscape. (Leeming 2010: xviii)

Paikea is a mythic ancestor of the Ngati Porou tribe. Various legends tell the story of how he came from Hawaiki to Whangara, riding on the back of a taniwha: “[T]aniwha take many forms from logs to reptiles and whales and often live in lakes, rivers or the sea. They are often regarded as guardians by the people who live in their territory, but may also have a malign influence on human beings” (Moorfield 2015: n.p.). Since both Witi Ihimeara’s 1987 novel The Whale Rider as well as the film Whale Rider were inspired by this myth, it is worthwhile discussing its content, its metaphorical and symbolic power as perceived by the students as well as its culture-specific and universal ideals, ethics, principles, morals, etc. In terms of inter- and transcultural learning (cf. Welsch 1999, Volkmann 2011b, Hammer 2012, Eisenmann 2015, Viebrock 2015) it should also be worthwhile to learn more about and compare creation myths existing

Whale Rider: A Deep Dive into Māori Culture

in other cultures. It would also be interesting to categorise these creation myths according to existing classification schemes. The following one is based on Charles Long’s now-classic Alpha: The Myth of Creation (cf. Leeming 2010: 1ff.):  Ex Nihilo Creation: creation from nothing  Creation from Chaos: creation from a pre-existing, undifferentiated or chaotic state represented by primal elements or sometimes by a primal object such as a cosmic egg  World Parent Creation: creation from the union, separation, division or sacrifice – even dismemberment – of world parents  Emergence Creation: creation by way of a hole in the earth  Earth-Diver Creation: creation by means of diving into the depths of the primordial waters. The great haka debate

Introduced to New Zealand in the 1860s, rugby is not only the most popular sport in New Zealand, but also “one of the few cultural sites where Māori have achieved any sense of equality” (Jackson & Hokowhitu 2005: 69). Having a winning record against every international rugby team they have played, the All Blacks rank the highest in the IRB World Ranking in 2015 1. In the EFL classroom, teachers may use the core/expert group-approach to cover topics such as rugby history, number of players, field equipment, rules, scoring, leagues and associations. However, one might also opt for a more emotional/controversial approach by showing video files of the All Blacks performing their traditional haka, the “Ka Mate”, first introduced at rugby games in 1906.2 One of the initial refrains which the leader of the haka shouts prior to every performance reads as follows: Ringa pakia! Uma tiraha! Turi whatia! Hope whai ake! Waewae takahia kia kino! Slap the hands against the thighs! Puff out the chest! Bend the knees! Let the hip follow! Stamp the feet as hard as you can!

The haka is meant to instil strength and determination into the performers. Selected video files will show that there are distinct physical features essential to the haka performance such as slapping the hands against the thighs, stamping with the feet, dilating the eyes and sticking out the tongue in order to intimidate the opponent (cf. the chapter on Invictus by Alter in this volume). With their stunning performances, the All Blacks have also gained recognition from sportswear companies and the world of advertising – a fact that should be reflected on critically and discussed in the EFL classroom in terms of stereotyping as well as cultural misrepresentation and appropriation. Good examples here are commercials by the 1 2

http://www.worldrugby.org/rankings 01.04.2016. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yiKFYTFJ_kw 01.04.2016.

81

82

New Zealand German-based sports apparel manufacturer Adidas, which became a major sponsor of the All Blacks in 1999 and has since launched several commercials featuring a staged performance of the haka by the All Blacks. While impressively shot and edited, the commercials, focusing on “a style characterized by a primal, warrior element” (Jackson & Hokowhitu 2005: 75), can certainly be criticised for its reinforcement of stereotypes – the Māori as primitive yet noble savages and exotic ‘Others’: [T]he Adidas quest to capture the authenticity of the All Blacks through the primal images and sounds embodied in the haka suggests some attempt to seize, or more accurately manufacture, one particular aspect of Māori culture. [S]tereotypes of Māori are used as part of a transnational marketing campaign that is, in effect, exploiting indigenous culture. The exploitation occurs not only through the misappropriation of a ritual but also through the attempts to nostalgically forge a particular version of New Zealand’s past. As a consequence the inequalities of history are erased, or at least ignored, while Māori, as a racial/ethnic group, is repositioned into the stereotypical representations of the past. (Jackson & Hokowhitu 2005: 133f.)

The video links provided on the worksheet (cf. Mat No. 14) should be related to the quotes also provided on it. The videos not only reinforce the stereotypes mentioned above, but also produce a stereotypical and overtly exaggerated image of masculinity. Thus, though being a fascinating part of New Zealand culture, the iconic role of rugby and the All Blacks as well as the misappropriation of the haka in international advertising campaigns should be taken into critical consideration in the EFL classroom. To do this, a panel discussion should be initiated in which a team of four students argue in favour of using the haka in commericials, whilst another group of four argue against it. The rest of the class acts as audience and is required to comment and ask questions. 5

Summary and conclusion

In accordance with the teaching goals outlined in the introduction of this contribution, the teaching sequence on the film Whale Rider presented here has pursued two major foci: (1) encouraging (inter)cultural learning and (2) establishing knowledge about and applying cinematographic techniques. In the course of the teaching sequence, students could acquire detailed knowledge about aspects of Māori culture as relayed through the different – and sometimes differing – perspectives of a kaleidoscope of Māori protagonists. With their insights into the behaviour, feelings, and motivations of the major characters in the film as well as with their detailed knowledge about Māori traditions, and contemporary problems (established through information provided by the film as well as through their own Internet research), students should now be able to (partly) empathise with these characters as well as to reflect (critically) on their decision and choices. As for the focus on media studies and analysis, combining the discussion and close viewing and analysis of key scenes with the creation of a storyboard was meant to give students deeper insights into the planning and directing of films as well as into the effect of specific cinematic techniques onto the viewer.

Whale Rider: A Deep Dive into Māori Culture

Film reference Whale Rider (2002). Director: Niki Caro. Screenplay: Niki Caro. Germany: Kinowelt Home Entertainment. DVD 2005. 97 minutes.

References Barclay, Barry (2003), An Open Letter to John Barnett. Spectator 23: 1, 33-36. [Online: http://cinema.usc.edu/assets/059/11467.pdf 01.04.2016]. Beck, Bernard (2004), The Sea Around Us: Social Climbing in Seabiscuit, Whale Rider, and Finding Nemo. Multicultural Perspectives 6: 2, 24-27. Bredella, Lothar; Meißner, Franz-Josef; Nünning, Ansgar & Rösler, Dietmar (2000), Einleitung: Grundzüge einer Theorie und Didaktik des Fremdverstehens beim Lehren und Lernen fremder Sprachen. In: Bredella, Lothar; Meißner, Franz-Josef; Nünning, Ansgar & Rösler, Dietmar (Eds.), Wie ist Fremdverstehen lehr- und lernbar? Tübingen: Narr, viiii-lii. Byram, Michael (1997), Teaching and Assessing Intercultural Communicative Competence. Clevedon et al.: Multilingual Matters. Damer, Sean (2006), Inside The Whale: A Closer Look at Whale Rider. Screen Education 41, 74-78. Delanoy, Werner (1993), ‘Come to Mecca’ – Assessing a Literary Text’s Potential For Intercultural Learning. In: Delanoy, Werner; Köberl, Johann & Tschachler, Heinz (Eds.), Experiencing a Foreign Culture. Tübingen: Narr, 275-299. Eisenmann, Maria (2015), Crossovers: Postcolonial Literature and Transcultural Learning. In: Delanoy, Werner; Eisenmann; Maria & Matz, Frauke (Eds.), Learning with Literature in the EFL Classroom. Frankfurt/Main: Lang, 217-236. Elsner, Daniela; Helff, Sissy & Viebrock, Britta (Eds.) (2013), Films, Graphic Novels & Visuals. Developing Multiliteracies in Foreign Language Education – An Interdisciplinary Approach. Münster, LIT. Film Education (2003). Whale Rider. [Online: http://www.filmeducation.org/pdf/film/ WhaleRider.pdf 01.04.2016]. Fisch, Jonas & Viebrock, Britta (2013), Between Visual Literacy and Film Literacy: Working with Film Posters in the EFL Classroom. In: Elsner, Daniela; Helff, Sissy & Viebrock, Britta (Eds.), 121-138. Freese, Peter (2002), The Chances and Limits of ‘Intercultural Understanding’ in the Advanced EFL-Classroom. In: Teaching ‘America’: Selected Essays. München: Langenscheidt-Longmann, 11-30. Gascoigne, David (2009), New Zealand Film Production Fund: Interim Report May 2009. [Online: http://www.webcitation.org/5qzRgPZqj 01.04.2016]. Gould, Rozanne (2004), Whale Rider: A Film. Tribal College 16: 2, 44-45. [Online: http://www.tribalcollegejournal.org/archives/10383 01.04.2016]. Grimm, Nancy (2007a), Teaching Films: In America, Whale Rider, Bend It Like Beckham. Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht. Grimm, Nancy (2007b), Filme. In: Drumm, Julia (Ed.), Methodische Elemente des Unterrichts: Sozialformen, Aktionsformen, Medien. Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht. Grimm, Nancy (2009), The Corporation: Zum reflektiert-kritischen Einsatz von Dokumentarfilmen im Englischunterricht. In: Leitzke-Ungerer, Eva (Ed.), Film im

83

84

New Zealand Fremdsprachenunterricht: Literarische Stoffe, interkulturelle Ziele, mediale Wirkung. Stuttgart: Ibidem, 343-358. Grimm, Nancy (2010a). Teaching Niki Caro’s Whale Rider: A Student-Centered and Media Studies-Based Approach. In: Eisenmann, Maria; Grimm, Nancy & Volkmann, Laurenz (Eds.), Teaching the New English Cultures & Literatures. Heidelberg: Winter, 151-164. Grimm, Nancy (2010b). Australia & New Zealand: Beyond the ‘Tourist Kit’ Approach in the EFL Classroom. In: Eisenmann, Maria; Grimm, Nancy & Volkmann, Laurenz (Eds.), Teaching the New English Cultures & Literatures. Heidelberg: Winter, 19-24. Grimm, Nancy (2013), Bowling for Columbine, Michael Moore (dir.). In: Peters, Susanne; Stierstorfer, Klaus; Volkmann, Laurenz & Vanderbeke, Dirk (Eds.), Teaching Contemporary Literature and Culture: Film. Trier: WVT, 105-26. Grimm, Nancy (2015). Green, Global, Gore: An Inconvenient Truth in Global Education. In: Lütge, Christiane (Eds.), Global Education in English Language Teaching. Münster: LIT, 171-196. Grimm, Nancy; Meyer, Michael & Volkmann, Laurenz (2015), Teaching English. Tübingen, Narr. Hammer, Julia (2012), Die Auswirkungen der Globalisierung auf den modernen Fremdsprachenunterricht: Globale Herausforderungen als Lernziele und Inhalte des fortgeschrittenen Englischunterrichts – Are We Facing the Future? Heidelberg: Winter. Hubbart, Margaret (no year), Whale Rider. [Online: http://mediaed.org.uk/film/teachingwhale-rider-to-the-10-14-age-group 01.04.2016]. Ihimaera, Witi (2006 [1987]). The Whale Rider. Berlin: Cornelsen. Jackson, Steven J. & Hokowhitu, Brendan (2005), Sport, Tribes and Technology: The New Zealand All Blacks Haka and the Politics of Identity. In: Silk, Michael L.; Andrews, David L. & Cole, Cheryl L (Eds.), Sport and Corporate Nationalism. Oxford, New York: Berg. Jewitt, Carey & Oyama, Rumiko (2001), Visual Meaning: A Social Semiotic Approach. In: van Leeuwen, Theo & Jewitt, Carey (Eds.), Handbook of Visual Analysis. Los Angeles etc.: Sage, 134-56. Ka’ai, Tānia M. (2005), Te Kauae Mārō o Muri-ranga-whenua (The Jawbone of MurirangaWhenua): Globalizing Local Indigenous Culture – Māori Leadership, Gender and Cultural Knowledge Transmission as Represented in the Film Whale Rider. Portal Journal of Multidisciplinary International Studies 2: 2. [Online: http://epress.lib.uts.edu.au/journals/ index.php/portal/article/view/92/59 01.04.2016]. Klawans, Stuart (2004), Oscar Films: The Performances In Close-Up – Best Actress. New York Times (15 February), 11. [Online: http://www.nytimes.com/2004/02/15/movies/ oscar-films-the-performances-in-close-up-best-actress-327808.html?_r=0 01.04.2016]. Kramsch, Claire (1996). Context and Culture in Language Teaching (3rd ed.). Oxford etc.: Oxford University Press. Leeming, David A. (2010), Creation Myths of the World: An Encyclopaedia (2nd ed.). Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO. Matthews, Philip (2003), The Chosen One. Listener. [Online: http://www.whalerider themovie.co.nz/articles/article20.html 01.04.2016]. Monaco, James (2009), How to Read a Film: Films, Media, and Beyond. New York, Oxford: Oxford University Press. Moorfield, John C. (2015), Te Aka Online Māori Dictionary. [Online: http://www. maoridictionary.co.nz 01.04.2016]. Morris, Paula (2003), Whale Rider Review. Cineaste, 18-19.

Whale Rider: A Deep Dive into Māori Culture

Murray, Fiona; Jackson, Winifred & Finch, Brian (2002), Whale Rider: A Teacher Resource for Class Cinema Viewing. [Online: http://www.whaleriderthefilm.co.nz/education/ wr_resource_kit.pdf 01.04.2016]. Phillips, William H. (2005), Film: An Introduction (3rd ed.). Boston, New York: Bedford St. Martins. Pitts, Virginia (2014), Contestations of Intercultural Collaboration: The Case of Whale Rider. In: Nagib, Lúcia & Jersley, Anne (Eds.), Impure Cinema: Intermedial and Intercultural Approaches to Film. London, New York: Tauris. Stafford, Tim (2011), Teaching Visual Literacy in the Primary Classroom: Comic Books, Film, Television and Picture Narratives. Abingdon etc.: Routledge. Stempleski, Susan & Tomalin, Barry (2001), Film. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Steinmetz, Rüdiger (2003), Filme sehen lernen: Grundlagen der Filmästhetik. Frankfurt/Main: Zweitausendeins. Surkamp, Carola (2004), Teaching Films: Von der Filmanalyse zu handlungs- und prozessorientierten Formen der filmischen Textarbeit. Der fremdsprachliche Unterricht Englisch 38: 68, 2-11. Thaler, Engelbert (2014), Teaching English with Films. Paderborn: Schöningh. Viebrock, Britta (2013), Filmposter im Fremdsprachenunterricht: Wie man mit alten Medien neue Literalitäten schulen kann. In: Grünewald, Andreas; Plikat, Jochen & Wieland, Katharina (Eds.), Fremdsprachenunterricht zwischen Standardisierung und Bildungsanspruch – Herausforderungen im 21. Jahrhundert. Seelze: Klett-Kallmeyer, 179-193. Viebrock, Britta (2015), How Global Education Could Be Inspired by the CLIL Discourse – and Vice Versa. In: Lütge, Christiane (Ed.), Global Education: Perspectives for English Language Teaching. Münster: LIT, 39-56. Volkmann, Laurenz (2000), Interkulturelle Kompetenz als neues Paradigma der Literaturdidaktik? Überlegungen mit Beispielen der postkolonialen Literatur und Minoritätenliteratur. In: Bredella, Lothar; Meißner, Franz-Josef; Nünning, Ansgar & Rösler, Dietmar (Eds.), Wie ist Fremdverstehen lehr- und lernbar? Tübingen: Narr, 164190. Volkmann, Laurenz (2010), Fachdidaktik English: Kultur und Sprache. Tübingen: Narr. Volkmann, Laurenz (2011a), Intercultural Learning and Postcolonial Studies: ‘Never the Twain Shall Meet’? In: Eisenmann, Maria & Summer, Theresa (Eds.), Basic Issues in EFL Teaching and Learning. Heidelberg: Winter, 191-204. Volkmann, Laurenz (2011b), The ‘Transcultural Moment’ in English as a Foreign Language. In: Doff, Sabine & Schulze-Engler, Frank (Eds.), Beyond ‘Other Cultures’: Transcultural Perspectives on Teaching the New Literatures in English. Trier: WVT, 113-128. Volkmann, Laurenz; Stierstorfer, Klaus & Gehring, Wolfgang (2002), Interkulturelle Kompetenz. Tübingen: Narr. Weiland, Steven (2014), Culture, Cosmopolitanism, and Unofficial Schooling. In: Liston, Daniel P. & Renga, Ian P. (Eds.), Teaching, Learning, and Schooling in Film: Reel Education. New York: Routledge, 118-129. Welsch, Wolfgang (1999), Transculturality: The Puzzling Form of Cultures Today. In: Featherstone, Mike & Lash, Scott (Eds.), Spaces of Culture: City, Nation, World. London etc.: Sage, 194-213. Werry, Margaret (2011), The Tourist State: Performing Leisure, Liberalism, and Race in New Zealand. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. Wolf, Werner (2006), Introduction: Frames, Framings and Framing Borders in Literature and other Media. In: Wolf, Werner & Bernhart, Walter (Eds.), Framing Borders in Literature and Other Media. Amsterdam etc.: Rodopi, 1-40.

85

New Zealand

“Wanna See Michael Jackson Dance Moves?” How Popular Culture and Māori Heritage Meet in Boy Henriette Dausend

Award-winning Boy (2010) introduces the 11-year old ‘Boy’ living in rural New Zealand in the 1980s. Struggling with the loss of his mother, who died, and father, who is absent most of the time, Boy compensates his loneliness by making up heroic stories about his father and hanging on to fantasies of Michael Jackson, money and a wealthy lifestyle. The film’s main topics are the loss of family members, responsibility for oneself and others, first love and friendship, as well as escape into fantasies, stories and imagination – for both children and adults at the same time. This chapter starts with a film summary. Afterwards, the main topics of the film will be explained in greater detail and supplemented by information on relevant details of the sociocultural, historical and geographical background of New Zealand. A film analysis will provide you with the most important narrative and cinematographic structures. Moreover, comments on the teaching potential of Boy will explain why to use this film in class and offer ideas how to do this. Finally, pre-, while- and post-viewing tasks will provide material for immediate implementation. 1

Film summary

Boy is a coming-of-age film set in rural New Zealand in 1984. Alamein, an 11-year old boy of Māori origin commonly known as ‘Boy’, lives on a farm with his grandmother, his little brother Rocky and several younger cousins. As the plot unfolds, we learn that Boy’s father is in jail and his mother died when giving birth to Rocky. Both Rocky and Boy try to deal with the loss of their parents by making up fantastic stories about life. While Boy trusts in his hero Michael Jackson, Rocky thinks he has extraordinary powers himself. When Boy’s grandmother travels to a funeral, leaving Boy in charge of the house for several days, Boy’s father (also named Alamein) arrives at the farm with two friends; the gang calls themselves the Crazy Horses. Instead of a sentimental homecoming, we see Alamein returning to dig for money stolen in a robbery and hidden on a green near the farm. During Alamein’s presence on the farm, Boy enjoys some quality time with his father but soon gets disappointed by Alamein, especially when Alamein asks Boy not to call him Dad anymore. As Alamein fails to find his money, he gets into several dreadful situations in the search for any kind of cash. Meanwhile, Boy finds the money while digging by himself and secretly hides it at a place where it is later eaten by his pet goat. Boy’s illusion ends in devastation when he

88

New Zealand sees his father being beaten up by some gang members for stealing their Marijuana, and his pet goat is run over by his father’s car on their way home. Dealing with his sorrow, Boy stops living in his heroic dreams and flees into drugs and alcohol. He almost drowns himself in a river but is rescued by the so-called ‘Weirdo’, a calm and shy man, who keeps things to himself and is therefore described as weird by the kids. After his recovery, Boy finally heads for a confrontation with his father when he tells him about the eaten money. Hitting and shouting, he blames Alamein for not having fulfilled his duties as a father in the past. Rocky, who has been sceptical about Alamein during the whole visit, admits his feeling of guilt by apologising for “having killed” his mother. In the end, all three sit at their mother’s grave, leaving the viewer with an open ending. 2

Main topics in Boy

Watching the trailer of the film, one expects a humorous film about a boy’s everyday struggles. However, we immediately learn that the film rather deals with more serious topics such as:      2.1

The loss of family members Responsibility for oneself and others (First) Love and friendship Escape into fantasies, stories and imagination Drug abuse Loss of family members

Boy and Rocky suffer from the absence of their parents. Especially Rocky is troubled by the idea that he is responsible for his mother’s death in childbirth. He believes that he has ‘bad powers’, which he uses to cause harm to others, feeling guilty and satisfied at the same time. When his father arrives, Rocky is very sceptical because firstly, he fears Alamein’s reproaches for having “killed” his mother, and secondly he seems to feel no connection to his father at all. Alamein reinforces this distance between them by treating Rocky as a “weirdo”. Alamein does not suffer evidently from the loss of his two boys, but he does from the death of his wife. Rather than being a father to his children and a role model for them, Alamein pictures himself as a superhero, a samurai. His childish and irresponsible behaviour as an escape from reality reaches a climax when he asks Boy to call him Shogun instead of dad. In contrast to Rocky, Boy seeks the affection of his father and wants to spend time with him. He has suffered the most from his father’s absence, which he thinks is over when Alamein returns to the farm. But as the plot evolves, Boy learns that his expectations are not redeemed by his father. Boy does not feel the distance vanish, which he tries to overcome by acting like his dad. Instead, he desperately discovers that Alamein is not what he wants him to be. 2.2

Responsibility for oneself and others

Boy is responsible for his younger brother and cousins when his grandmother leaves them alone on their farm in the countryside for several days. Even when his father and his two adult friends join the group of children, Boy is not released from his duty. We rather learn that Boy has to care for his father and friends as well, for example when

“Wanna See Michael Jackson Dance Moves?” How Popular and Māori Culture Meet in Boy

serving them tea, or when helping them move into the shed and digging for his father’s money. While Boy takes on the imposed responsibility, his father does not act responsibly at all. Alamein steals marijuana, makes his son and his friends dig for his money, makes the children drink alcohol, and begs his mother for money. Boy and Alamein’s behaviour indicate a shift in the roles they are supposed to have: While Boy acts as a responsible caregiver, Alamein behaves in irresponsible and childish ways. Moreover, it is Rocky who struggles with the feelings of being responsible for his mother’s death and escapes into loneliness. He tries to keep himself away from others in order to keep them from his bad powers, which make him seem weird to the rest of his family. 2.3

Love and friendship

Boy is in love with his schoolmate Chardonnay, who herself shows no interest in him. He tries to win her attention by doing Michael Jackson dance moves, dressing up like his father or giving her a sparkler. But all his attempts fail. The topic of love is also relevant for Rocky and Alamein. It is Rocky who deals with his grief and love by being at his mother’s grave regularly and colouring it with crayons. Compared to the adolescent love of Boy, Rocky embodies the childish love for his mother which again Boy shows for his father. Alamein also seems to deal with the love for his dead wife in an unsatisfying manner. Rather than letting out his intensive grief of a lost love, which we only see in the final meeting at the grave in the very last scene of the film, he hides himself in his fantasies and commonplaces. Friendship is also a leading motif of the film. Boy experiences support by his friends even when acting strangely. The lonesome Rocky finally finds a friend in Weirdo. Alamein has to learn that there is more to friendship than just dependence and exploitation when his two friends leave him alone on the farm. 2.4

Escape into fantasies, stories and imagination

All main protagonists use fantasies and stories to cope with their daily struggles. In doing so, Boy is very much driven to elements of popular culture. He is obsessed with Michael Jackson and heroic fantasies; Boy either pictures his father or himself as Michael Jackson throughout the film. Adoring the pop star’s singing and dancing skills, Boy practises similar moves repeatedly in the hope of acceptance by his family and peers. Presumably, it is Boy’s clandestine wish to become as famous as Michael Jackson. Being an epitome of success and wealth, Michael Jackson can be seen as a role model for Boy and other Māori children because he has become most successful despite his humble beginnings. Boy’s younger brother Rocky does not care about popular culture in the same way as Boy does, but rather pictures himself as a superhero. In contrast to most superheroes who have positive powers, he believes to have destructive powers. Rocky uses his powers in several situations throughout the film, causing accidents and harming people. Furthermore, the adult Alamein also refers to fantasies a lot. He pictures himself as a hero being the gang leader of the Crazy Horses and acting like people of U.S. shows and films. However, almost all heroic visions made up by the characters contradict the main plot which displays the characters’ struggles with everyday life situations.

89

90

New Zealand 3

Sociocultural, historical and geographical background and context

This part introduces the main sociocultural, historical and geographical facts relevant for the film Boy. The 1980s were shaped by social and economic struggles in New Zealand. Social problems such as racism, migration and unsolved debates between the indigenous Māori and the government had great impact on people’s lives. These challenges were accompanied by poverty, unemployment, economic decline and labour market changes due to the world-wide recession of the 1970s. When teaching about New Zealand, one also needs to consider facts about the historical, geographical and socioeconomic peculiarities of this country in general, and how it was settled. Geographically, New Zealand is an archipelago of various islands located in the South Pacific Ocean. Two main islands cover 99% of the land, which is comparable in size to the British Isles (cf. Mein Smith 2012: 1). New Zealand’s flora and fauna had long been isolated by the time the first western settlers arrived in the 18th century, who brought dogs, horses, pigs and rats challenging the well-established native animals. But some of the pre-settlement creatures survived and continue to live in New Zealand, the Kiwi being the most famous one. Even though urbanisation has changed New Zealand’s environment, it still has a great amount of rural areas (cf. Denoon et al. 2000: 353f.). The first people to arrive in New Zealand were Polynesians seeking new land between 1200 and 1300 AD (cf. Mein Smith 2012: 6f.). They were agriculturalists and traders experienced in travelling in canoes and navigating according to the stars, clouds, water shape, and colour. Finally, it was James Cook who investigated New Zealand at full length between 1769 and 1770. He was the first person to draw the outline of the islands in full length and, in doing so, brought New Zealand on the world map. Several waves of British settlement followed soon after Cook had come to New Zealand, which dramatically changed existing social constellations made the number of Māori decline to only 14 % of the population by 1874 (cf. Durie 1998: 53). All in all, the first decades were peaceful thanks to the Māori’s view of co-existence. They accepted Cook as one of their saviours and leaders (cf. Denoon et al. 2000: 56ff.; Mein Smith 2012: 24ff.). During the 1980s, New Zealand saw “significant social unrest and economic instability” (Henderson 2012: 77). On the one hand, the country was shaped by ongoing disputes between the government and the indigenous Māori. On the other hand, it faced an increase in immigration from the Pacific Islands at the same time (cf. also the chapter on My Wedding and Other Secrets by Delius in this volume). Transnational debates about race and power, war and anti-nuclear politics influenced the relationship between different social and ethnic groups all over New Zealand. Economic problems had their climax in the 1980s, which caused a dramatic change in New Zealand’s labour market in 1984 (cf. Denoon et al. 2000: 409ff.). New Zealand had drifted into a recession, which was caused by Great Britain joining the European Community on the one hand and the transnational oil crisis on the other hand. As most of New Zealand’s industry relied on trading with the former coloniser Great Britain, this connection weakened with Great Britain’s focus on Europe. Strict reforms were the result of this ongoing recession which had started ten years earlier. Furthermore, the increase of the oil price as a result of the Vietnam War affected all industrial nations, New Zealand as well. Both events lead to a decline in the labour market. Especially poorly skilled workers had to cope with unemployment and poverty. Many of those

“Wanna See Michael Jackson Dance Moves?” How Popular and Māori Culture Meet in Boy

were Māori or Pacific immigrants, consequently migrating from rural areas into the cities in order to find work. This economic decline caused social struggles and an increase in implicit and explicit racism (cf. Henderson 2012: 93). Then in 1984, the government liberalised the market. This was the starting point for a prospering economy as former state-run companies were transferred into private ownership (cf. Denoon et al. 2012: 411ff.). These precautions have brought New Zealand back on the global market as one among the leading nations by the mid 1990s. Pollution and environmental protection was also an issue during the 1980s. As industries changed from agriculture to more fuel-consuming factories, it was especially Māori people who were concerned about their environment. Owing to their cultural heritage and beliefs, some of them felt and still feel obliged to protect nature: In Māori terms all living things, including natural and physical resources, possess a mauri, a life principle or life essence. […] Damage to a resource not only creates physical impairment but also causes spiritual damage and in the process impinges on the mauri of other objects, including people. Cultural pollution [...] incorporates that meaning. (Durie 1998: 23)

Even if the Māori seem to have common cultural principles nowadays, those beliefs were mainly derived from principles of different tribes and unified in demarcation of the western settlers’ ideas. This homogenised view on all indigenous tribes living in New Zealand is also validated by the term ‘Māori’, which was first established in the 1860s to distinguish long-established people from the newcomers (cf. Mein Smith 2012: 18). But even today most Māori consider themselves as members of an individual tribe rather than a part of a general construct of ‘Māori’. Cultural implications of the Māori therefore vary among tribes (cf. Durie 1998: 55). However, even if the term Māori lacks a traditional substance, many people refer to themselves as ‘Māoris’, distancing themselves from the offspring of the western settlers. Today, the Māori have to be pictured as individual people rather than as collective tribes or tribe members because they differ in how strongly they still stick to their traditions – with some becoming radical or even neglecting their heritage in favour of adopting western cultural elements. It is rather a question of self-identification than heritage. Especially during the years of decline and the rural-to-urban migration, many indigenous Māori mixed their traditional ways of living with western beliefs. One indicator for this unity is many Māori’s great affection for mass media and popular culture, which might originate from the storytelling tradition indigenous tribes developed when landing in New Zealand in the 13th century. Mythic narratives helped them to identify with their new home, to give meaning to their journey, to validate and to transmit knowledge. Most stories were about ancestors, their heroic journey, saviours, and the power of nature (cf. Mein Smith 2012: 10). The love for stories and for nature originates from their ancestors’ traditions and still plays an important role among Māoris today. Denoon et al. (2012: 429) describe popular culture as a feature uniting the country beyond ethnic affiliation: “Popular culture now enjoys the status of the foundation culture […]. [P]opular culture seems to formalise relations between popular and national cultures.”

91

92

New Zealand 4

Film analysis

This part describes the narrative, dramatic and cinematographic features of the film. Boy is a full-length feature film of 87 minutes shot in cinema quality. It was shown during several film festivals around the world and was the winner of several audience awards. As a coming-of-age film, it depicts very personal struggles of its protagonists. The film starts with Boy directly addressing the camera, followed by a collage of medium close-ups of Boy and short shots of typical scenes in his life, such as his house, his family members, his pet goat and him acting. This collage is used to introduce the audience to Boy’s life (cf. Daniell 2012: 28). All shots are taken by a steady camera, letting the audience focus on the ongoing action for about 7-10 seconds each. These takes are combined with shots of pictures and drawings, which tell us about Boy’s obsession with Michael Jackson. This early introduction of the singer as a major figure clarifies the importance popular culture has for the film. After the introduction of Michael Jackson, the viewer gets to know the family and friends of Boy. The way Boy pictures them, is again illustrated by comic sequences, fast cutting and elements of hand drawing. Comic sequences appear frequently throughout the film as an addition to the chronological explanations by Boy. They are used in sequences in which emotional conflicts arise and provide essential information. Instead of merely being a humorous supplement, for which they might be mistaken at first sight, animations inserts “are key to the plot” (Huarcaya 2012: 104) because they provide a different view on the conflicts mentioned. For instance, Boy talks most intensely about his father, whom he pictures as a heroic figure. This picture is supported by animation sequences showing Alamein as a superhero or a pop star. A case in point is the scene in which Boy pictures Alamein as Michael Jackson during his Welcome Home party (00:39:35). Medium close-ups of Boy alternate with close-ups and long shots of Alamein dressed up and dancing like Michael Jackson in his music video Thriller. However, the music in Boy is a slow melodic tone not connected with Thriller at all, which might contradict the audience’s expectations and their knowledge of Michael Jackson’s music style. In the film, the combinantion of picture and tone triggers positive expectations about Alamein which are undermined by Alamein’s appearance and behaviour later on. Boy does neither display the traditional culture of Māori tribes nor a stereotyped western view on indigenous people. Rather, it describes experiences of Māori children growing up during the social and economic struggles of the 1980s (cf. Huarcaya 2012: 104). Instead of creating a feeling of otherness or idealisation of Māori culture, the film works with few traditional cultural elements (few songs, Haka 1 dance) and most topics carry a sense of universality or at least omnipresence of this time, such as poverty, (ir-)responsibility, self-delusion, the loss of family members and hiding in fantasies. The linear plot that is narrated from Boy’s perspective enables the viewer to accompany a Māori child and other children, women and men around him for some time and investigate their attempts to cope with typical problems in life. This constructs a certain equality between the audience and the protagonists. This closeness deepens when the audience learns about the characters’ attraction for mass media and popular culture. 1

Haka is a traditional Māori dance of athletic moves, feet stomping and shouting. In ancestoral times, the haka was performed, for example, in the context of war (threatening the enemy) or after great achievements or when welcoming guests. Its strong cultural reference can been seen today when being performed before sport events (also shown in Invictus, the film discussed by Alter in this volume).

“Wanna See Michael Jackson Dance Moves?” How Popular and Māori Culture Meet in Boy

Many Māoris’ adaptation to western culture is also reflected by the names of Rocky, Dynasty and Dallas. All of them derive from U.S. media and youth idols. Moreover, some elements of popular culture hint at the ongoing social and political struggles in New Zealand during the 1980s such as anti-nuclear and anti-racism movements (cf. Henderson 2012: 79). In terms of film reception, these pop-cultural elements are more easily recognisable than the social conflicts which underly the characters’ actions. Popular culture serves as a problem-solving device, referring to the youth’s desire for a “normal” life of that time (cf. Denoon et al 2000: 430f.; Henderson 2012: 93f.). This is why the dance moves of Michael Jackson are central to Boy. As mentioned before, he does them for Chardonnay, the girl he has a crush on (00:05:40). However, the scene has no music but we only hear Boy’s shoes scratching on the floor. Parallel to this sound, we see close-ups of Boy’s worn out shoes and medium close-ups of his upper body showing no body tension. Boy seems very concentrated on his moving feet and self-conscious in his actions which stands in contrast to the perfect performances of pop-culture idols. In terms of genre, Boy consists of several elements referring to both comedy and drama. The comical elements serve as a comic relief to the dramatic struggles of the protagonists. Yet, some reviews describe the film as a comedy, which is also carried in the trailer. Wide camera angles, a slow pace of the film, which is achieved by a limited numbers of cuts and rather long takes, lighting that remind the viewer of warmth and sunshine as well as relaxed dialogues between the characters support a humorous and positive view on the film. However, the film has also generated protest among Māoris who do not see the film as “a beautiful piece of New Zealand rural nostalgia” but as a “representation of Māori as ‘deprived natives’ who are alcohol and drug‐driven, as well as neglectful, criminal and generally deficient in every way” (Pihama 2012: 100). With the story evolving, several features of drama appear. After the introduction of all main characters, conflicts develop within the characters as well as between different people until the film reaches its climax: Boy escapes into drugs rather than fantasy; Rocky admits his guilt for the death of his mother; Alamein bursts out. But the film would not work without its comic features, as humour helps to overcome a stereotyped view on the protagonist (cf. Huarcaya 2012: 104). Humour enables us to see the imperfect struggles of Boy, Rocky and Alamein trying to make the most out of their lives – even if that is robbery, fantasies, playing games and doing Michael Jackson dance moves. 5

Comments on the teaching potential of Boy

Boy is suitable for intermediate to higher grades in English language teaching. It has an easily accessible narrative structure and the characters provide great opportunities for building up communicative competences, both functional and cultural, as required in the national educational standards in Germany 2 (KMK 2012). Boy is useful for practising a number of film-related competences with students: They may describe and discuss the structure of a film; name and analyse its main topics and characters; do research on Māori storytelling culture; comment on fantasies as coping strategies; and, by doing all this, get insights in a new language variety.

2

Bildungsstandards für die fortgeführte Fremdsprache (Englisch/Französisch) für die Allgemeine Hochschulreife

93

94

New Zealand The educational standards developed by the Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs of the Länder in the Federal Republic of Germany (Kultusministerkonferenz) in 2012 ask for topics covering environments and experiences of students’ everyday lives. Boy offers a great variety of topics dealing with adolescents, family, friendship, trust, hope and fantasies as coping strategies. In doing so, the film introduces characters and events students can identify with while feeling estranged about them at the same time. This dual approach of identification with and estrangement from the characters enables students to feel close to the characters on the one hand and to compare or contrast the characters’ struggles with their own on the other hand. This creates a sympathetic view on the protagonists and at the same time gives access to the underlying problems made topical in the film. It is particularly the humorous note of the film that provides several starting points for teaching. On one side, students can work on the simple plot, and on the other, Boy provides material for deep and serious analysis and discussion. This broad access to Boy makes it adjustable for teaching in intermediate and higher grades, both in advanced courses (Leistungskurs) and basic classes (Grundkurs). The great value of film is also stressed in the educational standards (KMK 2012), which want students to recognise and interpret all kinds of texts, plot structures and features of design, to work on characters and to change and coordinate perspectives. Boy’s distinctive cinematographic features such as collages, cartoons, adaptations from music videos etc. help to understand the characters’ moods and actions; the linear plot helps to link the narrative structure to the characters’ features and several scenes provide important information for describing and analysing the characters. While fostering text and media competences, the film also offers many opportunities for training functional communicative skills (listening, reading, speaking, and writing). Similarly, Boy offers opportunities for cultural studies and transcultural learning (cf. Blell & Doff 2014). Even if the aspect of otherness is not central in Boy, the audience gains knowledge about the life of the youth in New Zealand during the 1980s. Students perceive differences and similarities between the protagonists’ lifes and their own; they are able to take on and contrast both perspectives. What is more, Boy offers an insight into New Zealand English. Students experience the typical intonation, pronunciation and even morphology and get familiar with the sound of this English vernacular, enabling them to compare it to other varieties of English and their mother tongues. Comprehensible amounts of language as well as longer passages of monologue enable easy access to the language, supporting language awareness (Sprachbewusstheit, KMK 2012: 21) and language learning awareness (Sprachlernbewusstheit, ibid.: 22). Practising several strategies to cope with a geographically distant variety of English and its specific cultural context might also be helpful for mediation (Sprachmittlung, ibid.: 18). Activities can be structured along several key factors, which will be explained in greater detail below:  Chapters: Students define, present, discuss and comment on the chapters.  Climactic structure: Students define, present, discuss and comment on the climactic structure.  Topics: Students define, present, discuss and comment on the topics.  Fantasies: Students figure out and name fantasies; create and discuss characterisations of the main protagonists.

“Wanna See Michael Jackson Dance Moves?” How Popular and Māori Culture Meet in Boy

 Storytelling: Students research, describe and analyse the importance of Māori storytelling culture; they justify their opinions by linking their findings to events in the film. 6

Methods and activities

This chapter shows examples of pre-, while- and post-viewing activities catering for the objectives mentioned in the section above. The activities encompass the narrative, the dramatic and the cinematographic dimensions of film. Each activity is described in view of specific objectives. The materials needed are available in the download section. 6.1

Pre-viewing activities

Activity 1

Teaching Boy has the potential to discover everyday struggles of New Zealand’s Māori youth growing up in the 1980s. Students get a first insight into the impact of mass and popular culture on Māori communities as well as universal problems such as poverty, irresponsibility, loss of family members etc. when working with the film’s poster 3 and trailer4 (cf. Mat No. 1). Therefore, the teacher asks the students to describe the poster as a first step. Question/task: This is a poster of the film Boy. Please describe the poster. What can you see? The students name a boy in the centre of the poster, who stands on a gravel road in a rural area carrying a cardboard sign with the slogan “Welcome Home Dad” on it. After the description, the teacher asks the students to predict the storyline as well as relevant topics which he or she collects in a mind-map.

Question/task: What do you expect to happen in the film Boy? What might the film be about? After having discussed the poster, the students watch the trailer of the film that offers additional information to the poster. They extend the mind-map by giving more detailed information on storyline and topics. Question/task: What does the trailer of the film Boy show? What further information/ ideas can we add to our mind-map? This activity gives students first hints on the story and the plot of the film Boy. Moreover, it helps to develop expectations and to cause interest for finding out about all events while watching the film. Activity 2

The aspect of storytelling is another access to the film. Storytelling is the one element of the film that is directly linked to traditional Māori culture. Even more, the film itself is a story told by Boy about his life. Being a story itself, the film offers several scenes indicating storytelling explicitly. The medium close-up shots of the first scene already introduce us to the atmosphere of storytelling that is later complemented by voiceovers of Boy in scenes that show sequences of his life. Moreover, the strong interrelation between fantasies and reality show how stories are used to cope with life. In order to get insights in the storytelling culture of Māori, students investigate the 3 4

Cf. http://www.imdb.com/media/rm4038242560/tt1560139 ?ref_=tt_ov_i 01.04.2016. Cf. http://www.nzfilm.co.nz/film/boy 01.04.2016.

95

96

New Zealand value and relevance of storytelling for Māori people. They research the Internet or work with printed scientific or additional fictional texts (cf. Mat No. 2).

Question/task: Find out about the function and the value of storytelling in Māori culture. Write a short note (150 words) and present it to class. The students present and discuss their findings in class before watching the film. This activity introduces the students to the topic of storytelling in Māori culture. They get to know the traditional impact of storytelling as well as today’s relevance. They use this knowledge as well as the ability to compare Māori’s storytelling tradition to their own lifes in while- and post-viewing activites. 6.2

While-viewing activities

Activity 1

The film Boy has a linear narrative structure with the occasional flashback into earlier stages of Boy’s life. In order to get an overview of the film’s plot as well as all struggles relevant for the characters, it is helpful to divide the film into chapters and to collect the topics, a plot summary, the characters and cinematographic features of each chapter. In doing so, one gets a detailed understanding off all topics and problems mentioned such as the loss of family members, taking responsibility for oneself and others, first love and friendship, the escape into fantasies, stories and imagination as well as drug abuse. The film’s specific cinematographic features, (collage, drawings and comic elements) often indicate a change in topic and help to define the beginning and the end of each chapter. After having predicted the storyline as well as central topics of the film in the previewing activities, the students need to see whether their ideas are relevant for the film. At first, they practice how to define chapters by contrasting the first two scenes of the film before sequencing the film as a whole. The students watch both scenes in class and discuss the difference between those. Question/task: Contrast both scenes. Which features indicate the change between both? The teacher helps the students to focus on specific features such as the change in topic and in cinematograpic style of scene 1 “Boy introducing himself” (00:01:17-00:03:44; using collage, medium close-ups and long takes) and scene 2 “At school” (00:03:45-00:04:42; using a mixture of medium close-up and close-up shots) (cf. Mat No. 3). After having worked on the scenes, the students watch the film divided into longer sequences. While watching, they take notes about story, plot, content, characters, scenery, camera, sound and light, and assign chapter names to the film’s timeline (cf. Mat No. 4). Question/task: a) Take notes about the events in the film. Try to detect chapters. List title, content, characters, and cinematic features for each chapter. b) Which are the key scenes of the film? Mark key scenes.

This activity supports a structured access to the film. The students learn about the plot and the topics by taking notes. While watching the film, the students learn how changes in cinematic features and plot support each other.

“Wanna See Michael Jackson Dance Moves?” How Popular and Māori Culture Meet in Boy

Activity 2

Escaping into fantasies is one major topic in Boy. All main characters use fantasies in order to deal with their everyday struggles. Therefore, fantasies play a major role in the narrative structure of the film, and they are the reason why collages, drawings and comic scenes are included. Emphasising on the difference between fantasy and reality, two short scenes are shown a second time (00:19:26-00:19:50; 00:29:57-00:30:55). Both scenes show Boy’s father. They tell us how Boy’s vision of Alamein contradicts with Alamein’s actions. One of the scenes includes several long shots telling us about Alamein’s heroic features as Boy visions them. The other is one medium close-up shot in which Alamein talks to Boy’s grandmother about his money problems on the phone (cf. Mat No. 5 & 6). Question/task: Describe what you see in the two scenes. List the differences and predict reasons for the use of the different filmic features. Having watched the scenes, the teacher asks students to contrast both scenes by naming the gap between fantasy and reality. The discussion in class is followed by contrasting other scenes. The students watch six scenes (00:19:17-00:19:50; 00:23:20-00:24:10; 00:27:30-00:28:40; 00:30:30-00:37:30; 00:47:30-00:48:50; 01:07:30-01:10:48) all indicating the importance of fantasies. They take notes about a) the fantasies and stories made up by either Alamein, Boy or Rocky and b) the conflicting illustration of their real-life situation. Question/task: Watch the following sequences and answer the questions: Which fantasies and stories do the characters make up? How are those fantasies and stories connected to reality? This activity enables students to work on the problem of escaping into fantasies in detail. They learn how Boy’s vision contradicts with his fathers’ actions. This task can be used as an example and be adapted for other problems as well. Activity 3

Discussing the aspect of storytelling in Māori culture in more detail, can be done in a while-viewing task. Students have researched and learnt about Māori storytelling culture in a pre-viwing activity. Now students watch three scenes of the film (00:19:1700:19:50; 00:27:30-00:29:20; 01:17:00-end) dealing with storytelling. In groups, the students describe how Māori’ storytelling tradition is displayed in the film (cf. Mat No. 8).

Question/task: How is the tradition of storytelling displayed in the three scenes? The students list narrative (information on ancestors, planning successful future) and filmic features (flashbacks) displaying the storytelling tradition. The students experience how storytelling is displayed in the film. In addtition, they learn to filter information on a specific topic out of selected film scenes and to take notes while watching. 6.3

Post-viewing activities

After having watched the film, several activites can be done to deepen the students’ access to plot and topics.

97

98

New Zealand Activity 1

The students have learnt about the plot and the topics of the film while watching it. In this post-viewing activity, they share their notes in small groups and discuss the film’s narrative structure.

Question/task: In your group, share your notes and decide how to divide the film into chapters. Make a grid and list title, content, characters, and cinematic features for each chapter. They analyse the key scenes of the film and write a comment on what they think is the most important one. All comments are presented to the whole class.

Question/task: Which are the key scenes of the film? Choose scenes and write a comment (about 200 words) why these are relevant for the film. Present the narrative structure of the film Boy with the help of your notes. Comment on key scenes. The students discuss which structure suits them best and give reasons why. This activity helps to deepen the knowledge of the plot by analysing the structure in a small group and with the whole class. Students get to know different views on topics and the plot’s structure and learn how to deal with different views. Additionally, students may be asked to contrast the film’s structures to other well-known texts or films. Activity 2

The teacher returns to the mind-map of predictions (pre-viewing activity) to work on the film’s topics. The students are asked to name all topics they have listed while watching the film. The teacher adds the topics from the film to the mind-map, using a different colour, or circling those topics from the film that have already been predicted by the students within the pre-viewing activity. All students discuss the problems mentioned in Boy and give reasons why they think a problem is relevant. Moreover, each student chooses one problem that seems relevant to him or her. Students who have choosen the same problem get together in an expert group. Within their groups, they discuss the problem and propose solutions. Each student writes a letter to one of the charaters involved in the problem. In the letter, the student proposes solutions for the particluar problem. Question/task: Choose one topic that you are most interested in. Find other students who have chosen the same topic. Discuss the problem within your group and propose solutions. Write a letter to the character involved in the problem. In the letter, give hints and propose solutions how to deal with the problem. This activity enables students to take over the perspective of a character on the one hand, and to contrast it with their own ideas on the other hand. Students learn to analyse problems and to find solutions for them. Even more, they sensetively address those solutions to the character. Activity 3

The students have discovered the importance of fantasies in the while-viewing activity. Now all findings are discussed in class and the students create portfolios of one of the characters (cf. Mat No. 7). Within this portfolio, the students describe the characters struggle between fantasy and reality according to the following questions. Question/task: Characterise Alamein, Boy and Rocky. Also consider the fantasies and stories they make up.

“Wanna See Michael Jackson Dance Moves?” How Popular and Māori Culture Meet in Boy

a) Which characteristic features does your character have? Name at least four and give evidence in 2-3 sentences

b) Who does you character want to be? Name some characteric features your character wishes for. c) How do fantasy and reality contradict within your character?

d) How could your character span this gap between fantasy and reality? Propose solutions in a comment (200 words). Students deepen their knowledge about fantasy and reality in Boy with the focus on one character. They learn to take the characters’ perspective and to propose solutions using their everday knowledge and competences. Activity 4

The aspect of storytelling is discussed in more detail during this post-viewing activity. The students contrast the usage of storytelling elements in the film with their findings about the traditional relevance of storytelling in Māori culture. Each student picks one of the three scenes used in the while-viewing activity and writes a comment on a) how storytelling is displayed in this scene and b) how the traditional idea of storytelling is related to the film (cf. Mat No. 9). Question/task: Choose one of the storytelling scenes. Answer the following two questions: A) How is storytelling displayed in this scene? B) Does the description of storytelling culture in the film differ from your readings? The students group together according to the scenes they have chosen and share their comments. They discuss the display of storytelling in the film and create a presentation. All three groups present their results to class.

Question/task: Meet students who have worked on the same scene as you. In your group, read out your answers to questions a) and b). Discuss your ideas and prepare a presentation for the title: The display of storytelling in scene X and its relation to the traditional idea of Māori storytelling? This activity supports a more detailed comparison of Māori’s storytelling culture with how it is represented in the film. The students learn about differences and similarities of both, and compare it to their own cultural values. 7

Summary and conclusion

Boy is a great portrayal of New Zealand’s Māori youth growing up in the 1980s. It shows the everyday struggles of life in rural areas. It explains the strong impact of mass and popular culture on traditional Māori life as well as universal problems such as poverty, irresponsibility, loss of family members etc. This dwelling upon everyday problems makes this particular film a suitable means for teaching aspects of New Zealand in school. Students can relate the film’s topics to their own experiences and might be motivated to follow the light tone of Boy. This article has demonstrated the potential of Boy for teaching English in the foreign language classroom in several sections focusing on the narrative and dramatic structures of the film. Cinematographic features can be examined in close relation with the plot. The analysis of some exemplary key scenes has proved the particular value of the film. Furthermore, readyto-use ideas and material for implementing the film in the EFL classroom have been provided. To develop matters further, the work on the film can be extended in other

99

100

New Zealand classes when talking about social and personal struggles or combined with other tasks in the English classroom, e.g. contrasting cultural or linguistic features of the film with other examples from the English-speaking world. Film reference Boy. Director: Taika Waititi. Screenplay: Taika Waititi. New Zealand: Volcano Company. DVD 2010. 87 minutes.

References Blell, Gabriele & Doff, Sabine (2014), It takes more than two for this tango: Moving beyond the self/other-binary in teaching about culture in the global EFL-classroom. Zeitschrift für interkulturellen Fremdsprachenunterricht 19: 1, 77-96. [Online http://zif.spz.tudarmstadt.de/jg-19-1/beitrag/Blell_Doff.pdf. 01.04.2016] Daniell, Bianca (2012), Creative Narratives in Boy. New Zealand Journal of Media Studies 13: 1, 28-36. Denoon, Donald, Mein-Smith, Philippa & Wyndham, Marivic (2000), A History of Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers. Durie, Mason (1998), Te Mana, Te Kawanatanga. The Politics of Māori Self-Determination. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Henderson, April (2012), Māori Boys, Michael Jackson Dance Moves, and that 1984 Structure of Feeling. New Zealand Journal of Media Studies 13: 1, 77-96. Huarcaya, Sergio Miguel (2012), A Commentary on Boy and the Indigenous Self. New Zealand Journal of Media Studies 13: 1, 102-105. KMK Kultusministerkonferenz (2012), Bildungsstandards für die fortgeführte Fremdsprache (Englisch/Französisch) für die Allgemeine Hochschulreife. [Online: http://www.kmk. org/fileadmin/veroeffentlichungen_beschluesse/2012/2012_10_18-BildungsstandardsFortgef-FS-Abi.pdf. 01.04.2016] Mein Smith, Philippa (2012), A Concise History of New Zealand (2nd ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

New Zealand

A Cross-Cultural Perspective on Romantic Love Made in New Zealand: My Wedding and Other Secrets Katharina Delius

This chapter examines a feature film from New Zealand: My Wedding and Other Secrets (2011), based on Roseanne Liang’s autobiographical documentary Banana in a Nutshell. The romantic comedy portrays the story of Emily Chu, a young New Zealand-born Chinese woman, who falls in love with a white New Zealander boy, and her struggles with cultural conflict such as the threat of disownment from her traditional Cantonese parents. Central to the film are its cross-cultural references within the Chu-family and beyond. You will learn about the characteristics of Chinese migration to New Zealand historically and in the present day. Suggestions for a unit based on the film cover both analytical and productive tasks and aim at fostering students’ proficiency with foreign language films. Starting with a synopsis of the film, this chapter provides historical and cultural background on (Chinese) migration to New Zealand, as well as on the customs of New Zealand. An in-depth film analysis, including film aesthetics, serves as the basis for the suggested curriculum for implementing the film in the English foreign language classroom. 1

Synopsis

Emily, having been raised in a loving and aspiring family, believes that she can accomplish anything she sets her mind to. However, contrary to her parents’ wish for her to become a doctor like her two older sisters, she works hard to become a film director. From the very beginning of her relationship with James Harrison, whom she accidently meets during fencing training, Emily is aware of the serious problems she will have to face. Her oldest sister Susan had already been threatened with disownment by their father, which led her to break up with her white boyfriend. Still, Emily continues to see James and tries hard to maintain a peaceful life by avoiding conflict and by attempting to make everyone around her happy. When Emily’s ambitious film project turns out to be more expensive than expected, she convinces James to secretly marry her for a student grant. However, within a year of Emily hiding her relationship from family and friends, James grows increasingly silent about the matter. Emily’s former rival in the film class accidently learns about her private problems and urges her to make the story into a film. When Susan’s ex-boyfriend is killed in an accident and her parents react indifferently, Emily finally makes the decision to tell her secret

102

New Zealand to her parents. Dr. Chu reluctantly offers her a chance to receive his blessing of their marriage if James were to learn Mandarin. Surprisingly, James agrees to this condition and applies himself to the challenge, all while being documented by Emily’s video camera. Even though Dr. Chu eventually accepts James’ proposal, Emily is still not fully satisfied as her mother still objects to her relationship with James. Offered a great opportunity, Emily conceives a plan to premiere her story in the prestigious international New Zealand Film Festival in order to prove to herself and her parents that she is a good filmmaker. However, Emily realises that her plan has backfired dramatically when neither her parents nor James, who pleaded with her not show the film, are present at its premiere. Though she intended to make everyone around her happy, she had not realised that she had only been thinking of herself. She now grasps that she will not receive her mother’s approval of James with a new big plan or speech; she has to accept that love comes without selfishness. Unable to continue with the situation and disapproval, James confronts Emily with a form to dissolve their marriage. Emily is forced to make a decision between James and her family. After her sister’s wedding, Emily informs her mother that she will move in with James, while stressing how much she appreciates her mother’s love and affection. Eventually Emily and James get the blessing of her parents, and they celebrate a big wedding with friends and family. Her mother has apparently accepted James as her son-in-law. 2

Background information: New Zealand settlement, British and Chinese migration

To better understand the cultural aspects in the context of the film, a brief description of the history and recent development of British and Chinese migration to New Zealand, as well as of the customs of New Zealand, are beneficial. Discovered as the last habitable land mass in the world by the Polynesian ancestors of the Māori in 1300 AD, New Zealand was explored first by the Dutch through Abel Tasman in 1642, then later by the British through James Cook in 1769 (cf. Johns 2006: 9f.). In the first years of European settlement only small groups of whalers, sealers and traders arrived. While initially these groups traded peacefully with the Māori, violent conflicts soon arose concerning land ownership, also amongst the various Māori tribes (cf. Dölling 2008: 48f.). The British had gained negative experience in the systematic oppression and extinction of the indigenous peoples both in North America and in Australia and thus tried to foster a fairer treatment of the Māori in New Zealand. Nevertheless, due to various causes the number of the Māori had been dramatically reduced since the arrival of the Europeans (cf. ibid.: 50). Up to today questions of how to deal with the historical burden and the ongoing problems involved (such as the fact that Māori students are not doing well in the New Zealand educational system) remain unsolved (cf. Thakur 1995: 275). After years of unsettled ownership conflict, the British government took control of New Zealand in 1840 and the British Queen assumed sovereignty over the country. A large number of immigrants came from Britain (mainly England) or Ireland as convicts by way of Australia. Others came as gold miners or settlers who were offered free land by the New Zealand government. During the 1870s, the number of annual immigrants from the British Isles increased significantly due to government assistance (Philipps & Hearn 2008: 42ff.). Consequently, strong British and Irish cultural influences in today’s

A Cross-Cultural Perspective on Romantic Love: My Wedding and Other Secrets

daily New Zealand life are unmistakable. Looking at the subject of sports, rugby, brought from Great Britain, has become a national sport since the early 20 th century with many passionate fans (cf. Philips 2013b). In terms of food, much of New Zealand’s cuisine has British roots, for example the consumption of a lot of meat and its products. Wheat flour is used in most breads, wheat being the most important grain, however, oats are also widely consumed as porridge or in muesli (cf. Burton 2013). After the Second World War, people from other nations were attracted to New Zealand by work opportunities, establishing the idea of a multicultural nation as the years passed. The concept of multiculturalism, adopted from Canada, which had to accommodate similar developments, “proposed that people could be legitimiate members of the New Zealand nation while retaining their own language, foods and traditions” (Phillips 2006: 86). Multiculturalism can be understood as an ideology which “accepts diversity and supports policies of maintaining ethnic identities, values and styles within an overarching framework of common laws and shared institutions” (Thakur 1995: 260). Throughout the decades, New Zealand’s population has faced major issues concerning the question of equanimity as the number of non-British migrants increased. In 2006, the census revealed that 67% of New Zealand’s population was of purely European descent, whereas people of Pacific Isand ethnicity formed 6.9% and Asians about 9.2% of the population (cf. Phillips 2013a). Although today the concept of multiculturalism in contrast to a broader idea of transculturalism 1 appears debatable, a closer look at the development of Chinese migration can exemplarily reveal the difficulties involved on the converging path of different ethnicities. In the 19th century, the first Chinese immigrants sought a better life overseas as they faced severe problems in their homeland such as famine, drought and overpopulation (cf. Ip 2006: 106). Initially, Chinese immigrants, who were considered “to be hardworking, inoffensive, and willing to rework abandoned claims” (Ip 2014), were gladly recruited to work in the gold mines. Nonetheless, settlement policy regarded them as “undesirable in this nation-building enterprise” (ibid.), and thus many returned home. Anti-Chinese voices were rising, followed by harsh restrictions on immigration to New Zealand (cf. Brooking & Rabel 1995: 24). After the gold rush, Chinese immigrants, largely men, found work in fruit shops, laundries or in the market gardening trade. However, many suffered from opium or gambling addiction (cf. Ip 2006: 108). The war in China and the following Communist takeover led to more liberal residence requirements for Chinese immigrants, which now allowed women and children. The change provided a basis for a growing Chinese community. By the 1960s many offspring had become successful professionals. This rise in socioeconomic status, however, came at the same time as the community was rapidly losing its ‘Chineseness’. The most noticeable sign was the loss of heritage languages, and the increasing use of English as the primary language. (Ip 2006: 109)

In recent years, Chinese immigration to New Zealand has changed significantly. Many Chinese now emigrate from “highly developed urban centres” (ibid.: 109) and are, to a large extent, well-educated professionals whose reasons to migrate differ from raising their children in a less competitive education system to looking for new employment 1

According to Volkmann (2010: 23), in the light of our globalised world with an increasing interweaving of cultural phenomena, transculturalism can capture the idea of shared interests and common values across cultural and national borders. The clear destinction of one culture from another gets more and more difficult and dispersed in a globalised perspective.

103

104

New Zealand opportunities. Though many Chinese traditions seemed to have vanished in an assimilation process, from the 1990s onwards, several of these customs and traditional festivals have been made popular again by the new waves of immigrants. Within the Chinese community in New Zealand, there are many sub-groups organised by different languages, dialects or home countries (e.g. Hong Kong, Taiwan, China). A large number of Chinese youth born in New Zealand are attempting to “reconnect with their cultural roots, some by learning Chinese, and some by visiting China” (ibid.: 110). While Chinese parents in the 1960s encouraged their children, “to train for a ‘secure’ profession, and to become doctors, lawyers, engineers and architects” (ibid.: 110), they are nowadays less anxious about their children’s choice of profession. However, Ip (1995) also points at “visible signs of […] [an] underlying tension” (197) between new Asian migrants and New Zealanders. In terms of the educational system, different concepts of educational styles clash, for example the New Zealander all-around education vs. a more serious and focussed on achievement schooling. 3

Cross-cultural clashes in My Wedding and Other Secrets

The film portrays the life of a young New Zealand-born Chinese girl. At the very beginning, a series of short Super 8 video snippets introduces the viewer to Emily’s happy childhood, growing up as the youngest of three sisters with a loving and devoted mother. The term cross-cultural used in the following refers to the idea that two separated cultures exist (the Chinese and the New Zealand). The course of the film reveals the interweaving of those two cultures, thus, pointing at transcultural features of the protagonists’ lives. Still, certain aspects can be assigned as specific representatives to the Chinese or New Zealand culture. Meeting and falling in love with James, a white New Zealander, presents Emily with both cultural issues concerning her family and community, and with questions of her own identity and self-perception. On their very first date, after having spent a happy evening together, she suddenly realises the impossibility of a deeper relationship with James, recalling the outcome of her sister’s relationship with a white New Zealander. Emily carries the fear of disownment throughout her secret relationship with James, even after their wedding. She cannot bear the thought of her parents no longer wishing to be connected with her (00:28:35), even though this means having to keep her love for James a secret. In another scene, the three sisters discuss their father’s strict principles. When James meets Emily’s sisters for the first time, he asks for advice on how to approach their father. The film flashes back to scenes where Susan’s white exboyfriend talked about politics with Dr. Chu, illustrating Susan’s explanation that one should not engage or discuss, but only “defer, agree, respect” her father (00:18:21). Emily’s sister Melanie and her Chinese boyfriend Jason, on the other hand, seem to fulfil the perfect picture for their parents. When it comes to the future of their daughters, Dr. Chu und his wife behave like traditionalists, which becomes evident at several points in the course of the story. As Emily explains to James during their first conversation, her parents somehow expected her to go to medical school after she got “all straight As” in school (00:05:16), just as her sisters did. Nevertheless, she enrolled in computer science so her parents would let her do film studies.

A Cross-Cultural Perspective on Romantic Love: My Wedding and Other Secrets

Melanie is the one who brings up a traditional Chinese wedding custom at the dinner table. The bridesmaids should stop the groom from seeing the bride and require him to fulfil tasks in order to prove his love. At this point, Dr. Chu mentions a wedding custom from his father’s village: The younger brother has to buy his oldest brother a pair of trousers if he marries before him. It is his suggestion of this custom in reference to Melanie and Susan (Melanie marrying before her oldest sister, Susan) which leads to Emily’s emotional outburst and eventually to her confession to be “in love with a white guy” (00:43:48). Her father tries to make Emily stop talking about the issue and brings up the topic of disownment. His reaction escalates the situation and an apparently long-needed discussion starts, which constitutes the central scene in the film and the question of (cross-)cultural understanding. While Susan accuses her father of threatening his daughters with disownment as soon as they do something he does not agree with, Melanie even goes beyond this and reproaches him with being racist (00:44:37). Outraged, Dr. Chu explains that he had “learned the New Zealand customs” (00:44:45) when he first came there and asks if it is too much to expect the same respect in his own house. He refers to his nurses who can even greet him in Chinese. When Emily claims that Melanie’s boyfriend cannot even speak Mandarin, her father just answers that he does not have to as he can see “he is Chinese” (00:45:59). It becomes clear that Dr. Chu is not necessarily against the relationships of his daughters with nonChinese men, but rather expects those to show respect in trying to understand his culture’s customs and act accordingly. Thus, when James approaches Dr. Chu to ask his permission to marry Emily (and does so in Mandarin while bringing fresh crabs as a present), Dr. Chu indeed gives his blessings and seems to willingly accept James as his future son-in-law. Mrs. Chu, however, does not give up her principles as easily. When James bluntly speaks about his parents’ divorce, Emily’s mother reacts with shock, possibly alarmed at the thought of her daughter being hurt. She even tells Emily later that she will not be coming to their wedding. Though Dr. Chu and his wife may portray themselves as traditionalists and act as such in front of their daughters, there are some elements in the film which suggest they have adopted European/New Zealand customs. At the very beginning of the film, scenes are shown of the Chu family home videos which display the three girls playing with a rugby ball, one of the most important sports for (European) New Zealanders. Additionally, ‘weet-biscuits’2 consistently appear throughout the film. Whereas the presence of ‘weet-biscuits’ in the Chu family’s household suggests the family’s openness towards European/British food traditions (as the product claims in one scene: “The best breakfast for New Zealand kids”), they also have a symbolic meaning for Emily’s character: When she was little, she disliked the cereal so much that she – in an unobserved moment – threw them away. However, she added them again to the shopping list in order to get the kid’s laser sword that came along when you bought five packages. We later see Emily in another scene with her mother and a laser sword in her hand, showing her already strong-minded character. James loves ‘weet-biscuits’ and eats them after a failed dinner at a Chinese place where he disliked the food, making Emily furious. Yet, when the couple nearly break up over the matter of their secret relationship and James refuses to speak with Emily, she sends him a video of her 2

According to the directors’ commentary on the DVD, this fictive brand name referring to the well-known brand Weet-Bix was chosen in order to avoid covert advertisement but still allude to the product’s cultural significance.

105

106

New Zealand eating ‘weet-biscuits’, displaying her willingness to sacrifice her fondness of traditional Chinese food for their love. Food in general plays a significant role in displaying cultural differences throughout the film: There are scenes depicting the careful preparation of food (Emily’s mother), having dinner at home (Emily’s family), or eating out at a restaurant (Emily and James). Bringing live crabs as a present is part of asking a Chinese father for his daughter’s hand. Emily and her mother especially attach food to a much bigger cultural context than the other characters. Both regard James’ reluctant behaviour towards Chinese food (as seen at the Chinese restaurant where they have yum cha, the traditional Chinese afternoon tea with dim sum 3 small dishes and at their own house) as a lack of trying to adopt or understand their cultural culinary traditions. The film also subtly injects elements of cultural impacts and conflict through the everyday lives of the characters by how they interact in their homes. For example, the Chu family’s household contains elements that indicate a strong Chinese cultural background (e.g. a tea set, the family eats with chop sticks, and the family removes their shoes at the front door). There are traditional Chinese clothes depicted in the film such as the clothing of Mrs. Chu’s friend, a dress Melanie selects for her wedding, and the Chinese jacket Mrs. Chu wears at Melanie’s wedding. However, Western/European influences can also be seen in the household as the laundry room is stocked with a wide range of New Zealand cleaning products (01:01:25). Another important cultural aspect of the film is language. All three daughters are fluent in English, but understand their parents’ native language, Cantonese, a Chinese dialect spoken in the south of China and in Hong Kong. And though Mrs. Chu is able to speak English, she mostly speaks Cantonese with her family. When Emily brings up her relationship with James to her father, Dr. Chu offers to consider James’ proposal if he were to learn Mandarin. James agrees to do so. Mandarin is the umbrella term for a group of related dialects spoken in the north of China. Only at the very moment of his actual proposal, James finds out that even Emily herself does not speak or understand Mandarin (00:51:20), which takes the function of comic relief in this tense situation. Dr. Chu wanted James to learn Mandarin because those variants are spoken by more native speakers than any other language in the world. Mandarin serves as the official language of People’s Republic of China (China), as well as of the Republic of China (Taiwan) and one of the four official languages of Singapore. 4

Emily and James – made for each other?

Emily is introduced to the audience as a child with a happy childhood. Even at a very young age, she shows character traits of a strong will, perhaps to the extent of stubbornness, which empowers her to achieve her ambitious goals, as can be seen in the example of the laser sword given above. In the initial scenes of the film, Emily also persuades her mother to watch a film with her called The Princess Bride (00:01:07). This further underlines her strong determination, which disagrees with her parents’ inclinations. Her desire to watch the film also foreshadows the trials and tribulations of her own romantic relationship. Meeting James does indeed seem to fulfil her 3

Dim sum is a type of Cantonese or Hokkien food prepared in small individual portions and served in small steamer baskets or on small plates. At traditional restaurants, dim sum is carried around in order for customers to choose their own portions while seated.

A Cross-Cultural Perspective on Romantic Love: My Wedding and Other Secrets

dramatised, romantic idea of love: They are both attracted to each other at first sight and Emily even sees romantic sparkles around James’s head during their first evening together (00:04:58). Throughout this scene, they discover many similarities between their lives, perspectives and objectives. For instance, they are both the youngest child in their families, they both have enrolled in computer science (but plan to pursue something else), they share their love of lollipops and a similar sense of humour. As the relationship between Emily and James develops, her will to preserve this relationship grows (to the point of stubbornness). Even if the threat of disownment scares her and makes her appear to follow her parents’ strict rules (e.g. coming home each night), she nevertheless follows her own will (for example sleeping with James despite her traditional upbringing). All through the film, Emily is shown as a rather clumsy and even careless person. For example, she repeatedly walks into the closed door of her film school while carrying too many things. Yet she appears confident in her film classes and states her high aims with a sincere and stubborn will. She dresses in comfortable, functional clothes and does not put much effort in tidying up her room, which is taken over by her mother. All in all, she does not seem to be engaged in any house work, since her mother does all the washing, cooking and cleaning. This becomes evident when Emily undertakes those duties for the first time (01:01:23). The music that is played during these scenes is based on a traditional Chinese children’s song, which praises a mother for what she does for her child. In attempting to do house work, Emily tries to win back her mother’s affection and to give something back to her. Emily has ambitious aims concerning her filming career; however, things do not seem to work out initially. When she realizes that she will need more money for her film project, she even goes so far as to ask James to marry her in order to gain the student’s bursary. This clearly emphasizes her very strong-minded character, yet also her self-centredness and ruthlessness. Having experienced in her childhood that everything could be achieved through hard work, Emily does not want to relinquish anything – the love of her life, her parents’ love, or her career as a director. Within her world, she wants everybody (including herself) to be happy, but does not see that her actions cannot match everybody’s expectations and does not notice how James or her mother suffer from her ambition. By stubbornly viewing her own life through her camera as she documents those around her for her film, she is unable to empathise with James’s wish to stay outside this project until she tells her parents about their relationship. Twice she tries to hide James in front of her Chinese family’s friends, leaving him with a feeling of unease in both situations. A strong symbol for her wish to dismiss everything that does not fit in her concept of a ‘happy life’ can be seen in the ‘delete-button’ she hesitantly presses while editing her documentary (00:59:40). With this button she deletes scenes after the happy outcome of James’s proposal, where the conflict between her mother and James are evident, to reshape her own story with a happy ending. One could claim this to be the action of a director knowing how to entertain the audience. However, it could also be interpreted as Emily’s wish to solve problems in a much easier way. In contrast to Emily, James is a down-to-earth person who does not abandon his principles that quickly. Although he agrees to marry Emily to help her with her film project, he mainly does it because he loves her and wants to be with her. He cannot understand Emily’s fear of her parents or her continuous wish to keep their relationship a secret. For the sake of his love, he later on becomes impetuously determined to learn Mandarin in order to ask Dr. Chu for Emily’s hand in marriage. James is a very honest

107

108

New Zealand person, which becomes evident when he talks about his feelings not only with Emily, but also with his friends and Emily’s sisters. He frankly talks about disliking the Chinese food custom of eating duck feet or being displayed on screen in Emily’s documentary. Furthermore, James is so comfortable with himself that he does not care what others think of him, even if it was something positive, such as the audience’s reaction to his behaviour in the film (Emily: “Everybody who’s seen the film thinks you come out as a complete saint”, 01:05:08). There is not much revealed about James’s former life except that his family lives in the south (00:05:03) and that his dream is to develop computer games. He lives in a flat with two roommates, with whom he also shares his enthusiasm for a fantasy roleplaying game called Dungeons & Dragons, which Emily tries to get into herself later in the story. The flat and James’s room have a typical student-look: packed with dinosaur and dragon toys, old kitchen furniture, coloured wallpaper, and clothes lying around. A significant scene of conflict between Emily’s and James’s personalities occurs when Emily tells James about her documentary being selected for the international New Zealand Film Festival. While James expresses concerns of how screening a film on her life may invoke feelings of embarrassment and exposure in those around her, Emily reacts irritated and annoyed (01:04:40). She cannot understand how her film could show anything besides how much she loves her parents, even if she filmed her parents secretly in very private moments. Eventually she ignores his pleading to not screen the film at the festival and invites journalists, film companies and her parents to the event (01:06:30). However, the audience responds to the documentary as James predicted and praises Emily for her courage to fight for her love and overcome her oldfashioned Chinese parents’ principles (“We’re in modern New Zealand, not ancient China”, 01:08:09). Emily is disappointed, trying to explain herself but realising that her film has had a completely different impact on the audience than she had wished for. Through the course of the film, Emily slowly grasps the scope of her parents’, especially her mother’s, love. She realizes that her mother, although never explicitly telling her so, loves her deeply and only wants the best for her daughter. Emily understands this through her mother’s behaviour: staying up late at night to wait for her daughter to safely return home, cooking her a healthy dinner, catching her when she falls down (as shown in her father’s home videos), providing her with all necessary items she might need for a sleepover and being proud of her daughter’s achievements by displaying all her trophies and awards. In a very emotional scene (00:58:52), Emily, during the editing process of her documentary, realises all these acts of her mother’s love, and when she speaks about it with James, she reflects on how blind she has been for not seeing how the Chinese concept of ‘young must respect old’ is based on the idea that they care for their children and only want the best for them. 5

Aesthetic aspects

Based on Roseanne Liang’s documentary Banana in a Nutshell, telling Roseanne’s personal cross-cultural love story, My Wedding and Other Secrets utilises specific filmmaking devices, of which selected ones will be discussed below. As stated before, there are scenes in the film consisting of Super 8 home videos which originate from Roseanne’s own childhood. The film’s self-referential moments continue when Emily during their wedding night ponders on how she does not want to

A Cross-Cultural Perspective on Romantic Love: My Wedding and Other Secrets

say ‘I love you’ “like in the movies” without really meaning it (00:27:00). When Emily starts documenting her own life with a camera, the film is sometimes seen through the eyes of this documentary camera (hand camera) with blurred shots and a noticeable zooming, making a clear difference between her interpretation of her life and the actual film. There are times in which the layered metaphor of filming illustrates the complexities of perspective. This can be seen when Emily is editing her film and is looking at herself being filmed by James (00:59:07). An important film-making technique utilized in this film is the use of flashbacks. Characters will reference an event during their dialogue and the film will cut to scenes from the past, explaining and elaborating on the topic. An example of this appears at the beginning of the film when Emily tells James about her father’s threat of disownment. The film cuts to scenes from the past displaying her sister and her white New Zealand boyfriend (00:07:46-00:08:18). The flashbacks fulfil the function of explaining a matter in a more direct and understandable way than mere narration would have done, and allows the audience to immerse themselves in the situation of the narrating character. The same device is used when Susan explains her father’s principles to James with flashbacks of how her ex-boyfriend failed in communicating with him (00:18:04-00:18:12), giving the audience a concrete example of what Susan is trying to describe. Flashback is also used when James asks Dr. Chu for Emily’s hand in marriage (00:48:11-00:49:59). While James is inside the house, the audience can only see Emily sitting in the car being filmed by her fellow student Eric. The combination of a use of a ‘documentary style’ and an ‘extreme close-up’ impresses upon the audience a feeling of proximity to Emily and increases the suspense of the outcome of James’ proposal. Returning to the car, James does not immediately reveal the result, but a flashback takes the audience into the scene where he approaches Dr. Chu (00:50:00-00:52:07). In the two fencing scenes, when Emily and James encounter each other for the first time (00:04:08), and later, when she tries to talk to him during their fight (01:11:57), the camera is placed within her helmet, allowing the audience an exclusive view of Emily’s facial expressions. Again, this evokes a feeling of immediacy to the protagonist. Furthermore, the film plays with manipulating time, such as condensing time or switching between scenes with similar content. For instance, both Emily and James are introduced to each other’s social circles (James’s friends, Emily’s sisters), and each character is confronted with different problems interacting with these groups, which they must overcome (00:17:30-00:19:27). The two scenes are linked not only through the similarity in experience, but also through the overlaying of playful music, which adds a humorous aspect to the uneasy situation for the protagonists. Condensing time with the help of ‘fast cut’ is utilised in the scenes when Emily goes home each night after spending the evening with James. The set of the scenes – Emily driving in a car – remains while her clothes and her behaviour change (00:30:40-00:30:52). This illustrates the long period of time that the lovers go through this situation – Emily wearing a beanie hinting at winter time, then again something less warm. Additioanlly, this technique stresses differences in Emily’s attitude towards this situation: Sometimes she is crying, sometimes she looks rather determined. The slow and sad music underlines Emily’s emotion of hopelessness in a seemingly never-ending situation. The course of James’s learning Mandarin is also displayed with the help of condensing time, presenting various scenes in a sequence (00:46:29-00:48:12): studying with Susan, at a Chinese class, practising in a Chinese fruit market – each time making slow progress. Again, this device emphasises the long period of time something

109

110

New Zealand is happening during the course of the story, in this case, how long it took James to be able to formulate a few sentences in Mandarin. Furthermore, director Liang intensifies emotions with the help of music. An example can be found in the scene of James’s and Emily’s first kiss (00:09:27). The classical orchestra music used here opens an arc of suspense which is finally concluded in the actual kiss, stressing the importance of this event for the whole film. Slow and gloomy music is used in a sequence showing James receiving gifts from Emily, such as her flowers from the film festival, his garden lit with heart-shapes lights, but also scenes of James sitting alone in the fencing club, as well as later watching Emily’s tape of how she forces herself to eat the ‘weet biscuits’ for him (01:08:37-01:11:49). The music leads the audience to believe James is planning to break up with Emily. 6

Suggestions for a teaching unit on the film

The film provides an excellent vehicle for the discussion of cross-cultural encounters and transcultural attitudes relating to Chinese and European values and traditions in New Zealand. Students should be enabled to critically reflect upon terms such as culture, multiculturalism, cross-culturalism or transculturalism and their underlying concepts.4 The required meta-discourse about the distinction within the terminology will confront them with the difficulties involved in the complex discussion about cultures and cultural aspects within our globalised world. Starting with a close look at the protagonists’ views and behaviour within their social contexts, students will have the opportunity to reflect on their own cultural understanding and open up to a cultural awareness. According to Volkmann (2010) the objective of critical cultural awareness refers to the process of gaining insight into various forms of the perceiving the world. The focus lies on initiating a greater accecptance and tolerance towards the members of different cultural communities (cf. 160ff. & 165ff.). Through the course of activities specified below, students will be encouraged to examine issues concerning diversity as well as analyse and discuss the characters’ behaviour and attitudes in regard to questions of honesty, responsibility and ethical action. The following selection of activities provides a starting point for designing a teaching unit based on the film for intermediate to proficient learners of year ten and above. They are organised in pre-, while- and post-viewing activities (cf. Henseler et al. 2011: 97ff.) and focus on different competences. Scaffolding should be included in the tasks in different ways, such as language support (e.g. working on the adjectives describing character traits), but also in the form of providing possibly missing information regarding the underlying genres both of written and oral products. For instance, students should be encouraged to enhance their declarative knowledge on a character analysis (e.g. by the help of a model text) and then work productively on one example themselves. 6.1

Pre-viewing activities

To begin (cf. Mat No. 1), students are asked to speculate on the film’s plot by looking at its title. Developing a word cluster relating to the title and the possible film contents activates the students’ vocabulary and prior knowledge. By analysing the film poster, 4

Helpful sources for examing the different terms and their associated concepts are Volkmann (2010) as well as Nünning & Nünning (2008).

A Cross-Cultural Perspective on Romantic Love: My Wedding and Other Secrets

students express further predictions about the genre and the film, which may already highlight culture-related issues. All these activities should be based on the cooperative principle Think – Pair – Share in order to maximise individual thinking and exchange of ideas at the same time. Students’ expectations on the film’s content (e.g. what other secrets are revealed) should be resumed at the end of the unit. Mat No. 2 introduces the students to the opening scene of the film. Splitting up sound and image can increase the outcome of students’ presumptions concerning Emily’s character. If possible (for example, by means of two separated rooms), half of the class can watch the scene, while the other half only listens to it. This will enhane their speaking motivation since both groups lack certain information. The given language support can guide them to articulate their observations. 6.2

While-viewing activities

The plot of My Wedding and Other Secrets should not cause difficulties for learners of year ten or above, so the teacher can screen the film in a segment approach with only three pauses. This approach keeps the film’s dramatic suspense and enables learners to appreciate its aesthetic composition (cf. Henseler et al. 2011: 34f.). The three pauses during the screening can foster learners’ attention, helping them process the plot and make use of anticipation, which can raise both their motivation and curiosity (cf. ibid.: 35). While watching the film, learners are asked to takes notes on key moments in the plot. These notes are the basis for a post-viewing activity (cf. Mat No. 8), which aims at reconstructing the course of the action and the film’s dramatic arc of suspense. Mat No. 3 has learners fill in a provided grid that highlights major aspects of film analysis. If learners are not familiar with certain aspects or terms, these terms should be discussed in class. Henseler et al. offer a detailed description of central elements of an in-depth film analysis (2011: 40ff.). It might be helpful to split up the different elements within the class and merge them at the end of the viewing process. This will maximise students’ individual responsibility and intensify the subsequent discussion. The film is screened until 00:45:31. The discussion about Dr. Chu’s attitudes and behaviour towards his daughters leads to central questions within the film and should therefore be reviewed a second time. Students are then asked to research background information in order to lead an in-depth discussion on the question whether Dr. Chu can be described as racist (cf. Mat No. 3). The next segment stops at 00:53:40. At this point, James has finally managed to receive the blessing of Dr. Chu for their wedding and the film’s conflict should be resolved. However, the atmosphere at the dinner table suddenly changes and the whole family is left in a tense situation. Students are asked in Mat No. 4 to change perspectives in order to comprehend the situation and the cultural conflicts involved. In the role of one character they retell the preceding events (either in a fictitious telephone conversation or fictitious face-to-face conversation with their character’s husband or wife, respectively) and their character’s possible view on the situation. By choosing between a specific character and a definite oral genre, students find a creative and individual approach to the underlying question of (cross-)cultural awareness. The last pause takes place at 01:06:27. James pleads with Emily not to screen her documentary, but she does not express any empathy towards his position. The fight gives insight into the protagonists’ different perspectives of the screening and provides a good starting point of examining the two characters discreetly. The method of ‘hot seating’ (cf. Mat No. 5 & 6) combines an in-depth analysis with a physically active

111

112

New Zealand approach. Learners work in groups, either focussing on James or Emily, and put together their collective opinions on each character. Furthermore, they postulate questions relating to the other character, thus also discussing the characters’ relationship from a different perspective. Based on their findings during the ‘hot seating’, learners are encouraged to step into the role of the director and imagine how the film could continue from this point. Following the principles of a task-based approach (for further referene see: Willis & Willis 2011), this assignment could be extended to a full development of a scene with a shot list including director’s instructions concerning light, music, the acting, setting etc. or even a script including the characters’ dialogues. 6.3

Post-viewing activities

After having watched the entire film, students should be encouraged to talk about their individual thoughts regarding the film (cf. Mat No. 7) (Henseler et al. 2011: 65 ff.). It is important to not only secure those first impressions of the film as these may be altered through the course of the following activities. Expressing their opinions about the film will also increase the students’ oral competence in a more organic setting (similar to going to the cinema with friends and afterwards talking about their individual perception of the film). Based on the method ‘bus stop’, students first take notes on the suggested questions and then meet others at the ‘pub-corners’, where they talk about their thoughts. Unlike a discussion amongst the whole class, this method offers a more familiar and authentic situation for the students to discuss their first impressions of a film. The following two post-viewing activities (cf. Mat No. 8 & 9) are closely linked to the students’ viewing observations. Based on those notes and key words provided, they create a flow diagram which charts the main action of the film. This will help them summarise the story line with its crisis, climaxes and resolutions, as well as provide an overview of the central themes within the film. If students struggle to name or reveal film-aesthetic elements, the teacher can provide them with key words (e.g. flash backs, music, documentary style, condensing time, or even further information on specific scenes etc.). Students are encouraged to link their observations with their impressions discussed earlier and their findings in their flow charts in order to fully comprehend the film-aesthetic elements and their functions within the film. Mat No. 10 to 12 focus on the analysis of the main characters and their relationships to each other. Students may choose between the analysis of complex (‘round’) characters such as James or Emily, and less complex (‘flat’) characters such as Melanie and Susan with regard to their personal competence level. Combining the methods of ‘group puzzle’ and ‘gallery walk’ will foster students’ individual responsibility as well as their mutual dependence when it comes to the presentation of the results and the joint development of the character map. The missing minor characters (Jason, Eric, James’ friends) and their relationships can be analysed jointly. If the group is not familiar with a detailed character analysis, it is necessary to provide an explanation in class prior to the activity (e.g. with the help of Henseler et al. 2011: 65 ff.). Given the facilities, it would be additionally beneficial if students could work with the film within their groups (via PC or tablet) in order to re-watch certain scenes or extracts. Mat No. 13 & 14 aim at discussing the importance of food as a cultural symbol in the film. Students can individually select one of the given snapshots and analyse them in regard to their relevance to the characters and the plot. Dealing with different

A Cross-Cultural Perspective on Romantic Love: My Wedding and Other Secrets

snapshots may raise the students’ motivation to talk about their findings and lead to a more profound discussion on the question of (cross-)cultural understanding and tolerance towards other cultures afterwards. 6.4

Further suggestions

Due to limited space within this chapter, not all possible activities regarding the film and film analysis could be discussed in detail. Further suggestions include Liang’s documentary Banana in a Nutshell, which offers great opportunities to compare and contrast both films, especially relating to the genre-change from a documentary to a feature film or romantic comedy, respectively. With two films featuring similar themes such as love, cultural integration and awareness, students can expand their debate on the different perception of the characters and discuss the transformations in plot progression of the two films. The bonus material on the DVD (‘Behind the Scenes’ & ‘Directors’ Comments’) provides insight into the working process of the film, which may be another interesting element to add to the unit. 7

Conclusion

This chapter has focused on the cross-cultural issues of a relationship between a Chinese New Zealand-born girl and her white New Zealand boyfriend. The analysis of the film provides an insight into the possibilities of approaching the film in regard to different themes, such as a love-story or cross-cultural relationships. Within the unit, students will be introduced to the difficulties the characters encounter when interacting between different cultural frameworks and ways of how to deal with them. The range of suggested tasks highlights the opportunities the film offers for the foreign language classroom, especially when it comes to fostering students’ competences in analysing narrative structures, characters’ developments and film aesthetic elements as well as in training their cultural understanding. Film reference My Wedding and Other Secrets. Director: Roseanne Liang. Screenplay: Roseanne Liang & Angeline Loo. New Zealand: South Pacific Pictures. DVD 2011. 85 minutes.

References Brooking, Tom & Rabel, Roberto (1995), Neither British Nor Polynesian. A Brief History of New Zealand’s Other Immigrants. In: Greif, Stuart W. (Ed.) (1995), 23-49. Burton, David (2013), Food. Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand [Online: http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/food/page-2 01.04.2016]. Dölling, Cristina Anette (2008), Neuseeland. ‘A Nation of Immigrants‘. Immigration und Immigrationspolitik im Südpazifikstaat in Gegenüberstellung zum kolonialen Mutterland Großbritannien. Baden-Baden: Deutscher Wissenschafts-Verlag. Greif, Stuart W. (Ed.) (1995), Immigration & National Identity in New Zealand. One People – Two Peoples – Many Peoples? Palmerston North: The Dunmore Press Ltd.

113

114

New Zealand Hearn, Terry (2012), English – Importance and influence. Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. [Online: http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/english 01.04.2016]. Henseler, Roswitha; Möller, Stefan & Surkamp, Carola (2011), Filme im Fremdsprachenunterricht. Grundlagen, Methoden, Anregungen für die Unterrichtspraxis. Seelze: Klett/Kallmeyer. Ip, Manying (1995), Chinese New Zealanders. Old Settlers and New Immigrants. In: Greif, Stuart W. (Ed.) (1995), 161-199. Ip, Manying (2006), Chinese. In: Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, Settler and Migrant Peoples of New Zealand. Auckland: David Bateman Ltd., 105-125. Ip, Manying (2014), “Chinese.” Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. [Online: http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/chinese 01.04.2016]. Nünning, Ansgar & Nünning, Vera (Eds.) (2008), Einführung in die Kulturwissenschaften: theoretische Grundlagen – Ansätze – Perspektiven. Stuttgart: Metzler. Phillips, Jock (2006), Becoming New Zealanders. In: Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, Settler and Migrant Peoples of New Zealand. Auckland: David Bateman Ltd., 7286. Phillips, Jock (2013a), History of Immigration – Multi-cultural New Zealand: 1991 onwards. Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. [Online: http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/ history-of-immigration/page-17 01.04.2016]. Phillips, Jock (2013b), Sport and the Nation – The Relationship between Sport and Nationalism. Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. [Online: http://www.TeAra. govt.nz/en/sport-and-the-nation 01.04.2016]. Phillips, Jock & Hearn, Terry (2008), Settlers. New Zealand Immigrants from England, Ireland & Scotland. 1800-1945. Auckland: Auckland University Press. Thakur, Ramesh (1995), In Defence of Multiculturalism. In: Greif, Stuart W. (Ed.) (1995), 255-281. Volkmann, Laurenz (2010), Fachdidaktik Englisch: Kultur und Sprache. Tübingen: Narr. Willis, Dave & Willis, Jane R. (2011), Doing Tasked-Based Teaching (5th ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. Wilson, John (2006), European Discovery of New Zealand. Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, Settler and Migrant Peoples of New Zealand. Auckland: David Bateman Ltd. 8-19. Wilson, John (2014), History. Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. [Online: http:// www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/history 01.04.2016].

South Africa

Boy Called Twist: A Re-Adaptation of Oliver Twist in an Early Post-Apartheid South Africa Gabriele Blell, Lina Hartmann & Katharina Wiese

In this chapter, you will learn more about a relatively neglected country in German EFL curricula as well as university curricula for students enrolled in English Studies programmes: South Africa (cf. Gohrisch & Grünkemeier 2012). The film Boy Called Twist (2005), directed by Tim Greene, will be used as an example to broaden the learners’ horizons. The chapter will give a brief introduction to South Africa, in particular of Cape Town’s street kids. Twist’s search for love and family as a street kid in the film will then be analysed in the context of modern slave narratives and as a modern remake and re-adaptation of Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist (1838). Finally, possible teaching scenarios and materials that go with them will be introduced and discussed. 1

Background and context: South Africa and its street kids

The following section attempts to briefly trace selected historical and socio-cultural developments in South Africa that should contextualise the film’s plot and facilitate understanding. South Africa as we know it today, can be seen as a new and relatively young country in political, economic and cultural terms. Post-apartheid South Africa unites people from many diverse origins, ethnicities (Black Africans, Coloureds, Whites, Indians and Asians), cultures, languages, and religions. Among them, one in three is between 13 and 19 years old (cf. Voigt 2010: 2). As a country once stigmatised by its strict division of white and black, the so called Rainbow Nation (a term coined by Desmond Tutu) has been working hard to create a new national identity. Historically, the country is shaped by a long tradition of colonial rule and over forty years of racial segregation within the apartheid era. Ever since the first democratic elections in 1994, the main goal of the African National Congress (ANC) has been to improve the country’s economic and social situation by implementing new policies. Twenty years later, many improvements have been accomplished and a great number of goals have been achieved. South Africa has developed into a relatively strong economic region and is responsible for 25% of Africa’s total gross domestic product today (cf. Voigt 2010: 2). According to Knight (2006: 2), “[ s] ignificant progress has been made in education, health care, housing and providing basic services”. Poverty rates continue to decline, the number of people who live on less than $1.00 per day was halved between 2000 and 2011 (The Republic of South Africa 2013: 25). The government has achieved the goal of providing education for all children between ages 7 and 13 (cf. ibid.: 49).

116

South Africa Furthermore, HIV infections among young people between ages 15 and 24 are expected to decrease from 9,3% in 2002 to 4,2% in 2015, which can be seen as an indicator for declining HIV infections in general (cf. ibid.: 81). Nevertheless, problems such as unemployment, social inequality and HIV orphaned children still remain a legacy of the apartheid regime whose effects can be seen on many different levels: a weak education system, an incomplete infrastructure especially with regard to housing, a tremendous gap between rich and poor and high crime rates as well as much street violence (cf. Thompson 2000: 265ff.). Summing up, South Africa still remains to be a country of great contrasts. The film Boy Called Twist is set within this changing new South Africa and draws upon many of the issues mentioned above. It tells the story of the orphaned boy Twist, who grows up in an orphanage, is sold into child labour, and ends up as a street kid in Cape Town. The film makes topical child labour in domestic contexts, which is promoted through various factors such as poverty, discrimination, family issues or the need for cheap and flexible workers. Child labour bears characteristics of modern slavery as the children are denied basic rights and are treated like property by the employing family they depend on (cf. Blagbrough 2011: 203). Orphaned children are put in families who are not necessarily concerned with the well-being of the child. In other words: The fact that the child lives with a family does not mean that it finds a surrogate family and a feeling of security. This is also represented in the film, where a group of street kids offer Twist the structures and a sense of belonging he has been missing ever since he left the orphanage.The existence of street kids and gangs in urban South Africa is another legacy of the apartheid era, where the policy of segregation was manifested in spatial terms. Since the well-off white population tended to live in the cities, the rural areas became even poorer which led to an increase in migration to the cities. This development included a destabilisation of family structures and a profound change in family traditions. The rapid growth of the cities was not met with an adequate adaption of the living conditions – the effects were insufficient infrastructure and tentative housing. All these changes led to a rise in the number of street children since children and adolescents left their families once their inner structure fell apart and could not support them any longer (cf. Dissel 1997). 2

Film analysis

2.1

Boy Called Twist as an early post-apartheid production

In this section, a short summary of the film will be given. The narrative will be analysed in view of modern (post-apartheid) slave narratives and as a modern adaptation of Dickens’ Oliver Twist (1838). Short summary of the film and plot analysis

Boy Called Twist tells the story of the boy Twist, who grows up without parents in the wastes of post-apartheid South Africa’s Swartland and is sold into brutal child labour in the countryside. He escapes to Cape Town and, finally, seems to find a new home with the Ethiopian Ebrahim Bassadien, who turns out to be his real grandfather. Twist’s story is told chronologically and is partly realised through point of view shots “looking through” Twist’s eyes. Regularly, they are supported by the use of low angle perspectives, e.g. in the nightmare scene showing Twist’s dream of being buried alive

Boy Called Twist: A Re-Adaptation of Oliver Twist

(00:19:47-00:20:43). The chronology in narration is reinforced by non-diegetic elements such as intertitles indicating the years that have passed during Twist’s childhood. There are no flashbacks or foreshadows used. After a prologue scene that depicts the deadly fate of Twist’s mother and ends with the infant Twist being dropped off at the orphanage’s stairs in a basket, the first stage of his life begins. Twist’s childhood at the orphanage is characterised by a lack of love and devotion. This becomes particularly clear, when the director of the orphanage chooses a name for the newly arrived boy by applying a seemingly well-proven system of moving a reading tag to the next book on a shelf full of literary classics, and taking the name from a title of the book next in line: Oliver Twist (00:07:26-00:07:41). Since there already is a child named Oliver, she decides on the name Twist. This scene of picking a name emphasises the impersonal relationship the director has to the orphaned children. Twist’s childhood years are only shown as short snippets, introduced by intertitles indicating Twist’s age. The plot continues to be more detailed once the boy has reached the age of twelve, when he first starts to work for a farmer and later for a rural undertaker, being subject to verbal and physical violence. Eventually, Twist runs away from this undignified way of life and ends up in Cape Town. Strolling through the night all alone and hungry, Twist is picked up by the pimp Sykes, the prostitute Nancy and a teenage boy, who take him to a deserted warehouse. Here, he meets a gang of street kids with their adult ringleader Fagin, who urges the children and young teenagers to engage in stealing and begging in the streets of Cape Town. It becomes clear that Fagin is subordinate to Sykes. The climax of the story is reached when the police catch Twist after having stolen the wallet of a pedestrian. He ends up in front of a judge, who releases him after the victim, Bassadien, refuses to press charges against him. Instead, Bassadien takes care of Twist in his home. However, this arrangement does not last since Sykes and Nancy track the boy down by coincidence and take him back to Fagin’s gang because Twist’s inside information poses a threat for the gang’s existence. Twist is punished for his escape and is locked up. Fagin releases him again in order to use him for a robbery job. Meanwhile, Nancy contacts Bassadien, who is searching for Twist, and tells him where to find him. The film ends with the police storming the living quarters of the street gang and saving Twist out of these criminal surroundings, granting him a new life with Ebrahim Bassadien. Twist as a street kid

Twist’s life as a street kid begins right after his arrival in Cape Town when he is in a very vulnerable condition: alone, hungry, and disoriented about his surroundings. The gang of street kids is powerfully introduced through an establishing shot of their living quarters (00:36:47-00:37:09). The inside of the warehouse is depicted down to the last detail with graffiti walls and dimmed candle lights. A child on swings appears within the frame, the camera is slowly panning, showing the rest of the room. It pauses to focus on some children sitting around a table, laughing and sniffing glue out of a bottle. The children’s oversized clothing are reminiscent of the hip hop or rap music scene. All of these details support the impression that the children do not experience a regular childhood, but are represented as grown-ups. Nonetheless, it seems as if Twist has found a place where people take care of him, for he is accommodated in a friendly manner by Fagin and introduced to his new “brothers and sisters” (00:38:12), which evokes a sense of family structure in Twist and a feeling of equality among the group.

117

118

South Africa Belonging to this substitute family, however, is not for free – again Twist has to work for becoming an accepted member of the group. With regard to the situation in South Africa, it is quite common that adults control the gang, but the children “carry out tasks on behalf of the community” (Dissel 1997: 3). Fagin playfully shows Twist “how it’s done” by challenging several boys to act like pickpockets and to try to steal something out of Fagin’s coat (00:42:43-00:44:00). The way old Fagin and his volunteers move around, turning around themselves and each other, reminds the viewer of a playful game, an impression which is supported by the laughter of the watching crowd. Music by lightly plucked violins underlines the game. Twist is laughing as well, enjoying the little show that seems to say: “It is just a game and it is fun!” Within the scenes showing the gang strolling through the city, rap music is used to evoke images of rough life on the streets. These two examples show the polarising and paraphrasing function that music has in the film (cf. Pauli 1976). The film reaches its climax with the court scene (00:56:23-00:58:20). It vividly represents the forlorn situation and powerlessness of the judiciary to deal with the issue of street kids and organised violence and crime in the city (cf. Dissel 1997: 6). The climax is introduced by an accident in which Twist is hit by a car and therefore caught by the police after robbing Bassadien. The accident foreshadows the upcoming turning point within the story, which is also indicated by a change of camera perspective (00:52:40-00:52:43). The camera follows Twist’s movements after the car has hit him. He lands on his back first, then the camera perspective abruptly shifts about 180 degrees, showing Twist lying on the street from upside down. Here, the turning point in Twist’s life is mirrored through the camera perspective. Twist as a modern slave

Twist along with other children is sold by the director of the orphanage to a social services worker who employs the children in agricultural work. This happens with no interest in Twist’s will or well-being as he continues to be in a situation of dependence without the freedom to move on his own. Basic rights are denied to him, he has no access to family activities and has to suffer from humiliation and abuse. All of these aspects can be identified as indicators of forced labour or even as a form of modern slavery (cf. Blagborough 2011: 198ff.). The second stage of Twist’s life is characterised by various forms of labour ranging from working in the fields over domestic work to working at a funeral home. Twist and his peers have to work under poor conditions as they are exposed to physical as well as verbal violence, only have a barn to sleep in and only get unsavoury looking food to eat. According to Blagbrough (cf. 2011: 203), a combination of push-factors such as poverty, the loss of family members, social exclusion or the lack of educational opportunities, and pull-factors such as the hope for advancement, a need for cheap and flexible work or the idea of a safe environment drive children into a life of domestic labour in the first place. In Twist’s case, he has no family to rely on, and therefore no support system in terms of finances or education. In cinematographic terms, the life of Twist and the other children is depicted by a combination of long shots and close-ups that provide an insight into their individual working and living situation (00:12:32-00:14:18). These shots are counterpointed by non-diegetic music, which creates a heavy contrast to the scene’s imagery. While the shots show the hard and undignified life of Twist, the soft and calm piano music evokes positive images and a feeling of an easy life. This contrast intensifies the cruelty of the

Boy Called Twist: A Re-Adaptation of Oliver Twist

situation. In the new household, a funeral home, the obvious physical abuse is complemented by negative psychological effects such as Twist’s nightmares which can be seen as a consequence of psychological exploitation. Bedwetting, headaches, depression or nightmares are among the common psychological problems of child domestic workers (cf. Blagbrough 2011: 202), and Twist does not only have to deal with nightmares but now finds himself in a hierarchical system where he is exposed to mobbing attempts of the workers above him. Up to this point, Twist’s inferior status is supported by low angle camera shots. However, the camera perspective changes to an eye level shot when the undertaker prepares him for a new position within the funeral home (00:22:40-00:22:50). In accordance to this change in camera perspective, Twist’s inferiority also changes and shifts to the background. Since the hierarchical structure among the other workers does not allow these changes, the situation escalates. As a consequence, Twist runs away and is seen as “preferring a life without shelter or food to a life of servitude and abuse” (ILO quoted in Blagbrough 2011: 198). Twist finds a surrogate family and himself

Twist’s life in his surrogate family is introduced by panorama shots showing the new surroundings with noble houses in front of the mountains that appear in the light of sunrise and let everything seem brighter. This imagery introduces a very different tone to the film. The joyful music, for example Goema Goema by Mac McKenzie and the Goema Captains of Cape Town (2004) 1, as well as the sound of a muezzin song support this impression. In contrast to the previous phase of Twist’s life, everything seems more elated and lively now. This also holds true for Bassadien’s house where Twist is given a warm welcome and encounterd in a very polite and cultivated way by his new surrogate father. Bassadien puts a lot of trust in Twist and shows a true interest in his well-being. He provides him with new white clothes, food, and the opportunity to get an education. Moreover, in the servant Francine, Twist finds someone who immediately seems to embody a mother figure for him, which complements the impression that for the first time, Twist has a home worthy of its name. In cinematographic terms, it is especially the use of the colour white in clothing as well as furniture that represents the change of setting within the film and within Twist’s life. In the end, after the throwback to the influence of Fagin and Sykes, the final scene of the film when Twist returns home (01:42:40-01:43:39) is introduced by the same elated song, Goema Goema, which was used to mark the turning point in his life before as well. The happy atmosphere of the song resembles Twist’s emotional state as he is immediately greeted and hugged by Francine and Bassadien and experiences the mutual love of a real family for the first time. Throughout the entire film, the music is used as an important stylistic device (leitmotif) to support the content either by polarising or paraphrasing the images of the scenes depicted as in the example of the final scene. Even though some of the events in Twist’s life seem to happen by coincidence, the film nevertheless shows how one person can make a difference by encountering a person in need with love and care. This holds true even though Bassadien turns out to be Twist’s real grandfather, but it is, however, not quite clear when Bassadien actually becomes aware of it. Therefore, his action can be evaluated independently from their 1

Goema Goema is an amusing little tune featuring famous Cape Town artists, including Zolani Mahola, Alex van Heerden and Robbie Jansen. It was recorded in 2002, released as a bootleg in 2003 and released through Mountain Records in 2004.

119

120

South Africa family status and leaves the viewer with gratitude, assurance and hope for a better future. Shown as a last close-up shot in front of a panoramic overview, Twist is smiling before he walks out of the picture and leaves the viewer with a panorama view over Cape Town and the mountains, giving a confident foresight to a better future. 2.2

Boy Called Twist as a modern re-adaptation

When ‘reading’ the film from an inter-textual perspective, Greene’s Boy Called Twist is both a film “remake” and a “re-adaptation”.2 A remake, according to Kinzel (2015: 116), refers to “a new version of something pre-existing”, i.e. in this instance to the many earlier film versions of Dickens’ masterpiece. At the same time, the film is a “readaptation”, a “remake that is not just linked to earlier film versions but also to the text (or story) that was originally adapted” (Kinzel 2015: 116). 3 Boy Called Twist offers complex links to Dickens’ novel of 1838. Not only does the film’s title allude to Oliver Twist, there are also similarities concerning the plot, characters and atmosphere. Over the years, the remakes of Oliver Twist have become more and more international or even transcultural as for example Roman Polanski’s cross-European remake of 20054 and Tim Greene’s South African re-adaptation. Due to economic networking and globalisation, film production and reception processes become increasingly transcultural and diverse just as their global and culturally permeable narratives. 5 Furthermore, Kinzel (2015: 115) proposes that particularly Dickens’ descriptions of characters, settings and atmosphere “are extraordinarily vivid and thus lend themselves to medial transpositions”. Hereafter, the main emphasis will be put on Boy Called Twist as a modern (re-)adaptation (bearing in mind that book and film are different entities with own functions and aesthetics).6 Inter-textual similarities and interpolations

The viewer who is familiar with Dickens’ novel will immediately recognise a string of inter-medial similarities and interpolations but also differences. First of all, parallels concerning the novel’s characters and plot are eye-catching although both texts are embedded in different historical, geographical and social settings (cf. table 1).

2 3 4 5 6

According to Poppe, Boy called Twist ranges between a transformation that is content- and activity-oriented at the same time (“stoff- and handlungsorientierte Transformation”) (Poppe 2007: 92ff.). Heinz & Krämer (2015: 16) use the terms “inter-medial adaptation” (re-adaptation) and “intra-medial remake” (remake) for this distinction. Oliver Twist (UK/CZ/F/IT, R: Roman Polanski or other remakes as e.g. Oliver Twist, Jr. (1921) (USA, R: Millard Webb; Oliver Twist (1933) (USA, R: William J. Cowen; Oliver Twist (1999) (UK, R: Renny Rye). The Transnational Cinema as a new film theory tempts to focus on this multilayered phenomenon, from hegemonic (Hollywood) and also formerly colonial perspectives (cf. Ezra/Rowden 2006; Drexler 2016). At the same time, several adaptations of Oliver Twist exist for the child reader such as Graffex’s graphic novel of Oliver Twist: Charles Dickens (2006) (fragmentary narration with authentic dialogue-bubbles), the Real Reads version of Oliver Twist (2007) (the story in contemporary language) or the Penguin classics edition of Oliver Twist or the Parish Boys Progress (2003) (adapted story with historical information) (cf. Thiel 2013: 143-161).

121

Boy Called Twist: A Re-Adaptation of Oliver Twist

Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist 19th century (1830s) London (England) Victorian England & The Industrial Revolution

Tim Greene’s Boy Called Twist 20th/21st century Cape Town (South Africa) Early Post-Apartheid

Table 1: Comparison between Dickens’ Oliver Twist and Greene’s Boy Called Twist

There is the black orphan boy Twist, who, like (the white) Oliver, is around 9-12 when he enters Fagin’s street gang. Like Oliver’s mother, also Twist’s mother is not known and dies in childbirth. Fagin, who is an old Ethiopian Rastafarian in Greene’s film and not a Jew like in Oliver Twist, gives shelter to homeless street kids and trains them to steal for him. He buys stolen goods but rarely commits crimes himself. Bill Sykes, a vicious gangster and pimp brought up in Fagin’s network, and Nancy, a young and pretty prostitute and Sykes’ lover, are two more character adaptations who stem from Cape Town’s poorest and most ‘marginalized’ social strata. Both fetch Twist back for Fagin from Ebrahim Bassadien who was pick-pocketed by Twist. Despite Nancy’s criminal lifestyle, she is one of the most generous and humane characters in the screen. She metaphorically and literally ‘sacrifices’ her life for Twist when she is heinously murdered by Sykes. Bassadien, the very intelligent, high-minded and affluent Muslim (alias Mr Leeford and Mr Brownlow who serve as Oliver’s benefactors in the novel) acts in a similar way. He takes Twist in and provides him with a substitute family. Monks is another character in Twist’s environment. Like the original character, also Greene’s Monks, a man filled with hatred, seeks to push Twist’s downfall. The strange relationship between Monks, Twist and Bassadien, however, is only touched upon in the film. According to the novel, in the case of Twist’s death, Monks would loose his inheritance, since his evil mother destroyed Mr Leeford’s (Bassadien’s) will, which left part of his property to Twist. The film’s ending leaves Twist’s identity open although he, like Oliver, finds his (surrogate) family. The viewer does not really learn whether Ebrahim knows that Twist is his grandson or not. With that, the central mystery of Dickens’ novel, Oliver’s true identity, has been transferred to Greene’s story as well. But compared to Dickens’ story, which is narrated from a 3 rd person omniscient perspective, Greene tells his story from the perspective of Cape Town’s poorest people, namely Twist (1st person narrator). Finally, the mystery of the protagonists Oliver and Twist (and partly also Bassadien and Nancy) comes to a head. Both are treated and surrounded with cruelty, hardness and corruption for most of the time, they are innocent, life-affirming and of pure virtue. At the same time, being orphans at the beginning, they suddenly have more relatives than anybody else. It is often pure coincidence, wishful thinking and a stroke of good fortune that drives the story forward as it is. Therefore, the plot strongly reminds us of a modern fairytale as well (cf. Seeber 1993: 274). Greene’s transgressions against Dickens

Due to the cultural shift and the partial subversion of the plot, Greene excises the presentation of ‘the Jew’ Fagin and substitutes him by an old Rastafarian. With this decision he unequivocally alludes to South Africa as the new Rainbow Nation that encapsulates the coming-together of people of different nations and gives them a voice in a country which had made them speechless because of racial segregation in the past. However, similarly to Dickens, who harshly criticises the public policy towards the

122

South Africa poor in the 1830s (the new Poor Law) and the effects of industrialisation on 19 th century England with his novel, Greene stages a realistic picture of the changing South Africa, which in contrast culminates in a happy and fairytale-like ending. Greene’s retelling of Oliver Twist is definitely not a radical subversive twist per se. But Greene refashions the novel’s personnel and adopts the plot to the changing cultural paradigms between the centre and the margin. That is to say, “Oliver Twist as a canonical British text is used against itself: the cultural norm is transgressed through the process of adaptation; the centre is made to serve the needs of the margins” (Folléa 2014: ch. 14). The postcolonial paradigm of centre and margin is useful in this case and partially applicable to explain the relationship between the canonical British text as the ‘dominant’ base source that is transgressed and selectively subverted by Greene’s production (e.g. the change of narrative perspective or the frequent use of the handheld camera). Furthermore, Greene’s story is a clear artistic accusation of the 21 st century’s hardheartedness, hypocrisy and materialism which have not been overcome in postapartheid South Africa and instead stretch from the Swartland to urban areas such as Cape Town. Cape Town, like London, becomes the model of a modern world that has been out of joint (cf. Seeber 1993: 274). The excessive materialism (in the film only Bassadien, Nancy, and partly Fagin, transport intrinsic and humane values) negatively influences the increase in many South African homeless city dwellers, who are forced to sell themselves in order to make their living. Therefore, Boy Called Twist can be seen as a contemporary slave narrative as well: Twist is sold from an orphanage (interestingly enough Mrs Corlet, the orphanage director, has a strong literary bent) via a farm and a family-run funeral home to Fagin’s network of thieves in Cape Town. Whereas Dickens partly idealises the countryside, Greene’s allusions and social criticism are more global, comprising urban and rural life at the same time. 3

Teaching Twist

In the following sections, possible teaching scenarios and materials (cf. download section) that go with the aspects of the film analysis presented before will be introduced and discussed. The targeted learning group is upper secondary level (Sekundarstufe II). According to Hallet and Krämer (2012: 10ff.), competence oriented language learning focuses on meaningful and relevant topics and contains complex and tasks that guide students through the learning process towards the creation of a learning product. Making use of selected results of the film analysis, the following teaching scenario is embedded in the task concept and will be processed along pre-, while- and post-viewing activities (cf. Thaler 2012: 92). The targeted learning product should therefore link a thorough film-driven analysis with activities that are close to the learners’ interests and experiences. The teaching unit on Boy Called Twist, which picks up on ‘intercultural communicative competence’ (cf. KMK 2012: 19) as the main objective, should enable the students to shoot a short film trailer that touches on an imaginative story about a European (German, French, British…) boy/girl called Twist. Learners are asked to understand the film (and parts of the novel) in its socio-economic context and its genesis in order to creatively apply the results to performing authentic or imaginative European stories (for example a story about purity in a corrupt world, modern slavery, searching for a (surrogate) family, urban vs. rural life etc.). Students are asked to master the transfer to different perspectives involving knowledge and

Boy Called Twist: A Re-Adaptation of Oliver Twist

reflections about familiar and unfamiliar cultural and social settings. As a South African production, Boy Called Twist offers cultural and intercultural learning potential by fostering knowledge, skills and attitudes (cf. Thaler 2012: 272). The film draws on knowledge about social issues such as the gap between wealth and poverty, which becomes obvious by dealing with forms of modern slavery but also through the topic of street kids. Moreover, the polarity of extremes can be observed in differences between rural and urban life as well as living at the margin of society in contrast to living at the centre of it. The understanding that these socio-economic and geographical polarities have their roots in the country’s historical development can build up cultural knowledge that helps students to relate to the South African realities. In return, the film can challenge the students to develop skills for reflecting on their own cultural backgrounds according to the topics mentioned above and to question potential stereotypes towards foreign cultures (for example students might think that forms of modern slavery as well as orphaned children living in the streets are a problem of nonWestern cultures only). With the recent developments of refugees coming to Europe, among them also many orphaned children and teenagers, both topics receive a new and expanded meaning. Modern slavery may not be an issue primarily related to modern Western cultures in a direct way, but when thinking of the working conditions in less developed countries producing consumer goods for the global market, child slavery indirectly affects us as well. Furthermore, modifications of ‘(pseudo-) orphaned’ childhood in Western cultures (for example a provocative discussion on neglected children due to full-time working parents) might provide students with new perspectives on their own experiences. Therefore, students work on their attitude towards South Africa and their own environment. It is not determined how students design the outcome since every student should be able to develop an individual perspective on his/her own cultural background. Boy Called Twist naturally offers learning potential in different domains (narrative, dramatic, cinematographic). Like a literary text, it tells a story. At the same time, it is a “medium of cultural representation” (Thaler 2014: 40) which needs to be considered in detail through a thorough analysis, i.e. studying the individual components of the film (image and sound). Analytical and narrative competences will be specifically amplified within the while-viewing phase, for example by keeping a film journal. In order to build up an understanding of film, Thaler suggests to teach three basic skills: an integration of visual literacy and listening comprehension, analytic and creative skills, which may overlap and can be combined in teaching. Hence, students should be able to identify the predominantly low camera angle and the point of view shots and relate it to Twist’s perspective as a child. In addition, the focalisation on Twist creates identification potential for the viewer, which ideally leads to a greater understanding of the protagonist’s situation and affects the viewer’s attitude. In order to reinforce and broaden the learners’ understanding of the specifics of cinematic storytelling, the film may be viewed (and the novel optionally read) in combination with Dickens’ original masterpiece. Working with both the literary text and its film adaptation provides many benefits for the EFL classroom since “the juxtaposition of two different media opens up the possibility of using a variety of attention-grabbing methods and techniques” (Thaler 2014: 164). Therefore, aspects of inter-textual learning will be included as well. Using the book and the film, students will recognise that an event, e.g. the orphaned childhood of Oliver Twist and Twist, can be told in different ways, depending on different times, setting and chosen characters (narrative competence). This might influence interpretational results since

123

124

South Africa the geographical and socio-economic settings of film and novel are of great contrast, the overall message of a critique of public policy is nevertheless still effective (literary competence). Furthermore, having a closer look at the ‘Englishes’ in both the novel and the film may be an additional aid for understanding (cf. Henseler et. al. 2011: 239ff.). Reading text passages from the novel first (i.e. the staged use of 19 th Century England English) may help the students to become aware and improve their understanding of the challenging use of different (staged) South African English vernaculars within Greene’s film (cf. Schröder 2012: 41ff.). 4

Tasks, scenarios and methods

As Boy Called Twist might appear to be rather complex even for advanced learners, the following scenario is designed in accordance with the pre-while-post-model (Thaler 2014: 172-175, Henseler, Müller und Surkamp 2010: 71) in order to promote the learning process best. Based on the understanding of the film (and additionally of Dickens’ novel) students get the complex task to shoot a short film trailer that touches on an authentic or imaginative story about a European (German, French, British…) boy/girl called Twist. Possible activities are shortly described. Selected materials and worksheets are provided in the download section. 4.1

Pre-viewing activities

Watching the trailer: The students will watch the trailer of Boy Called Twist several times mainly for two purposes: firstly, as a silent impulse to familiarise themselves with the topic in general and secondly, to grasp first initial aspects of the story, characters, setting, point of view, special effects etc. (cf. Mat No. 1). (If Dickens’ novel is known, similar and/or different characters, time or places may basically be depicted already here.) (cf. Mat No. 2, optional). In order to document the learning outcomes, students may design grids referring to the questions in Mat No. 1 to present their results in class, which will be completed during the while- and post-viewing phase. Research: Based on an initial viewing of the trailer and the identification of possible topics (for example South Africa, street kids etc.), students do guided research on relevant topics with regard to Boy Called Twist covering Apartheid, the social situation in terms of AIDS, street kids, Cape Town or South Africa as the Rainbow Nation. The information should be brought into class and made available for everyone (through short oral contributions, posters etc.) in order to secure profound background knowledge when watching Boy Called Twist (cf. Mat No. 3). Inter-medial interpolations: To raise awareness for the assumedly unfamiliar South African English vernacular, students will learn some basics about this variety and listen to some dialogue in advance. If the novel is used, awareness may be raised in comparing (reading aloud) passages from Dickens’ novel with dialogues from the movie (cf. Mat No. 4). Since the South African variety may be difficult to perceive, some learners may wish to add English or German subtitles which, additionally, practices reading-viewing competences (cf. Blell 2016). 4.2

While-viewing activities

Film response journal: During the while-viewing phase, a rather receptive (and knowledge-driven) approach is used to ensure the students’ understanding of the film.

Boy Called Twist: A Re-Adaptation of Oliver Twist

Targeting their analytical and writing competences, in a film response journal students are asked to (a) focus on various characters (character profile), plot development or the organisation of the setting to understand the film’s narrative development (cf. Mat No. 5). Similarly, a film response journal may (b) capture book-film comparisons in case the targeted learner product should be shot as a further re-adaptation of Dickens’ text (cf. Mat No. 6). A range of guiding questions about the central topics of the film such as street kids, modern slavery or finding a family support the students while watching the film and, furthermore, foster their listening competences and visual literacies. There are two possible approaches considered when working with the film journal. Either the students work individually with the film and the journal at home while the time in class is used to revise film analysis, or the film is shown in class following the segment approach (cf. Thaler 2014: 134). Close-viewing: The questions will necessarily go hand in hand with close-viewing tasks of key-scenes that should enable the students to come to terms with the cinematic realisation of the topics mentioned above by focusing on camera perspective, clothing, light, music etc. (cf. Mat No. 7). 4.3

Post-viewing activities

Trailer stimulus: In order to further increase the students’ motivation and raise awareness for the production task, they watch and discuss a similar project (the oneminute bonus track on the DVD) with the title My Life Project. Be Part of the Change (2005), in which the stories of two boys, one of a rich family and the other a street kid, are linked with each other (cf. Mat No. 8). Trailer production: Within the post-viewing phase, students receive the complex competence task once again: “Get into groups of 5 and create a two-minute trailer for a film about a recent European Boy/Girl Called Twist.” First, the trailer Boy Called Twist should be viewed again from a production perspective in order to learn how a trailer is generally composed (cf. Mat No. 9). Mat No. 10 will demonstrate how the students will be guided through the production (and trailer presentation) process. The students’ narratives as well as their intercultural communicative competences (cf. Byram 1997: 34) are triggered by the task, since they are supposed to use the analytical categories, fill them with their own thoughts and relate to their own cultural background. Since the complex task is designed as an open task with no specific outcome, expectations about learners’ results cannot be anticipated in detail. Nevertheless, following the described competence goals it can be expected that students find a new way to tell their own Twist (and Oliver) story within a new cultural setting with a meaningful and comprehensible content. 5

Summary

The main thrust of the chapter’s investigations and explanations was to critically incorporate Tim Greene’s still relatively unknown movie Boy Called Twist (2005), into the advanced EFL classroom (Sekundarstufe II). The film, which stages various facettes of a changing new (post-apartheid) South Africa may be read as a cultural re-figuration of a thriving and ambiguous nation and applied as a contemporary (South African) film in order to develop the students’ film literacy. In addition, by (optionally) focusing on

125

126

South Africa the film as a modern remake of Dickens’ Oliver Twist (1838), this chapter accentuates aspects how the students’ inter-textual/inter-medial literacy can be improved as well. Film reference Boy Called Twist. Director: Tim Greene. Screenplay: Tim Greene. South Africa: Monkey Films and Twisted Pictures. DVD 2005. 115 minutes.

References Blagbrough, Jonathan (2011), This is Nothing but Slavery. Child Domestic Labor in the Modern Context. In: Campbell, Gwyn; Miers, Suzanne & Miller, Joseph C. (Eds.) (2011), Child Slaves in the Modern World. Athens: Ohio University Press, 193-207. Blell, Gabriele (2016), Mehrsprachige Filme: Fächer- und sprachenübergreifende Filmarbeit. In: Blell, Gabriele; Grünewald, Andreas; Kepser, Matthis & Surkamp, Carola (Eds.), Film in den Fächern der sprachlichen Bildung. Hohengehren: Schneider Verlag. Byram, Michael (1997), Teaching and Assessing Intercultural Communicative Competence. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters. Dickens, Charles (2003 [1838]): Oliver Twist, Philip Horne (Ed.). Penguin Classics. London: Penguin. Dissel, Amanda (1997), Youth, Street Gangs and Violence in South Africa. Youth, Street Culture and Urban Violence in Africa. Proceedings of the international symposium held in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, 5-7 May 1997. Abidjan: International Symposium. The Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation. [Online: http://www.csvr.org.za/index.php/ publications/1540-youth-street-gangs-and-violence-in-south-africa.html 01.04.2016]. Drexler, Peter (2016), Filmgeschichte im internationalen und fächerübergreifenden Diskurs. Implikationen für die schulische Filmbildung in den Sprachfächern. In: Blell, Gabriele; Grünewald, Andreas; Kepser, Matthis & Surkamp, Carola (Eds.), Film in den Fächern der sprachlichen Bildung. Baltmannsweiler: Schneider Verlag Hohengehren. Ezra, Elizabeth & Rowden, Terry (Eds.) (2006), Transnational Cinema. The Film Reader. London, New York: Routledge. Folléa, Clémence (2014), Normative Ideology, Transgressive Aesthetics: Depicting and Exploring the Urban Underworld in Oliver Twist (1838), Twist (2003) and Boy Called Twist (2004). Cahiers victoriens et édouardiens (En ligne), 79 Printemps (2014) mis en ligne le 16 octobre 2014, consulté le 15 janvier 2015. [Online: http://cve.revues.org/ 1145 01.04.2016]. Gohrisch, Jana & Grünkemeier, Ellen (2012), Listening to Africa: Anglophone African Literatures and Cultures. Introduction. In: Gohrisch, Jana & Grünkemeier, Ellen (Eds.), Listening to Africa. Anglophone African Literatures and Cultures. Heidelberg: Winter, 11-22. Hallet, Wolfgang & Krämer, Ullrich (2012), Kompetenzaufgaben im Englischunterricht. Grundlagen und Unterrichtsbeispiele. Seelze: Klett & Kallmeyer. Henseler, Roswitha; Möller, Stefan & Surkamp, Carola (2011): Filme im Englischunterricht. Grundlagen, Methoden, Genre. Seelze: Klett-Kallmeyer. Kinzel, Till (2015), The Remake as Re-adaptation of an English Classic. In: Heinze, Rüdiger & Krämer, Lucia (Eds.) (2015), Remakes and Remaking. Bielefeld: transcript Verlag, 115129.

Boy Called Twist: A Re-Adaptation of Oliver Twist

KMK Kultusministerkonferenz (2012), Bildungsstandards für die fortgeführte Fremdsprache (Englisch/Französisch) für die allgemeine Hochschulreife. [Online http://www.kmk. org/fileadmin/veroeffentlichungen_beschluesse/2012/2012_10_18-BildungsstandardsFortgef-FS-Abi.pdf 01.04.2016]. Knight, Richard (2006), South Africa 2006: Challenges for the Future. South Africa Delegation Paper. November 2006. 1-22. [Online: http://richardknight.homestead.com/files/ SouthAfrica2006-ChallengesfortheFuture.pdf 01.04.2016]. Oliver Twist: Charles Dickens (2006). Retold by John Malam. Illustrated by Penko Gelev. Brighton: Graffex. Oliver Twist (2007). Retold by Gill Tavner. Illustrated by Karen Donnelly. Stroud: Real Reads. Orphans and vulnerable children. South Africa. UNICEF. [Online: http://www.unicef. org/southafrica/protection_6631.html 01.04.2016]. Pauli, Hansjörg (1976), Filmmusik: Ein historisch-kritischer Abriss. In: Schmidt, HansChristian (Ed.), Musik in den Massenmedien Rundfunk und Fernsehen. Perspektiven und Materialien, Mainz: Schott, 91-119. Poppe, Sandra (2007), Visualität in Literatur und Film: Eine medienkomparatistische Untersuchung moderner Erzähltexte und ihrer Verfilmungen. Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht. Republic of South Africa. National Coordinating Committee (2013), Millennium Development Goals. Country Report 2013. United Nations Development Programme in South Africa. [Online www.undp.org/content/dam/south_africa/docs/Reports/The_Report/MDG_Oct ober-2013.pdf 01.04.2016]. Schröder, Anne (2012), Voices from Africa. The English Language in Africa. In: Gohrisch, Jana & Grünkemeier, Ellen (Eds.) (2012), Listening to Africa. Anglophone African Literatures and Cultures. Heidelberg: Universitätsverlag Winter, 41-68. Seeber, Hans-Ullrich (1993), Romantik und Viktorianische Zeit. In: Seeber, Hans-Ullrich (Ed.), Englische Literaturgeschichte (2nd ed.). Stuttgart: Metzler, 217-305. Thaler, Engelbert (2012), Englisch unterrichten. Berlin: Cornelsen. Thaler, Engelbert (2014), Teaching English with Films. Paderborn: Schöningh. Thiel, Elizabeth (2013), Downsizing Dickens. Adaptations of Oliver Twist for the Child Reader. In: Müller, Anja (Ed.) (2013), Adapting Canonical Texts in Children’s Literature. London: Bloomsbury, 143-161. Thompson, Leonard (2000), A History of South Africa. New Haven: Yale University Press. Voigt, Matthias (2010), Africa’s Time Has Come. Interkulturelles Lernen am Beispiel Südafrika. Der Fremdsprachliche Unterricht 44, 2-9.

Internet resources “Trailer Boy Called Twist”. YouTube. YouTube, 2005. [Online: https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=hrWSmJoSqNA 01.04.2016].

127

South Africa

“I Am the Captain of My Soul” – Invictus in the EFL Classroom Grit Alter

This chapter introduces Invictus (2009), a film about the events and atmosphere in South Africa leading up to the Rugby World Cup in 1995. With this film, director Clint Eastwood brought a heroic story about inspiration, courage and reconciliation into cinemas. It narrates some of the initial steps toward unifying South Africa after the official end of apartheid which burdened the nation with decades of segregation. Nelson Mandela has just become President of a country with severe social and economic problems. The aftermaths of the apartheid system have left society divided by racism and discrimination. Yet, Mandela believes that rugby has the potential to unite the country and restore pride in every South African. This chapter will first point out the relationship of cultural studies and media literacy before offering a short introduction to the historic background of the film. It will then offer an analysis and interpretation of central scenes and suggest methods and activities for implementing the film in ELT in order to extend your own and your students’ knowledge about an essential era in South African history. The analysis of cinematographic elements and their interplay with content and context take centre stage as to combine cultural studies with the development of media literacy. 1

Cultural studies and media literacy

Numerous scholars have in the recent past outlined the central position of media and film literacy in current education and ELT, and pointed at the potential of film to combine both with developing cultural competences (Decke-Cornill 2015; Donnerstag & Volkmann 2008; Grünewald 2010; Elsner et al. 2013; Helff 2013; Henseler et al. 2011; Hoof 2013; Kellner & Share 2005; Lütge 2013; Surkamp 2008). Factors such as a high motivation for students, authenticity, affective language learning, creative participation, and the development of various competences and critical media and film literacy make film a beneficial medium for ELT (cf. Henseler et al. 2011: 15). When film analysis focuses on aesthetic, analytical, historical and cultural features and employs student- and process-oriented methods, implementing film in ELT indeed offers the opportunity to develop cognitive as well as affective and creative competences. In order to do so, students should have a basic understanding of cinematographic terminology and of the historic and socio-political background of a film. For Invictus, this involves the apartheid system in South Africa and Nelson Mandela’s central role after apartheid officially ended. As to introduce cinematographic terminology and vocabulary for film analysis Henseler, Möller & Surkamp (2011: 40-

130

South Africa 50) and Lütge (2013) offer extended ideas for the classroom which include activities to become familiar with shots, camera movement and perspectives, camera operations, montage and mise-en-scène, and sound and music. It is essential, though, to be aware that film creates a multidimensional interplay of these elements which becomes even more complex when the meaning behind a composition is related to the content it transports. 2

Film and context: apartheid and its aftermaths

In 2009, Warner Bros. Pictures released Invictus, a biographical sports drama based on John Carlin’s Playing the Enemy: Nelson Mandela and the Game that Made a Nation (2008). It is set between Nelson Mandela’s release from prison in 1990 and the Rugby World Cup of 1995 and tells the story of how Mandela is able to unite a country after the devastating experiences of the apartheid system. Turning the national rugby team, the Springboks, into a unifying symbol and source of pride for all South Africans, he brought a society closer together that had been divided since the very outset of nation building.1 In order to understand the background of the film and the social, cultural and political situation in which the film is embedded, it is necessary to know about the origins and consequences of the apartheid system which are reflected in the following paragraph. Certainly, it is important to discuss this background with students as well and offer them insights into the history of South Africa. As will be suggested below, this can for example be done through students’ presentations. Some of the events and aftermaths are also included in the lead-in to the film by way of snapshots of a newsbroadcast (cf. Mat No. 3), Before the southern tip of Africa was colonised, it was populated by Khoikhoi and San settlers as well as Bantu-speaking farmers and herders. The first Europeans to travel to Southern Africa were Spanish and Portuguese explorers looking for trade options with Southeast Asia at the end of the 15 th century, followed by the Dutch. While the first traders had no intention of staying, in the 1650s the Dutch East India Company was in need of permanent and self-contained refreshment posts to equip their ships sailing to India with water and food. The Dutch Cape Colony was founded, and more settlers were attracted by offering them property in the Cape Town region. This domination of the land caused severe conflicts with the indigenous population (cf. Thompson 1990: 51). When the Dutch East India Company went bankrupt in 1794, the English took over the Dutch posts and incorporated the Cape Colony into the British Empire. Between 1806 and 1833 they initiated substantial reforms such as the prohibition of slave trade and the formal recognition of the indigenous population, which were met by tremendous suspicion by the Boers (the formerly Dutch settlers). In fear of being deprived of their means of existence, they embarked on a journey inland which became known as the Great Trek. Between the 1830s and 1840s an estimated number of 15,000 so-called Voortrekkers moved further into the country. Setting out in “tented wagons as groups of families with their retainers and their cattle, their horses and their guns” (Davenport & Saunders 2000: 77), they annexed new land after several armed struggles with the indigenous population. Twenty years later, they managed to 1

The historic overview of settlements and conflicts in Southern Africa can only refer to selected instances. For a concise introduction see Thompson (1990).

“I Am the Captain of My Soul” – Invictus in the EFL Classroom

establish the new Boer colonies Orange Free State and Transvaal. While the Orange Free State prospered, the Transvaal had to cope with various problems and ongoing conflicts with the native inhabitants. The discovery of diamonds and gold enhanced the immigration of foreigners which soon outnumbered the Boers in the colony. In view of the growing social tensions, British sentiment was strongly in favour of stability which they hoped to achieve by uniting the Boer republics with their own colonies (Cape Colony and Natal). Their wish to profit from the gold rush and gain control over the mines probably contributed to this sentiment. The resistance of the Boers resulted in the Anglo-Boer War (1899-1902), which the British emerged victorius (cf. Boehmer 2008: 18). In the following years, the integration of the four colonies into the South African Union was negotiated and implemented in 1909, yet an unequal distribution of power left a “fragile unity of Afrikaners2 and English-speaking whites” (ibid.). The structures in the Union were strongly racialised from the very beginning, “in subsequent decades, the Afrikaner’s sense of marginalization by the British-descended settlers only fueled their already defensive nationalism” (ibid.). The relationship between Afrikaners and English-speaking whites as well as the treatment of Black people remained the central political topics in the Union of South Africa, where pro-white policies prevailed, and discriminatory legislation was enacted towards Blacks. The persistent tensions paved way for a distinct nationalism among the Afrikaners on which the policy of apartheid was based. Anti-British resentments caused the foundation of the National Party, which came to power in 1948, the official beginning of the period of apartheid. “With its explicit policy of codifying white domination and racial segregation as law” (ibid.: 97), the National Party won the elections and was responbible for worsening of the already bleak living situation of black South Africans who had to adhere to rules that deprived them of equality, human rights and freedom. In the decade of “petty apartheid” in the 1950s, the Nationalists enforced the already existing segregation and inscribed racial separation and fearsome and cruel punishments for those who resisted the law (cf. South African History) (cf. Mat No. 1). One of the laws to oppress black South Africans determined the creation of townships outside of the cities which were designated living areas for the whites. A prominent example of such a township is Soweto (south western townships), whose population by the mid-70s was estimated between 1 and 1.5 million people. The density reached 6,400 people/km2 in 2011; people lived in shacks with hardly any running water or electricity (cf. Beavon 1997: n.p.). Soweto came to the world’s attention when on June 16, 1976 between 10,000 and 20,000 unarmed high school students “protesting against the compulsory teaching of certain subjects in Afrikaans” (Harrison 1981: 143, cf. also Ndlovu 2006: 317ff.) rather than in English were met by severe police violence which left 23 school children dead and hundreds wounded. Numbers of causalities vary as some doctors refused to fill in the documents correctly and recorded bullet wounds as abscesses. On the following day, 1,500 heavily armed officers controlled Soweto from vehicles and helicopters; the South African Army was on standby. This event caused major protests including sanctions and boycotts from abroad. Also within the nation, many white South Africans were shocked by the killing of children, for example about 300 white students from the University of Witwatersrand marched in Johannesburg to voice their disapproval, black workers put 2

South African ethnic group that descended from Dutch settlers.

131

132

South Africa down their work, and more riots followed during which “nearly six hundred black South Africans were killed” (Harrison 1981: 143). While the resistance movement against apartheid to a large extend had been based on non-violent measures following Gandhi’s ideas of civil disobedience and passive resistance, Mandela lost belief in non-violent resistance and explored the potential of “armed struggle” in the 1960s (Boehmer 2008: 41). Already in the 1950s the ANC (African National Congress, the most important party in the resistance movement against apartheid) turned toward more militant forms of protest, including “immediate and active boycott, strike, civil disobedience, and non-co-operation” when oppositional organisations were forced to operate underground (cf. South African History). One major means of resistance was the Defiance Campaign (1952), a large-scale and multiracial political mobilisation against apartheid law under common leadership of the “African National Congress, the South African Indian Congress and the Coloured People’s Congress” (South African History). As a result of publically speaking up against the apartheid system enforced by the white minority in South Africa, more than 8,000 trained volunteers went to jail for “defying unjust laws [ …] Volunteers were jailed for failing to carry passes, violating curfew, and entering locations and public facilities designated for one race only” (South African History). Although unsuccessful, the Defiance Campaign reflected a growing opposition to apartheid and united different groups through a common goal. Mandela became a central figure in opposing apartheid rules. He had already been involved and interested in politics as a young man which culminated in him becoming the President of the ANC Youth League in 1950. His participation in the resistance movement brought him to the radar of governmental executives who arrested and charged him with high treason in 1956. The trial that followed united activists from “around the country, and different race groups usually divided into their separate political organizations” (Boehmer 2008: 41). Upon his return from a trip across Africa which brought him together with leaders of other countries, Mandela was arrested for leaving the country without proper documents and “charged with inciting people to a strike” (ibid.: 47). Mandela conducted his own defence, opening his address with “questioning the legitimacy of a white court to try him” (ibid.: 47) and a “fair and proper trial” because “I consider myself neither legally nor morally bound to obey laws made by a parliament in which I have no representation.” He was convinced that “race discrimination which outside this court has been responsible for all my troubles, I fear in this court is going to do me the same injustice” (Mandela 1990: 134). Rising resistance against the racist government gained increasing support, but was met with cruel replies: On March 12, 1960, a major protest against pass regulations in a southern Transvaal town brought together 10,000 people surrounding a police station. The “panicking police opened fire, killing 69” (Boehmer 2008: 44). What became known as the Sharpeville Massacre was a turning point as the ANC and PAC (Pan-African Congress) were outlawed, a national state of emergency was declared, and South Africa was internationally condemned (ibid.: 44). This condemnation was one reason why the rugby team did not seem to stand a chance in the World Cup as they had been expelled from international games and thus lacked competition and experience. The government’s reaction to organised resistance peaked when the police raided Liliesleaf Farm on July 12, 1963, Mandela was recalled from Robben Island and charged for being involved in “Operation Mayibuye” (guerilla invasion of the country), for sabotage and conspiracy (ibid.: 48). In 1964, Nelson Mandela was sentenced to life

“I Am the Captain of My Soul” – Invictus in the EFL Classroom

imprisonment and only released 27 years later. His release was one major step toward a democratic turn of the nation. It was accompanied with De Klerk, President at that time, repealing the remaining apartheid laws which also lifted international sanctions. In April 1994, the ANC won the first non-racial elections and Mandela became President, Commonwealth membership was restored, and South Africa took seats again in the UN General Assembly after 20 years of absence (cf. South Africa profile). The Truth and Reconciliation Commission that was launched in 1996 was chaired by Desmond Tutu and represented a national talking cure through the medium of Christianized public testimony. Perpetrators of crimes of oppression and torture under apartheid were granted quasi-judicial amnesty in exchange for a full confession provided they could demonstrate their acts had been politically motivated. Victims were encouraged to come forward to indict their tortures and so, it was hoped, obtain moral and psychological release from their experience of violation, though importantly with relatively limited prospect of judicial or monetary reparation. (Boehmer 2008: 79)

In their 1998 report, the Commission came to result that the apartheid system was a crime against humanity; yet, despite the struggle being just, it also “finds the ANC accountable for human rights abuses” (cf. South Africa profile). In order to provide students with an overview of the history and political development up to the events of the Rugby World Cup and beyond, it is recommended to split them up into groups and have them give presentations about a certain era. Similar to the overview given here, topics 3 could include:      3

Colonialization and white settlements, Apartheid policy and laws, Resistance movement, Nelson Mandela’s philosophy and approach to politics, and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. An analysis of the film’s teaching potential

In the following part, I will offer a close reading and analysis of selected scenes and indicate how teachers can implement these in ELT. The download section provides further worksheets and ideas for pre-, while- and post-viewing activities. The opening scene of Invictus shows a group of white students practising rugby on a lush green field, all wearing the same jerseys. The tracking medium shoulder shots bring the viewer close to the players. The increased speed of the camera when the ball moves faster stands in contrast to the camera that remains steady once it rolls over the fence, across the street and catches sight of a group of black children playing soccer. Although the panorama shot only shows them in the distance, one can see that they are of a similar age and dressed mostly in rags. This shot makes visible the dry and brown ground on which the children play soccer, partly covered with plastic bags and 3

Further topics that are not directly referenced in the film but are nevertheless highly interesting for students and give further insights to the social, cultural and political situation during apartheid include District Six, the formation of the Federation of South African Women (FEDSAW) or also Freedomfest, the “Free Nelson Mandela Concert” (June 11, 1988) and protest songs (cf. Mat No. 2).

133

134

South Africa litter. Only at this point, a written banner indicates place and time “South Africa, February 11, 1990” – the day Nelson Mandela, prisoner 466/64 on Robben Island was released from prison after he had been “charged with sabotage and conspiracy to overthrow the government by revolution” (Schadeberg 1994: 17 in Helff 2013: 179) 27 years prior. Instead of close-ups of these children or a zooming-in, the scene continues with a sharp cut to a medium shot of the white rugby players. The initial perspective of the film seems to be that of South Africa’s white minority as the camera uses the white teenagers as a starting point for the beginning of the film. Yet, this is followed by another sharp cut to a medium shot of the black teenagers and their joyful soccer game as a contrast to the white team’s drill; American shots of their fast-moving legs offer an impression of their skillful handling of the ball. This back and forth between the white rugby players and black soccer players establishes a strong contrast, not only of black vs. white and rugby vs. soccer, but also of rich vs. poor, minority vs. majority and oppressor vs. oppressed, and, thus, also introduces the main conflict of South Africa in second half of the 20th century. Interrupted by another cut, the following scene from a bird’s eye view shows the street between both sports fields and the social divide. The honking cars and police sirens cause the soccer players to interrupt their game, run to the fence on the side of the road, and cheer euphorically while the rugby players continue their practice and only hesitantly approach the fence on their side of the road. The soccer players start to repeatedly shout “Mandela, Mandela”, while the white boys shake their heads in disapproval, and one of them asks his coach what this would all be about. “It’s that terrorist Mandela, they let him out. Remember this day boys, this is the day our country went to the dogs” (00:01:58-00:02:07) is the coach’s reply. While this statement shows the deep divide of South Africa’s society, this scene also reflects the physical proximity of the groups and their immediate social spaces. It is remarkable how the trajectory that South Africa was heading for this day, namely taking essential steps toward democracy, reconciliation and readjusting international relationships, and the contrast to the white coach’s opinion about this day, is also represented through the camera movement. The tracking and crane shots change between moving with the direction of the cars coming down the road, taking Mandela into freedom, toward a democratic future, and against their direction, reflecting an awareness of the past. That first steps toward a unification of South Africa as a country and society with the release of Mandela from prison are taken through sports is foreshadowed when the camera takes a bird’s eye view on Mandela’s escort. The movement of the cars reminds of a closing zipper uniting the two aforementioned opposing parts: black and white, soccer and rugby, poor and rich. Decke-Cornill (2015) considers the opening scene of a film to have special potential for developing film literacy. Such a close analysis of the opening scene of Invictus can help students understand the main conflict that the film depicts. As to make students aware of cinematographic compositions and fine-tune their viewing approaches, I recommend watching this opening scene up to the point where the white coach instructs his players to continue their practice. While refraining from guided and detailed questions, first impressions can be collected to elicit affective responses. To lead students toward a more detailed understanding of the opening scene, they are then asked to pay attention to the different shots. For each shot, they take notes on who is shown with what kind of camera movement, from which angle and perspective, and what kind of sound and music is heard. When this is visualised in a chart, conclusions about the social divide and conflict potential of Mandela’s release can be

“I Am the Captain of My Soul” – Invictus in the EFL Classroom

drawn. Here, especially the coach’s opinion should be reflected on in more detail because on the one hand it reflects the racist ideology of apartheid, but students could also read fear of a changing system into his statement and understand the conflict more profoundly. Questions such as the following, in their clustering adapted from DeckeCornill (2015: 333) and Henseler, Möller and Surkamp (2011: 73f.), support students in entering a more analytical approach to viewing:  Narrative: What will the film be about?  Title Graphics: How is the title of the film written (font, color)? When does it appear?  Further graphics: Is there any other written speech involved? Which and why?  Sound: Which sound effects, music and speech are used?  Movement of the Camera: How is the camera moving?  Clues to the Character: What will the characters be like?  Lighting: What is the lighting like?  Colors: What colors are used the most?  Framing by Camera: What can you see in the frame?  Opening Scene: How does it try to catch your interest? What type of film will it be? This scene is followed by a change of mode which presents essential events from 1990 to 1994 with cinematic techniques that appear to be original media footage from the past (00:02:08-00:04:18). With the help of Mat No. 3, students analyse which filmic techniques are used to make this part appear like original footage. Furthermore, they can analyse how this implementation of formats in documentary style establishes a certain level of truth: How does the film manage to create truth? How does it transport non-fiction to the viewer? Students identify further examples of correspondence and coherence throughout the film and analyse in how far they indeed become enlightened and understand more about the recent history of South Africa. On a more critical note, they could reflect upon events that happened but are cut from the film, and find justifications for such omissions, e.g. the incidence how Chester Williams, the only black player of the Springboks, became and remained part of the team. In fact, being on the fringes of a “good enough player to qualify on merit” (Grundlingh et al. 2012: 117), he was only introduced to the team after Pieter Hendricks, a white player, had been expelled from the tournament for his too rough and robust play. Hendricks was even “offered R15.000 not to appeal against his expulsion” (ibid.) so that Williams could remain on the team. Williams needed to be a member of the Sprinkboks as a symbol for the “newly integrated South African rugby ship,” “the emblem of achievement, hope, reconciliation, and recognition” (ibid.). Teachers can share this piece of information during the scene in which the rugby team visits a township for rugby practice and the children storm toward Chester to welcome him. A critical perspective on the film can also be revealing when learners uncover incidents in which the montage of the film tries to lead viewers toward suspecting black South Africans to be criminals, untrustworthy, or puts them in subordinate positions (cf. Mat No. 4).

135

136

South Africa 4

Exploring Invictus’ narrative, dramatic, and aesthetic dimensions

This section follows the methodological cycle of pre-, while- and post-viewing activities to suggest further activities to work with Invictus in the English language classroom. 4.1

Pre-viewing phase

There are various opportunities to tune learners in to watching, analysing and enjoying Invictus. One of the central scenes of the film occurs when Mandela invites Francois Pienaar, the captain of the national rugby team, to his office to discuss the proceedings of the World Cup. Because of the apartheid policy and the violent enforcement of the apartheid laws, international sport boycotted competitions with South Africa. Therefore, also the rugby team had not played internationally for years and could not compare its strength and compete with other national teams. Mandela knows that when the team wants to stand a chance during the World Cup of 1995, it needs two things: Support from all South Africans and players who are willing to perform beyond their capabilities. To reflect upon the second instance, learners could, without having watched this part of the film yet, read an excerpt from the script of this specific scene (cf. Mat No. 5) and elicit the main question that connects Mandela and Pienaar: What inspires people to be larger than life? As this can be a rather personal question, the method of Think-Pair-Share could help students to think about this question for themselves before sharing their ideas with a partner or with the whole group. This scene closely links to the poem Invictus (cf. Mat No. 11) which students should read and reflect upon in detail. In order to get a feeling for the energy and pride it carries, students can also recite it aloud. The method “4 corners” could go in a similar direction, when the teacher leaves terms such as “inspiration”, “leadership”, “forgiveness”, and “victory” in the four corners of the classroom. Students walk around, decide for one term, remain in the respective corner and reflect upon the term, what it means to them, but also in relation to politics and sports. This method could also be relevant regarding while- and postviewing activities (see below). When Mandela handed Brazilian soccer player Pelé a lifetime achievement award he said: “Sport has the power to change the world. It has the power to inspire, the power to unite people that little else has [...]. It is more powerful than governments in breaking down racial barriers” (Carlin 2008: 4). In groups, students could reflect upon this quotation and discuss why Mandela ascribes sports such a central role in politics. They compare politics and rugby and see what both have in common. After all, a sports game had immense influence on the political and social development of the country. This quotation can later be related to a scene in which Mandela attends a rugby game and observes how the black audience only cheers for England while the white South Africans support the Springboks. In another scene, a TV announcer interv iews Mandela and asks him whether he has always been a rugby fan. “People don’t realise that I played rugby myself when I was a student at Fort Hare. It is a very rough game, almost as rough as politics” (01:06:59-01:07:49). Here, this comparison could be called to mind and extended, if necessary. One further option would be to use the trailer and start the analysis directly with the film medium. Here, students should speak about their first reactions to the trailer and answer respective questions (cf. Henseler et al. 2011: 102; more suggestions on using trailers see ibid.: 157ff.) (cf. Mat No. 6).

“I Am the Captain of My Soul” – Invictus in the EFL Classroom

Without watching the film, students could also be given descriptions of the main characters for which they then should cast the actors. This activity relates the film analysis to the students’ experiences and allows them to use their knowledge of film stars. As with all creative tasks, justifying ones choices should take centre stage. 4.2

While-viewing phase

Throughout the film, it is possible to focus on different scenes of plot progression and reflect steps protagonists take in their individual development or the development as a group. Each scene, which students focus on, should be seen in the light of  literary aspects (setting, characters, events, themes, point of view);  dramatic aspects (location/props, acting, costumes, make up) and  cinematographic aspects (camera, color/lighting, montage/editing, sound/music) (ibid.: 62-64). In order to reflect upon the way the different protagonists develop, it is necessary to sketch out a character diagram which depicts the relationship and conflicts of the main characters and how they influence one another. This could be done for example at the end of the scene in which the two groups of bodyguards get together to discuss Mandela’s schedule and their tasks (00:16:22) and be extended when viewers meet the Pienaar family (00:41:31-00:42:32) (cf. Mat No. 7) It would be interesting to see how students arrange the characters and, if they chose someone to be in the middle, who that would be. From his own understanding, it can be argued whether Mandela should take centre stage. On the one hand, he does accept his role as a leader, while at the same time he respects everybody else and does not put himself above them: For example he says to Francois that it is an honour for him to meet the captain of the rugby team; he thanks Francois for all he did for the country and usually puts himself in the second row. When watching the film, the diagram should repeatedly be used to see in how far the protagonists, their conflicts and their positioning have changed; a table can give a good overview. Students can illustrate character constellations, e.g. using a magnetic blackboard and sticking paper cards with the names of the characters to it. Using chalk, terms for feelings are added to connection lines to indicate the relationships. When a character’s position changes, the spot where the paper card used to be can be marked with chalk to keep in mind where this person came from. Alternatively, a room diagram in which students represent a character and move around the room according to the protagonist’s development is possible. Francois is an interesting character for a more detailed analysis, as he seems to have to balance many different influences which in the end make him the character who undergoes important changes. One critical scene is the moment when the manager announces that the team has to practice in townships (“Times changed. And we need to change as well”, 00:54:54-00:56:51). Francois was raised in tune with the apartheid system and under his father’s racist influence. Mr. Pienaar makes sure to protect the rights of the white minority in charge of running the country. Even when his son brings an additional ticket for the family’s housekeeper, he is not convinced that she should accompany the family (this can be derived by working with screenshots of the respective scenes). Yet, Francois does not allow himself to be limited to his father’s views but is truly inspired by Mandela’s wise words. Although his father does celebrate the Springboks’ success at the final, his behaviour still shows distance toward blacks and the new policy (e.g., he does not sing the new anthem). Mrs. Pienaar and Francois’s

137

138

South Africa girlfriend Nerine are more open-minded in the end. The security men are interesting to observe, too. Jason (black) and Etienne (white) – the two former leaders of their respective groups – remain rather distanced all through to the end. Yet Hendrick (white) and Linga’s (black) interaction after the final game is almost comical, as both seem to be keen on hugging each other and celebrating together, but etiquette (or former conflicts?) seems to form a barrier. Still, shaking hands is fine for both, although it seems that both do not want to apply to this restriction. Based on the conflict between Mandela and his daughter Zindzi (forgiveness and reconciliation vs. being hurt too deeply to forgive), students can engage in discussions about what it takes to forgive someone, about the powers of reconciliation and compassion. This is visible in several scenes. When the two groups of bodyguards meet for the first time, Jason does not want to accept Mandela’s orders and goes to his office. Using the script of the film, students can closely read the respective dialogue to reflect upon Mandela’s intentions (cf. Mat No. 8). A second scene that is essential for reflecting about reconciliation and forgiveness occurs on the evening before the final game. Francois stands close to a window and looks out to Johannesburg at night. Nerine enters and asks him whether he is thinking about the game the next day. “I was thinking about how you spend 30 years in a tiny cell, and come out ready to forgive the people who put you there” (01:31:21-00:31:56) is his immediate answer. 4.3

Post-viewing activities

After having watched the film, learners have various options of reflecting upon Invictus as a whole and on specific aspects of the film. To get an overview of the composition of the film, learners could make use of their knowledge of literary analysis and distinguish the scenes according to “exposition,” “rising action,” “climax,” “falling action”, and “denouement” (cf. Mat No. 9). This allows them to reflect again upon the conflicts the film takes to the screen and how these are solved. This holistic view can then be extended by focusing on specific aspects. Terms such as “unbesiegt”, “unbesiegbar”, “unbezwungen”, or “unüberwindlich” translate “invictus“ into German. Students select the one most fitting for the film and justify their choice paying attention to the slightly different nuances each term connotes. In order to pick up on some of the main themes of the film creatively, students can try to put abstract nouns like “freedom”, “anger”, “equality”, or “conflict” into freeze-frames, draw pictures or take photographs that for them represent these terms. Again, their creative transformations need to be explained and, when presented in class, withstand their classmates’ critical questions. As mentioned above, “4 corners” is a highly communicative activity that can be flexibly applied through the viewing sessions, thus, also in the post-viewing phase. Here, the 4 corners could represent four 4 main characters (Mandela, Francois, Jason, Etienne), 4 central quotations from the film4, or 4 central screenshots. Indifferent of the content, students should always relate the material in the corner to the film and its larger context. 4

Students should locate the quotation in the film saying in which scene it appears and in how far it is relevant for the movie, how it reflects the characters attitudes etc. Examples are included in worksheet 12 which also offers additional activities for the different phases.

“I Am the Captain of My Soul” – Invictus in the EFL Classroom

In order to recreate the atmosphere of certain scenes, students form freeze-frames of these. When groups are assigned scenes from the beginning, middle and end of the film, this would also allow reflecting again on the plot and character development. A student who is not part of the freeze-frame can take photographs from different perspectives. How would the perception of specific situations change if certain cinematographic details were changed, for example the camera angle? This can be revealing as the film only allows for one perspective but here students can analyse alternatives to the actual composition of the film and discuss why the director decided for a certain installation within the original film (cf. Henseler et al. 2011: 120 for more ideas on using freeze-frames). Film reviews allow combining different competence dimensions. First, students need to understand a film in order to write a reliable film review. Second, they need to be familiar with the specific genre and text features of a film review. Third, they need to be able to apply these prerequisites to their own writing process. As to familiarise students with this genre, they could read film reviews of their favorite films and elicit certain features that are typical for this text form (webpages such as http://www.rottentomatoes.com offer various film reviews as examples). Afterwards they write their own reviews and maybe even publish these on similar webpages. Mat No. 10 offers a further idea involving the evaluation of Invictus. 5

Conclusion

“A democratic civilization will save itself only if it makes the language of the image into a stimulus for critical reflection – not an invitation for hypnosis” (Umberto Eco). This quotation indicates how essential it is to not only see films as entertainment, but that it is also beneficial and in fact necessary to view films critically and extend ones media and film literacy. In the broadest sense, media literacy is defined as the “rigorous evaluation of mass media’s relationship to democracy, power, social justice”, it aims at reflecting how “media conceptualizes race, class, gender, how it promotes, certain social values through its definitions of such concepts as beauty, prestige, family, love, success, sex, freedom, and consumerism, among others” (Grigoryan & King 2008: 2). Messaris (1998: 70) understands media literacy as the “knowledge about how the mass media function in society. Ideally, this knowledge should encompass all aspects of the workings of the media: their economic foundations, organizational structures, psychological effects, social consequences, and, above all, their ‘language,’ that is, the representational conventions and rhetorical strategies of advertisements, TV programmes, films, and other forms of mass media content” (in Helff 2013: 175; cf. Grigoryan & King 2008; Grünewald 2010; Kellner & Share 2005; Volkmann 2010: 216ff.). Film literacy entails the ability to view films critically and responsibly, which includes the ability to decode cinematographic elements and relate these to the content and context of the plot and story a film tells. The aim of developing film literacy is to understand films better and be able to participate in respective discourses, but also to enjoy films more and appreciate their entertaining function to a higher degree based on a more reflective perception. In order to develop film literacy with students in ELT, it is necessary to exemplarily analyse scenes in which content and cinematographic techniques correlate by applying activities and methods which support them in observing, interpreting, and analysing

139

140

South Africa respective effects. Invictus is especially interesting in this context, as the film tells no fictional story but is based on true events of the recent past as presented in Carlin’s book, despite some changes. However, certain stylistic choices still create a specific view on history and, thus, a certain “media-created reality” (Zerweck 2003: 4 in Surkamp 2008: 18). Therefore, it is important to approach the film critically and investigate, for example how the film creates dichotomies of black and white, the functions of cinematographic decisions and the respective impressions these leave on the viewer: How does the camera portray members of different ethnic groups? How does the filmmaker construct perceptions of conflicts? Which characters are portrayed positively, which negatively? In how far does this chance throughout the film? How does music support the atmosphere created in the film? (cf. Lütge 2013: 149f.) This concerns scenes, for example, which seem to evoke certain stereotypes of black and white South Africans, but also scenes in which relatively subtle choices create a specific feeling and view of a protagonist. When Mandela gives a speech, for example, he is often shown from a slight frog perspective and by way of zoom-ins, which establishes him as a powerful leader and authority. At the same time, his addressees are shown through “behind-Mandela’s-elbow”-shots, i.e. they are not looked down upon. This camera perspective matches Mandela’s attitude of regarding his audience, co-workers and the people who surround him as equals and avoiding the establishment of fixed hierarchies. Further aspects that could influence the viewer to believe one side of the conflict rather than the other regard the decision of who is allowed to speak in certain situations and who remains silent but may indicate thoughts through telling facial expressions. Here it can be provocative to explore gaps in the film, for instance by writing inner monologues of protagonists who do not have a voice, maybe even for good reason. What does Mr. Pienaar think when he sees that his son brought four tickets for the rugby game, one of which is for Eunice, the family’s black house keeper? (01:28:52-01:29:19) Films mediate “cultural knowledge, since they present characters and events in their socio-cultural contexts and depict the historical or modern setting in great detail to the students” (Groene & Kieschke 1986: 4 in Surkamp 2008: 16). They “are authentic products of a foreign culture and as such reveal different patterns of behaviour, values, norms and world views […] learners gain insights into other ways of life, which also allows them to experience differences regarding their own culturally marked behaviour” (Surkamp 2008: 16). Invictus introduces students to one of the most significant and charismatic personalities of the 20 th and 21st century. Combing the analysis of thematic and formal characteristics of the film with history, and moving from describing textual phenomena to broader cultural questions and different historical contexts (cf. Surkamp 2008: 25), students’ knowledge of South Africa’s recent history and current political and social situation can be extended. However, they need a certain amount of background information that allows them to contextualise the events of the film. This chapter focused on Invictus – a film about reconciliation, inspiration, and the power of sports. I demonstrated that films are beneficial for developing film literacies and integrating cultural studies at the same time. A simultaneous reading and decoding of plot and cinematographic techniques allows for an investigation and critical reflection upon the way in which the film evokes affective responses and understanding of the timeframe it deals with. The worksheets offer ideas how to engage students with the film and increase their cultural knowledge of the early post-apartheid years.

“I Am the Captain of My Soul” – Invictus in the EFL Classroom

Film reference Invictus. Director: Clint Eastwood. Screenplay: Anthony Peckham. USA: Warner Brothers Entertainment. DVD 2009. 128 minutes.

References Beavon, Keith, S.O. (1997), Johannesburg. A city and metropolitan area in transformation. In: Rakodi, Carole (Ed.) (1997), The Urban Challenge in Africa: Growth and Management of its Large Cities. New York: United Nations University Press, 150-191. [Online: http://archive.unu.edu/unupress/unupbooks/uu26ue/uu26ue0g.htm 01.04.2016]. Blell, Gabriele & Lütge, Christiane (2004), Sehen, Hören, Verstehen und Handeln – Filme im Fremdsprachenunterricht. Praxis Fremdsprachenuntericht 6, 402-405. Boehmer, Elleke (2008), Nelson Mandela – A Very Short Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Carlin, John (2008), Playing the Enemy – Nelson Mandela and the Game that Made a Nation. New York: Penguin Press. Davenport, T.R.H. & Saunders, Christopher (2000), South Africa – A Modern History. London: MacMillan Press. Decke-Cornill, Helene (2015), “Allem Anfang wohnt ein Zauber inne”: Filmanfänge als Wegbegleiter von film literacy. In: Hecke, Carola &Surkamp, Carola (Eds.), Bilder im Fremdsprachenunterricht: Neue Ansätze, Kompetenzen und Methoden (2nd ed.). Tübingen: Narr, 325-340. Elsner, Daniela, Helff, Sissy & Viebrock, Britta (Eds.) (2013), Films, Graphic Novels & Visuals – Developing Multiliteracies in Foreign Language Education – An Interdisciplinary Approach. Münster: Lit. Grünewald, Andreas (2010), Medienkompetenz. In: Surkamp, Carola (Ed.). Metzler Lexikon Fremdsprachendidaktik. Stuttgart: Metzler, 213-214. Grundlingh, Albert; Robolin, Stéfane; Hinsmann, Abigal; Saint, Lily; Pearl, Sharrona & Pinto, Samatha (2012), Roundtable on Invictus. Safundi: The Journal of South African and American Studies, 13: 1-2, 115-150. Harrison, David (1981), The White Tribe of Africa: South Africa in Perspective. Berkeley: University of California Press. Helff, Sissy (2013), Carceral Iconography: Reading Film Representations of Prison Islands through the Lens of Media Literacy. In: Elsner, Daniela; Helff, Sissy & Viebrock, Britta (Eds.) (2013), 169-184. Henseler, Roswitha, Möller, Stefan & Surkamp, Carola (2011), Filme im Englischunterricht: Grundlagen, Methoden, Genres. Seelze: Klett-Kallmeyer. Hoof, Florian (2013),“The Useful, the Bad and the Ugly”: An Epistemological Perspective on Media-Based Education. In: Elsner, Daniela; Helff, Sissy & Viebrock, Britta (Eds.), 201-217. Kellner, Douglas & Share, Jeff (2005), Toward Critical Media Literacy: Core Concepts, Debates, Organizations, Policy. Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education 26: 3, 369-386. Lütge, Christiane (2012), Mit Filmen Englisch unterrichten. Berlin: Cornelsen. Lütge, Christiane (2013), Global (Audio)Visions: Teaching Cultural Studies through Film. In: Elsner, Daniela; Helff, Sissy & Viebrock, Britta (Eds.) (2013), 141-153. Mandela, Nelson (1990), The Struggle is My Life. Bombay: IDAF.

141

142

South Africa Myre, Greg (2013a), The Day Nelson Mandela Walked out of Prison. [Online: http://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2013/06/11/190671704/the-day-nelsonmandela-walked-out-of-prison 01.04.2016]. Myre, Greg (2013b), AP Was There: Mandela’s Release from Prison. [Online: http://bigstory.ap.org/article/ap -was-there-mandelas-release-prison 01.04.2016]. Ndlovu, Sifiso M. (2006), The Soweto Uprising. In: South African Democracy Education Trust (Ed.), The Road to Democracy in South Africa: 1970-1980 (Vol. 2). University of South Africa Press, 317-368. Surkamp, Carola (2008), A Cultural Approach to Films in the Foreign Language Classroom: Gender Roles and Questions of Identity in The Hours. In: Donnerstag, Jürgen & Volkmann, Laurenz (Eds.), Media and American Studies in the EFL-Classroom. Heidelberg: Winter, 15-30. Thompson, Leonard (1990), A History of South Africa. New Haven: Yale University Press. Volkmann, Laurenz (2010), Fachdidaktik Englisch: Kultur und Sprache. Tübingen: Narr.

Internet resources South African History. “Apartheid and reactions to it” [Online: http://www.sahistory. org.za/article/apartheid-and-reactions-it 01.04.2016] South Africa profile. “Timeline” [Online: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa14094918 01.04.2016]

South Africa

Understanding Skin against the Backdrop of South Africa’s Pre-1994 Apartheid System: A Time-line Based Teaching Approach Matthias Munsch & Teresa Schwehm

The present article aims at helping interested educators in catching up on the socio-historical issues of a complex country and conflict-ridden society such as South Africa as a basis to implement the film Skin (2008) into their teaching practice. In addition, we will present a teaching concept that uses the film as a starting point for in-depth cultural studies, employing authentic material and sources as well as historical footage in combination with motivating tasks for communication, research, autonomous learning and the presentation of results. 1

Introduction

South Africa in its complexity (nation, culture, history, development, political struggles, coming to terms with its past and future prospects) has recently experienced a re-discovery in the awareness of the Western world, which is mirrored in phenomena from general news coverage to the inscription into school curricula. Nevertheless, many teachers, teacher trainees as well as students are presumably in a similar position as Anthony Fabian, the director of Skin, who stated in an interview in 2010: I really didn’t know very much about the apartheid system except that it was wrong […]. I didn’t know how complicated the system was and that there are 11 different cultures and languages in South Africa. I didn’t know that European colonization in South Africa goes back over 300 years. So, I had a lot of catching up to do. (Gooch 2010: n.p.)

The depiction of the political and socio-historical aspects will be dealt with extensively as they are vitally important for understanding the film’s setting and more subtle plot elements. The nature of the film itself suggests the examination of the aforementioned topics since its focus lies on the implementation and exploration of socio-cultural issues and much less on in-depth character development or convincing plot arrangements. Even though the film was awarded prizes at numerous international film festivals, renowned film critics have hinted at flaws in acting and directorial over-dramatisation (see for example Dargis 2009). However, the film can serve as a basic introduction to questions revolving around apartheid, race, segregation, justice, reconciliation and coming to terms with a nation’s history or one’s own personal story in the light of South Africa’s political evolution.

144

South Africa There are numerous hints and innuendos concerning major and minor aspects of the apartheid system that can be explored with the help of additional material and innovative or creative tasks that either deepen the knowledge on specific aspects or provide an authentic occasion for further research or discourse over the topics at hand. We would like to suggest to watch Skin against the backdrop of its socio-historical context using a time-line concept that allows students to focus on seminal events and political decisions to comprehend the current situation in South Africa today and to have a richer and deeper reception experience of the film, which could otherwise be misperceived as a rather melodramatic and fictionalised adaptation of the authentic life story of Sandra Laing only. 2

Plot and main themes of the film

Skin is based on the biographical novel When She Was White (2007) by Judith Stone, the true life story of Sandra Laing, a coloured 1 child born to a white Afrikaner family in the mid-1950s. The film depicts Sandra’s persistent struggle of finding her identity and place in a racially divided society. Thereby, the film reveals the disastrous impact the inhuman apartheid regime had on individual lives. Furthermore, the film depicts the mechanisms of racism and racial segregation and sheds light on the cruel heritage of South Africa’s colonial past. Sandra grows up in a rural area of the Eastern Transvaal, where her parents, Sannie and Abraham, run two shops selling food and goods to black Africans living in a nearby township. Both of her parents are unaware of the genetic mechanisms leading to her daughters’ darker complexion. Trying to make sense of Sandra’s unsual skin colour, Abraham as well as journalists later on repeatedly question whether Sannie has been unfaithful to her husband. Despite their own puzzlement, the Laings do not address the issue in front of Sandra. Thus, she has a very carefree childhood, which comes to an abrupt end when Sandra is sent to a whites-only boarding school in the neighbouring town of Piet Retief. Being teased and stigmatised by her classmates and teachers, she becomes aware of herself being different from the other Afrikaner children. The school’s headmaster sees to Sandra’s official reclassification as “coloured”, which leads to her expulsion from school. Her father fiercely fights through the courts and media to get her recognised as “white” again. His efforts, however, are in vain until 1967 when the official legislation changes, putting more weight on descent than appearance in determining race. Reclassified as “white” again, Sandra continues her education at a convent school. When dating white Afrikaner boys, as has been arranged by her parents, Sandra has to experience anew that her appearance makes her an outcast in the white society. To the dismay of her parents, she falls in love with Petrus, a black vegetable seller. Abraham is enraged by his daughter’s illicit love affair with a black man. He threatens to disown her and kill Petrus. Sandra elopes with Petrus to his family in Swaziland where, through the intervention of her father, the couple is found and arrested. Despite her mothers’ pleadings and the local magistrate’s ruling, Sandra refuses to go home with her parents; instead she starts living with Petrus’s family. They have two children and a little shop in the township. Sandra feels more accepted by the black community, 1

The Population Registration Act of 1950 classified South Africans into one of the four categories: White, Native or Bantu, Coloured, and Indian. See also further explanations below.

Understanding Skin against the Backdrop of South Africa’s Pre-1994 Apartheid System

although she never stops missing her parents. With the government’s bulldozers destroying their home and forcing them to leave, Sandra’s relationship with Petrus more and more disintegrates. Petrus drowns his anger in alcohol and turns violent. Sandra flees from Petrus with her children to Johannesburg. She phones her parents, but her mother refuses to disclose their address. Only after the end of apartheid, when her father has already passed away, Sandra manages to track down her mother in a nursing home, where the two women reunite after a separation of almost thirty years. 3

Socio-historical and geographical background of the film

Skin is set against the backdrop of the apartheid era in South Africa. Apartheid is an Afrikaans term, meaning separateness. It is defined as a policy or system of segregation and discrimination on the grounds of race, mainly referring to the situation in South Africa between 1948 and 1994. Although racial segregation existed long before the Afrikaner Nationalist Party (NP) came to power in 1948, the NP institutionalised a complete racial segregation of the state and society. Their dream of Afrikaner nationhood seemed to have come true in 1948, as the newly elected Prime Minister D. F. Malan claimed in his speech on 1 June 1948: “In the past, we felt like strangers in our own country, but today South Africa belongs to us once more. For the first time since Union, South Africa is our own. May God grant that it always remains our own” (Thompson 2006: 181). What led Malan claim South Africa being the ownership of Afrikaners, albeit their share of merely 12% in the total population, might become more evident when looking back into the past, which will be explained in the following paragraphs. 3.1

South Africa’s colonial past and the rise of Afrikaner nationalism

After the discovery of the sea route to Asia by the Portuguese in 1497, the Cape peninsula developed into an important refreshment station for European merchant mariners. The Dutch East India Company under the command of Jan van Riebeck established a small fortified base at the Table Bay in 1652. When the British captured the Cape from the Dutch in 1795, the former refreshment station had developed into a permanent settlement occupying land that was conquered from the indigenous people, the Khoisan. Former employees of the Dutch East India Company, the so-called free burghers, had been given land, and several thousand slaves mainly from Madagascar, Indonesia, and India and who had been shipped to the Cape to construct the basic infrastructure and to work on the farms of the free burghers (cf. Thompson 2006: 44). A simplified form of Dutch was used between the free burghers and their slaves, which would later develop into a distinct language, Afrikaans. To replace the Dutch administration, about 4,000 British settlers were sent to the Cape in 1820. They did not mingle with the earlier settlers, whom they derogatively called Boers, meaning farmers (cf. ibid.: 55). The Dutch-speakers called themselves Afrikaners. With the British replacing Dutch institutions and their language in the Cape Colony and curtailing the farmers’ autonomy, the Anti-British resentment among the Dutch speaking population grew sharply. When the British parliament abolished slavery in 1833, the anger of the Afrikaners became even stronger as they lost their labourers. Against this backdrop, 6,000 Afrikaners left the area controlled by the British with their belongings as well as 5,000 coloured servants and moved eastward. This exodus of

145

146

South Africa nearly a quarter of the Afrikaner population became known as the ‘Great Trek’. The niece of Piet Retief, a leading figure in the ‘Great Trek’, wrote in her memoirs about the reasons of the Afrikaners’ migration: It is not so much their [the slaves’] freedom that drove us to such lengths, as their being placed on an equal footing with Christians, contrary to the laws of God and the natural distinction of race and religion, so that it was intolerable for any decent Christian to bow down beneath such a yoke; wherefore we rather withdrew in order thus to preserve our doctrines in purity. (as quoted in Thompson 2006: 88)

Before the arrival of the Afrikaners in the Eastern region of Southern Africa, fierce fighting had taken place between different indigenous groups in this area, which had led to huge migrations (‘Mfecane wars’). Thus, much of the area which would later become known as the Transvaal seemed to be uninhabited. This led to the Afrikaners’ myths of the empty land in which white and black people arrived at the same time (cf. Stone 2007: 86). Instead of being uninhabited, the Eastern part had in fact been conquered by the Zulu. After defeating the Zulu at the Battle of Blood River in 1838, the Afrikaner migrants settled down and established the Transvaal and the Orange Free State, which the British recognised in 1852 and 1854 as independent Afrikaner republics (cf. Thompson 2006: 88). With the discovery of diamond and gold mines in the Afrikaner republics, the tensions between the British and the Afrikaner intensified again. South Africa with its precious material resources had become an economically vital region, which the British did not want to lose control of, especially in times of an even fiercer competition of colonial powers in Africa. In the Anglo-Boer War between 1899 and 1902 the British defeated the Afrikaners and annexed the two republics. Most of the Afrikaners’ farmsteads were destroyed in the war and about 28,000 Afrikaner civilians died in concentration camps (cf. Welsh 2009: 2). The humiliation of the defeat and the fear of a complete extinction of their identity through the immense power of the British contributed largely to the rise of Afrikaner nationalism. Realising their dependence on Afrikaners as collaborators for administering the colony with an 80% non-White population, the British granted self-government rights to the Transvaal (cf. Thompson 2006: 144). In 1910, the British and Afrikaners formed the Union of South Africa, consisting of the Transvaal, the Free Orange State and the two British provinces Natal and Cape Colony. English and Dutch were recognised as official languages. Voting rights were only granted to white men, except for some coloured property owners in the Cape Province. In the following years, the white population consolidated its supremacy and control of the state. The Natives Land Act of 1913 prescribed that Africans (i.e. the black population) could purchase land only in scheduled reserves which covered merely 13,7% of the country’s total surface (cf. Welsh 2009: 32). The crowded reserves forced many African families to give up farming and become cheap wage labourers in the mines or workers on white men’s farms. To limit the influx of Africans into urban areas, the government introduced a complex pass law system that required Africans to report their arrival in the towns and seek work permits (cf. Thompson 2006: 162). Although the Afrikaners constituted 55% of the white population, they felt dominated by the English. The latter largely controlled the mines and industries, had a better education and were twice as wealthy as the average Afrikaner (cf. ibid.: 178). Moreover, the English speaking whites favoured a closer relation to Britain, while the Afrikaners struggled for Afrikaner nationhood (cf. Welsh 2009: 12). The Nationalist Party (NP) responded to the fears of the Afrikaners in their campaigns preceding the

Understanding Skin against the Backdrop of South Africa’s Pre-1994 Apartheid System

election of 1948 by promising more vigorous action to ensure white supremacy and the white privilege through complete segregation. The NP’s apartheid ideology was also supported by the Dutch Reformed Church who claimed that the natural, God-given condition of humankind was its division into ‘nations’ with differing cultures, which should be kept apart (cf. Welsh 2009: 15). With the Africans being disenfranchised and rural votes given more weight than urban ones, the NP won the general election in 1948. 3.2

Apartheid in South Africa (1948-1994)

A central pillar of the apartheid system was the Population Registration Act of 1950 which classified each South African into one of the four categories: White, Native or Bantu, Coloured, and Indian. The racial category of an individual determined his/her place of living, education, economic opportunities, means of transport, restaurants and hotels he/she could use – basically his/her complete life. A white person was initially defined as as person “who in appearance obviously is or who is generally accepted as a white person” (South African History Online, n.d.). With the parliamentary amendment of 1967, descent was added as another criterion of classification. Hereafter a person with both parents being white was recognised as white. Coexistence and miscegenation of blacks and whites over the last 300 years, however, made a consistent application of the law impossible. To prevent a further increase of a mixed-race population, the government prohibited all marriages and every sexual contact between people of different races. Considering Sandra Laing’s case, two white people could have a child with a darker complexion than their own. This is due to the mechanisms of polygenetic inheritance. A person’s skin colour – as many other human features – is determined by multiple genes. Because of black ancestors in their lineage, two white people could have in their array of genes those that are responsible for darker pigmentation (cf. Stone 2007: 66). Another important law which aimed at consolidating racial segregation was the Group Areas Act of 1950. This law made the residential segregation compulsory of people of different racial categories (cf. South African History Online, n.d.). Based on this law, the government set up semi-urban townships for blacks, Indians, and coloureds to control their influx to the cities. Furthermore, the government removed African squatters near white urban areas and evicted Africans in areas designated as white. With the plan to transform the rural African areas into independent states, the government passed the Bantu Self-Government Act in 1959. This law was also meant to ease international criticism by selling it as a kind of decolonisation strategy. In total, ten independent ethnic states (homelands) were to be developed. Traditional chiefs appointed and controlled by the South African government were supposed to govern these homelands. However, given the poverty and fragmented nature of the homelands, none of them evolved into a vital new state or was recognised by the international community. Moreover, the people assigned to the homelands often did not share any tribal identity. The homelands rather served as “huge labour dormitories for white South Africa” (Welsh 2009: 70). Between the mid-1950s and the mid-1980s about 3.5 million Africans were forcibly relocated to homelands. This often involved the brutal destruction of their previous homes by government forces and bulldozers, as depicted in Skin. The government also extended the existing pass law systems to the whole country and made pass obligation mandatory for African men and women entering towns.

147

148

South Africa Every year, about 100,000 Africans were arrested on the grounds of the pass law. Treating Africans only as visitors in urban areas the government claimed that: […] natives – men, women and children – should only be permitted within municipal areas in so far and for so long as their presence is demanded by the wants of the white population […] the masterless native in urban areas is a source of danger and a cause of degradation of both black and white. (as cited in Welsh 2009: 33)

Africans protested vehemently against the pass laws. On 21 March 1960, 18,000 people joined a peaceful protest march in Sharpeville. The police opened fire on the unarmed citizens, killing 69 people and leaving 169 people injured in what became known as the Sharpeville massacre. In the aftermath, the African National Congress (ANC) and the Pan-Africanist Congress (PAC), who had organised the protest, were banned and their leaders had to go underground. With reference to the education of Africans, many Afrikaner nationalists were afflicted with paranoia that the English speaking South Africans could turn the Africans into black Englishmen through cultural assimilation. The later Prime Minister Hendrik F. Verwoerd claimed in 1954 that: It is in the interest of the Bantu that he be educated in his own circle. He must not become a black Englishman in order to be used against the Afrikaner. [...] The Bantu must be guided to serve his own community in all respects. There is no place for him in the European community above the level of certain forms of labour. Within his own community, however, all doors are open. For that reason it is of no avail for him to receive a training which has as its aim absorption in the European community while he cannot and will not be absorbed there. Up till now he has been subjected to a school system which drew him away from his own community and partially misled him by showing him the green pastures of the European but still did not show him to graze there. (as cited in Welsh 2009: 64)

Like Nelson Mandela and other leaders of the ANC, most black children who received education went to mission schools. With the Bantu Education Act of 1953, the government stopped the funding of these schools and set up new public schools for black children. These so-called Bantu schools were poorly equipped and provided inadequate education, mainly focusing on turning black children into compliant productive workers. Primary education was held in the indigenous language while Afrikaans replaced English as second language. On the whole, the government spent ten times less on black as on white students (cf. Thompson 2006: 191). In 1959, the racial segregation was extended to universities allowing blacks to study at white institutions only with a special permit by the government. Under the leadership of the Black Consciousness Movement and South African Students’ Organisation several thousand students gathered in Soweto on 16 June 1976 to demonstrate peacefully against the Bantu Education Act and the compulsory introduction of Afrikaans as a medium of instruction. When the police fired teargas and live ammunition on the unarmed students, the protest march turned into an anti-apartheid uprising, which continued several months and spread out to 160 African communities all over the country. With 451 deaths, 3,907 injured people and 5,980 arrests the apartheid regime had once more revealed its brutality. Not only did the deprivation of millions of South Africans of adequate education result in personal frustration, it also became a great burden for the whole of society. The lack of skilled labour was one crucial factor for the economic recession of the

Understanding Skin against the Backdrop of South Africa’s Pre-1994 Apartheid System

1980s. The share of the white population had dropped from 21% in 1936 to 15% in 1985 and was projected to decrease below 10% in the early 2000s. Letting the skills, capacities and the economic power of 85% of the population remain untapped proved to be more and more irrational. Furthermore, the apartheid system with its inflated bureaucracy and security apparatus turned out to be very costly. While the preferential treatment of the Afrikaners by the apartheid government had helped to close the economic gap to the English speaking whites, the livelihoods of the black population had deteriorated. Several millions were unemployed and suffered from poverty. These immense internal problems along with the pressure of the international community coerced the South African government to repeal certain apartheid laws and free political prisoners. Between 1990 and 1994 the apartheid government negotiated with the ANC the peaceful transformation of the society, which finally resulted in the power shift of the white minority to the black majority. On 27 April 1994, the ANC won the first democratic election of South Africa’s history and Nelson Mandela became the first black president. The film Skin opens with a depiction of this seminal day and introduces both the political background against which the film must be read and the main characters using interesting aesthetic means. The following suggestions for an application of the film in the EFL classroom therefore integrate the close analysis of selected scenes with Internet research, the development of audio-visual literacy and media literacy, all of which aim at learner autonomy. 4

Approaching Skin in the EFL classroom

We recommend watching the film with regard to its political and socio-historical references. To achieve this, the application of a time-line as a structuring instrument is intended. In addition to a research-based approach, our teaching concept incorporates mainly creative and communicative tasks as well as learner- and product- oriented tasks. Thereby the five basic skills are equally addressed. In the following parts, the individual sections of the teaching unit will be presented and commented on with reference to the accompanying material in the download section (for example Mat No. 3). The material comprises further explanations and more specific information than can be provided within the confinements of this chapter. 4.1

Thematic introduction and focus on the film’s opening scenes

The main objective of the introductory part is to prepare the students for the film’s topic as well as a concentrated close viewing of selected scenes of the film in the course of the teaching unit. To raise the students’ expectations and awareness, a pre-viewing task such as an associative brainstorming based on the film poster and title could precede (cf. Fisch & Viebrock 2013). The students would speculate on the story, the main characters, the setting or the film’s atmosphere and be able to express individual questions (cf. Mat No. 1). In the opening scene of the film, an additional focus would be laid on aesthetic features and structural elements. This scene introduces the learners to the main characters (Sandra Laing, her father Abraham, her mother Sannie) and basic themes of the film (the political situation, the first free elections in 1994 as a culmination point of the story). It can be used for focusing on specific features such as image

149

150

South Africa composition/setting, characters/plot, sound/spoken words, sequences/timing (cf. Mat No. 2) Skin can be considered a flashback film that is framed by the day of the election and unfolds the main part of the plot in retrospect. In the opening scene, Sandra is approached at her workplace by a TV reporter who wishes to interview her on her prospects after the end of apartheid. Colleagues from the lipstick factory, who have read about her case in a newspaper article called “Too late for Sandra Laing”, see in her some kind of celebrity and ask for her autograph. Sandra’s facial expression as well as the underlying music make clear that they have touched a very sore spot. This feeling of uneasiness is reinforced by way of flashbacks to Sandra’s childhood which introduce her family background. While details are not yet made explicit, the viewer senses that there must be a personal twist to the socio-historical background and the hardships of apartheid since Sandra’s parents are clearly depicted as white. Such a task may function as a first glimpse into the analysis of a film, i.e. the examination of a complex matter by dividing the study of that matter into individual parts, which are later combined again to achieve a more holistic evaluation. Essential questions in the context of film analysis in general and as a starting point for a more specific discussion on any selected film could be: Which effects does this scene evoke in the spectator? What kinds of devices were used to achieve the intended effects? (cf. Mattes 2011: 154). In class, the analytical sequence could proceed as follows: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

7. 8. 9. 4.2

Introduction and basic explanation (by the teacher) First viewing of the opening sequence (the first five minutes of the film) General feedback, impressions, thoughts and questions Essential questions: Which cinematographic devices are used? (Analysis) / To which effect are these devices used? (Interpretation) Distribution of group assignments (cf. Mat No. 2), each of the groups concentrates on one of the four main fields of observation (A. composition/setting, B. characters/plot, C. sound/spoken words, D. sequences/timing) Second viewing of the first five minutes, i.e. the following three sequences: Sequence 1 (00:00:16-00:02:16): Credits and opening, first free elections in South Africa on 27 April 1994, people celebrating, queuing up for the election, Sandra and her children arriving in a van. Sequence 2 (00:02:17-00:03:14): Sandra Laing at her workplace in a lipstick factory in 1994, TV interview, newspaper article and talk to colleagues, short flashbacks. Sequence 3 (00:03:15-00:04:48): Sandra as a young girl, preparing for the beginning of the school year, family trip to school in their VW Beetle. Discussion and negotiation of the essential questions in groups A, B, C and D Discussion and negotiation of the essential questions concerning the different observation tasks A, B, C and D either in expert groups or as a plenary discussion. Completion of the individual worksheets, possibly adding new personal insights Possibly, a third viewing of the sequence to clarify open questions or to verify specific observations (cf. Mattes 2011: 154) The time line concept (with focus on socio-historical and political issues)

After the introductory part with its focus on awareness-raising, on the context and setting of the film as well as selected cinematograpic and aesthetic elements the teacher ought to give a short introduction into the concept of a time-line with a focus on sociohistorical and political issues. While watching the film the students are asked to take notes on prominent and pivotal aspects that have a significant influence on either the

Understanding Skin against the Backdrop of South Africa’s Pre-1994 Apartheid System

characters’ development or the plot. One example could be the first free elections in South Africa in 1994 (as dealt with in the opening scene); another example could be the implementation of a new law (for example the 1950s Immorality Act, the 1967 Parliamentary Amendment to the Population Registration Act), events with serious consequences (for example the 1976 student demonstrations in Soweto), or specific cultural features (for example the consequences of apartheid laws in everyday life). In order to provide some guidance, the teacher can use the (blank) time-line worksheet from the download section (cf. Mat No. 3) that refers to specific events/features portrayed in the film and leaves some space for individual notes. While watching, the students are asked to jot down their notes into the grid, which will serve as a resource for presenting and discussing their results in class. An optional think-pair-share approach might be advisable after the screening of the film. Most likely, the students will identify a large number of the socio-historical and political issues, presumably not using the correct terminology. However, a mainly descriptive approach is sufficient at this point. There are several options to organise the more intensive post-viewing part of the teaching unit. Learning at stations could be combined with the use of a portfolio for collecting individual results. In a more teachercentred approach the teacher could choose important aspects of the time-line and facilitate an understanding of the historical dimension. In a more student-centred approach the students could choose individual tasks and prepare them for a poster presentation/exhibition. 4.3

Contextualised time-line for the analysis of Skin (2008) and cultural studies on pre-1994 South Africa

We have selected 13 scenes from the film for analytical work that focuses on the sociohistorical aspects that form the background of the plot. The individual scenes follow a chronological order. They are supplied with additional pieces of information on the accurate running time as well as a brief description of the film scene in focus. Moreover, the socio-political aspect is labelled (for example the 1976 Anti-Apartheid Demonstrations) and complemented by a short synopsis of the events and some explanatory notes (cf. table 1). The provided material includes worksheets, historical footage such as Internet links for audio and video files, photos, cartoons, reviews, text excerpts, a reprint of the headmaster’s letter to the educational board, relevant texts and additional websites. In addition, ready-to-use material and task sheets are provided, which give you a short impression of the intended task design (skills, competencies, learning objectives, methodology) and the main focus of the assignments. The corresponding worksheets provide detailed task descriptions and offer further contextualisation where necessary (for a complete overview of all scenes selected cf. the download section).

151

152

South Africa Running time (film scene) Short synopsis of events Historical and political background Material for classroom tasks

00:00:55- 00:02:18, Opening scenes, Election 1994 Nelson Mandela was elected South Africa’s first black president after more than three centuries of white rule. Mandela’s African National Congress (ANC) party won 252 of the 400 seats in the first democratic elections of South Africa’s history First free elections in South Africa on 27 April 1994 (Johannesburg) == Material No. 4 ==2 Task design: Reading comprehension, guiding questions, writing a newspaper article, watching a footage video, speech analysis, rhetoric devices Material: 1. Statement by Nelson Mandela after his own voting: http://www.sahistory.org.za/archive/nelson-mandelas-statementafter-voting-south-africas-first-democratic-elections-inanda-kwazu 2. Speech of the President of the ANC Nelson R. Mandela at his inauguration as President (Pretoria, May 10th, 1994): http://www.sahistory.org.za/archive/statement-president-ancnelson-r-mandela-his-inauguration-president-democratic-republicsout Video file: http://www.sahistory.org.za/archive/nelson-rolihlahla-mandelavideo-clips

Table 1: First scene of time-line

In accordance with the opening scene of Skin described in the previous section, the first example specified in table 1 focuses on the first free elections in South Africa and the perspectives of the newly elected president Nelson Mandela. In addition to the film scene, the learners are presented with a statement by Mandela on his election as well as his inauguration speech. On the one hand, this material provides additional background knowledge which helps to contextualise the film’s images. On the other hand, it can be used for focusing on different skills (such as reading comprehension, the analysis of rhetoric devices etc.). We suggest the following tasks: a) Read the statement by Nelson Mandela after his election on 27 April 1994 and answer the following questions in form of a short newspaper article: How does Mandela describe the old era as opposed to the new era? How does he see the future of the white minority after the election? What are his message and his vision as the future President of South Africa? Write approximately 250 words and pay attention to the specific style and form of a newspaper article. 2

The first three materials deal with pre-viewing activities.

Understanding Skin against the Backdrop of South Africa’s Pre-1994 Apartheid System

b) Read the speech of Nelson Mandela at his inauguration as President (May 1994) and analyse the speech with regard to content and style (rhetoric devices). In addition, you can watch the video recording to get a more lively impression. Another example (cf. Mat No. 6) focuses on the scene where one night in the dormitory Elise talks to Sandra at bedtime and introduces herself. She tells Sandra that she comes from Swaziland and that all her friends used to be black there. We suggest the following questions and tasks for discussion and in-depth study: Why does Elise approach Sandra? What are her intentions? Why does Sandra react so reluctantly at first? The next day Elise and Sandra meet again. Elise reports that she has been hit by Annie after she told her that Sandra was not black. The scene ends at this point. To continue, we suggest different activities that demand various changes of perspective and take the individual perceptions/experiences as a point of departure for including and reflecting on political issues: a) Write the ensuing dialogue between Elise and Sandra. You may want to invent an encounter with Annie as well. Try to deal with the following questions in your scene: Will Elise change her friendly behaviour towards Sandra? Will the two girls become friends? What would Sandra tell Annie if they met? How does Sandra feel when she learns that somebody else was attacked because of her (i.e. the colour of her skin)? b) Write a letter from the perspective of Elise. Elise writes to her mother in Swaziland, telling her all about the latest events at school (involving Sandra and Annie) and asking her advice. Coming full circle, a final example (cf. Mat No. 16) focuses on Sandra’s postapartheid opportunities by examing a scene where she uses her new rights – guaranteed by the Freedom of Information Act – to gather information on her case. In the corresponding film scene (01:30:17-01:31:12) she tries to obtain the current address of her mother Sannie Laing. Sandra longs for reconciliation on a very personal level. In the subsequent scene Sandra tries to explain to her daughter why it is so important for her to get re-united with her parents (her mother). She aims for reconciliation and maybe also forgiveness and visits her mother at a nursing home (01:32:45-01:38:15). Indirectly, the film addresses a very important issue of postapartheid South Africa: The question of how to deal with the past and the longing for justice and reconciliation. While again the film scene allows for discussions of the individual characters, their motivations and experiences, some additional research on the political developments of the time will provide the learners with more profound insights into South Africa’s history. In this context, we suggest the following task: Do some research on South Africa’s attempt to come to terms with its apartheid past by initiating a Truth and Reconciliation commission (TRC). The pros and cons have been widely discussed, nevertheless it is worthwhile to explore yourselves. The ideas presented here are only a small selection of many more (cf. download section). Depending on the approach chosen in class the suggested time-line and accompanying tasks and material, the final presentation and appreciation of the individual results and learning progresses could be for example a sequence of short presentations, a poster exhibition, the display of portfolios or a concluding discussion. A final task could also be to write a comprehensive review of the movie Skin. Additional material to enhance this task may be an interview with the director Anthony Fabian (cf. Mat No. 17 – Interview with Director Anthony Fabian) or the documentary South Africa – Sandra Laing: A Spiritual Journey (available on youtube at https://www. youtube.com/watch?v=cYZyvxpsCjQ) of the true life story of Sandra Laing which provide interesting insights.

153

154

South Africa 5

Summary

This chapter aimed at developing ideas for using the film Skin for both film and cultural studies in the English language classroom. After a synopsis of South African history, politics and society, the film has been examined and deconstructed through different scenes that mirror relevant events and developments in contemporary and apartheid South Africa along the fictionalised life story of Sarah Laing. The focus of the presented teaching concept is on a topical exploration of historical events, which is achieved by using the events of the film as a starting point for more in-depth individual research on the scope of specific political developments. This decision was made mainly because of the ‘heavily loaded’ content of the film, which – through the fate of a single woman – tackles as complex concepts as apartheid, race, segregation, justice, reconciliation and coming to terms with a nation’s history. Hence, personal responses to the film, which include an understanding of a (fictional) character as well as a change of perspective, are integrated with cultural studies of a wider range, which focus on additional authentic material and sources as well as historical footage. The focus of the task design is on the communicative, productive and exploratory tasks and predominantly aims at autonomous learning and the formation of one’s own opinion. Film reference Skin. Director: Anthony Fabian. Screenplay: Helen Crawley, Anthony Fabian, Jessie Keyt & Helena Kriel. United Kingdom: Elysian Films. DVD 2008. 107 minutes.

References Dargis, Manhola (2009), White to Colored and Back Again in Apartheid’s Maze. The New York Times (29 Oct 2009). [Online: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/30/movies/ 30skin.html?_r=0 01.04.2016]. Fisch, Jonas & Viebrock, Britta (2013), Between Visual Literacy and Film Literacy: Working with Film Posters in the EFL Classroom. In: Elsner, Daniela; Helff, Sissy & Viebrock, Britta (Eds.), Films, Graphic Novels & Visuals – Developing Multiliteracies in Foreign Language Education – An Interdisciplinary Approach. Münster: LIT-Verlag, 121-138. Gooch, William S. (2010), Interview with Director Anthony Fabian. [Online: http://www. soundonsight.org/interview-with-director-anthony-fabian-of-skin 01.04.2016]. Mattes, Wolfgang (2011), Methoden für den Unterricht. Paderborn: Schöningh. Oxford Dictionaries (no date): Apartheid. [Online: http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/ definition/english/apartheid 01.04.2016]. South African History Online1: Grade 12. Class Discussion Topic: Naming People. [Online: http://www.sahistory.org.za/article/naming-people-grade-12 01.04.2016]. South African History Online 2: Segregationist Legislation Timeline 1950-1959. [Online: from http://www.sahistory.org.za/topic/segregationist-legislation-timeline-1950-1959 01.04.2016]. Stone, Judith (2007), When She Was White. New York: Miramax. Thompson, Leonard (2006), A History of South Africa. Johannesburg & Cape Town: Ball. Welsh, David (2009), The Rise and Fall of Apartheid. Johannesburg & Cape Town: Ball.

USA

A History of Violence: Productive and Creative Methodology in Teaching 12 Years a Slave Jan-Erik Leonhardt

12 Years a Slave (2013) tells the story of Solomon Northup, a free black man who has been abducted and sold into slavery. This chapter will explore the film for its representation of slavery in the U.S. within its socio-historical context and reflect on the suitability of the film for the English language classroom. After a concise synopsis and some contextual information, considerations on the teaching potential of the film will follow. Possible pre- and while-viewing exercises will be suggested for a first approach to 12 Years a Slave. An in-depth anaylsis will then focus on two central topics: the role of women and the use of violence, again including methodological suggestions and material for classroom use. In the end, post-viewing tasks will be discussed. 1

The film: context and synopsis

Over two-and-a-half centuries, large parts of the United States’ economy have been sustained by an enslaved workforce. Especially, “[t]he six decades between the turn of the nineteenth century and the death of slavery during the American Civil War witnessed the entrenchment of slavery in the Deep South […]“ (Morgan 2005: 12). Even after the slave trade ban of 1807, Afro-Americans throughout the country were hauled into slavery. And still, “[d]iscrimination against free blacks continued for nearly a century afterwards, with segregation, lynching, the rise of the Ku Klux Klan and Jim Crow legislation“ (ibid.: 17). The slave trade has become a legacy still present today. Social inequality is protested against and police violence towards Afro-Americans has been one of the top news stories in 2014 and 2015. The stories of slavery have been processed by the arts in writing, painting, and, more recently, TV and film, as, for example, in Steve McQueen’s Academy Award winning feature film 12 Years a Slave (2013). The film is based on Solomon Northup’s narrative published in 1853, and hence makes a significant claim to historical accuracy, also supported by the film’s advisor Henry L. Gates, a renowned African-American studies scholar (Cobb 2014: 341). The primary objective of film-maker and director Steve McQueen was to set new impulses to the canon of cinema, previously often dominated by Hollywood inaccuracy and different approaches to storytelling in film. For example, in Django Unchained (2012), director Quentin Tarantino “[…] presents slavery as a background for a revenge fantasy, marked with repetitive use of the infamous anti-black epithet and bloody violence” (Cobb 2014: 339).

156

USA

Solomon Northup’s narrative takes a much more serious approach and tries to show, as McQueen has pointed out, that “[w]e can’t take our liberties and our freedoms for granted, because at any time they could be taken away” (in Gates 2014: 193). 12 Years a Slave has the character of a neo-slave narrative since it interrogates the “[…] relationship between the history of slavery and the social significance of contemporary racial identity” (Rushdy 1999: 22 as quoted in Li 2014: 327). Solomon Northup, who is also the main character of the film, is the model image of a free black man in the middle of the 19th century, who is kidnapped and forced into slavery. Northup, a highly educated Afro-American violinist, gets abducted in Washington and is brought south to work on the Southern farms. The audience witnesses his capture, and again and again reproduces his disbelief, defiance, and hurt as he becomes a commodity. During the story, which is based on true events, Solomon and his fellow slaves however refuse to be dehumanised. This ultimate form of revolt is the reason for the film’s viability. The feature film therefore tells the story not only of his mental abuse but also of Solomon’s body, too often mastered by violence, and his face. The change can be witnessed in the last scenes. After twelve years of captivity, several close-up shots, always slightly to the side of the screen, are shown of Solomon: Still a slave, he is working in a field, he seems pensive and almost broken; then he receives the message of his release and leaves the farm and his female friend Patsey, who has suffered alongside him; at the end of the film, he sees his family and apologises. The shots explore his inner feelings, and although the recipient by now knows the story of his face, he wonders what Solomon Northup’s thoughts are, especially after his apology since, in his wife’s words, “there is nothing to forgive”. 2

Taking 12 Years a Slave to the English language classroom

Current cultural clashes between Afro-American and white communities can be used as a starting point to deal with the cultural history of Afro-Americans in a differentiated way. For example, the riots in Ferguson in 2014/15 were triggered by the death of a black teenager being shot by a white police officer, who was later declared innocent by the courts. Social unrest started as citizens blamed police violence to account for the teenager’s death. As in many other cases, discussions regarding causes of the events and reasons for the court decision emerged quickly. Similarly, a black homeless man was shot by Los Angeles police officers; a video of the incident posted in social media caused further outrage. Was the attack caused by blatant racism? Cultural and historical knowledge is needed in order to understand the implications of such proceedings. Current violent events can be exploited as a pre-viewing activity, or rather a general topical introduction to what is about to come in 12 Years a Slave (for example, Mat No. 1 to 3). Already the film’s first scenes broach the issue of how black men were treated in the United States’ past. The initial part of 12 Years a Slave, which establishes the recipients’ expectations, shows moments of great vulnerability. Before the title screen is shown (in simple writing on brown paper), four scenes of Solomon (played by Chiwetel Ejiofor) are shown: He is working in a field with other slaves, observed by their overseers; then, in their quarters, Solomon, upon looking at his leftover food, has the idea to use blackberry juice as ink for writing a letter; however, the attempt fails. The third scene is a sexual encounter with a slave woman who silently bids Solomon

A History of Violence: 12 Years a Slave

to pleasure her. After she has climaxed, she turns away and starts crying, as she is back in her violent life: The scene “[…] emphasises Northup’s powerlessness. He cannot rescue this woman from bondage, just as he cannot rescue himself. The only comfort he offers is physical” (Li 2014: 327). The importance of women is hinted to here, especially since this particular woman will surprisingly not appear on screen afterwards. In the fourth of the short scenes, Solomon has a flashback to happier times, the recipient gets to see his wife and children. From this point on, the viewer is guided chronologically through the course of events (with the occasional flashback). In the beginning, Solomon, a highly distinguished citizen of Saratoga, leaves town for a short performance. In Washington, he gets abducted, shipped south, and is sold to William Ford (Benedict Cumberbatch). In Ford’s possession, Solomon tries to fit into his new role; however, he clashes with overseer John Tibeats (Paul Dano) so badly that he is forced to leave. His second owner, Edwin Epps (Michael Fassbender) proves to be a brutal master; his slaves suffer innumerable wrongs. Patsey (Lupita Nyong’o), a young slave women whom Solomon gets to know here, has to endure maybe most of Epps’ and his wife’s crazes because he is attracted to her. The viewer accompanies the misfortunes of the slaves until the film culminates in a gruesome beating of Patsey – which Solomon is forced to perform – and finally his release and return home. The twelve years Solomon Northup has been in captivity render the historic events taking place in the 19th century United States. His story is linked closely to the South’s growing need for workers on plantations, before and after him. Afro Americans held a chattel status, allowing the plantation owners to exploit their free workers at will: [S]laves’ behaviour was strictly controlled by law. Legal codes reflected the repression involved in relation between masters and slaves. Certainly, the legislation on slavery enacted by colonial legislatures after 1660 and the range of punishments that whites could mete out to blacks appear to support this sombre view of master-slave relations. (Morgan 2005: 5)

The slaves’ skin colour marked their inferiority for the ruling class, suggesting AfroAmericans’ connection with the devil; they were seen as barbarians, savages, and “singled out for their sheer difference to Europeans – in their physiognomy, gestures, languages, dress and behavior” (ibid.: 2). Only by the middle and end of the 18th century, voices against slavery gained power in Europe. Influenced by French philosopher Montesquieu and several Enlightenment thinkers, intellectuals started to act against slavery for it denies the enslaved “[…] the right to political and civil happiness” (ibid.: 7f.). Especially through the strong transatlantic links of the Quakers, the anti-slavery message was spread. The Slave Trade Act of 1807 forbid trading slaves in the British Empire; however, it left much undecided. In the United States, “[t]he Revolution had set the split between slave states and free states in motion […]” (Mason 2009: 3f.), though national discord over the issue of slavery was often muted. During the following years, the growth of cotton cultivation in the South even “[…] intensified the slave regime’s hunger for labor. Its agents roamed the North in far greater numbers to buy Northern blacks still in slavery and to kidnap free blacks” (ibid.: 6). These are the exact historic and social complications Solomon Northup was subjected to in the feature film, as well as in his real lifetime. These conditions and the plot – containing a fair amount of violence – in mind, the question of whether to bring 12 Years a Slave to any language classroom has to be discussed. Does the feature film offer sufficient topics and stylistic devices to explore,

157

158

USA

and can its content be transformed for classroom use? Henseler et al. (2011: 32f.) have listed a number of criteria for the selection of films, which apply to the chosen example: In its makeup, 12 Years a Slave contains many polyvalent scenes which are worthy of discussion and offer opportunities for productive work in the classroom. Stylistically, the film offers some complexity in form of camera movements and angles (as Patsey’s beating scene will show), though neither its form nor its content are extraordinarily complicated for students of higher levels. In terms of language use, neither speed, nor pronunciation or vocabulary are overly difficult (cf. also Lütge 2012: 38ff.). Steve McQueen’s narrative is exemplary for many films on the same subject: Slavery; however, it is more than worthwhile to consider his attempt of creating a new viewpoint on it. Thematically, it offers insights into the social, cultural, political, and historical life in 19th century America; it reflects on the past from a contemporary perspective. Central themes such as freedom and equality or family and love are examined. Students who are able to reflect on the film’s themes can develop their own opinions on the matter, so working on the film will benefit their political and historical awareness as well as their autonomy. From the methodological standpoint, the confrontation with moral questions – for example: Was Solomon right to leave Patsey behind at the end of the feature film? – should be included in the lessons in order for students to empathise with the characters and their decisions. In addition, more practical aspects have to be looked at: With 134 minutes, 12 Years a Slave is quite long, which requires split- or interval-viewing (cf. Henseler et al. 2011: 34f.). A DVD version is easily accessible; also, the original manuscript of Northup’s narrative can be read for free online.1 Moreover, a large variety of material on the topic of slavery and its processing by the arts can be found. All in all, 12 Years a Slave can be recommended to any group of higher level students; their interpretative, analytic, evaluative and critical-reflective competences are addressed by the film, encouraging them throughout the unit to “[…] conduct research by raising questions, posing problems, and generating ideas” (Langer 2011: 15). 3

Pre- and while-viewing activities: a guide to 12 Years a Slave

Before watching the film, students need to activate their knowledge on the topic at hand. There are several (more or less time consuming) options for the teacher when starting with 12 Years a Slave: Imagine a photograph of an Afro-American man; it is a close-up of his face, almost like a convict’s mug shot. The man looks earnest but seems to stare into some larger void. The man’s name and his story are unknown so far, and the task is to fill this indeterminate space by writing a short fiction. The concretisation of the image which will later be revealed to be Solomon Northup has to be achieved through imaginative processes in an active, productive and creative act (cf. Waldmann 1999). The productive task establishes “[…] a space wherein language, images, voices and gestures can be combined” (French et al. 2012: 115). In the learning process, the photograph’s meaning becomes multidimensional. Its historical, social, cultural and personal meaning can be explored.2 A straightforward approach would be to draw up a mind map on slavery in the United States. The third and most time consuming option 1 2

http://docsouth.unc.edu/fpn/northup/northup.html 01.04.2016. The methodological conception of this task is adapted from the approach applied in the exhibition Gefangene Bilder in the Historical Museum Frankfurt.

A History of Violence: 12 Years a Slave

would be to conduct full research on several linked topics as the included Mat No. 4 to 7 suggest in order to foster information literacy as well as critical literacy (cf. Elsner & Viebrock 2013: 23f.) Topics to be dealt with in a work-sharing fashion may include slavery in the U.S., the Civil War, and these topics’ connection to human rights. In a second step, the expectations of the students concerning the film are set. The very beginning of the film as has been described above is shown to the class, now adding two scenes: the title screen and a scene in which Solomon and his children are shown at home. After a first unguided viewing, the teacher can ask the students which of the short scenes have attracted their attention most and why. These scenes are watched a second time, and students are to observe cinematographic, dramatic as well as literary aspects of one scene they have found striking (cf. Mat No. 8). This first encounter with the material of 12 Years a Slave is not meant to be a full analysis, rather are students meant to fathom the possibilities it can offer. Therefore, in a second step, they are to write down their own expectations for the upcoming plot. After completing their own observations, they can be shared and discussed with several partners in order to fill in information on all other scenes. Due to the length of the film, it should be watched in several shorter episodes in the suggested chronological order: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

The beginning sequences (00:00:55-0:07:45) as described in the lesson above, Until Solomon has to leave William Ford’s farm (00:54:28), Until Mistress Epps refuses to give biscuits to Patsey (01:18:25), Until Solomon writes the letter to his family (01:34:05), And finally, until the end.

A variety of tasks accompanies each episode. The second and third sequences, which make up a large part of the film, are best consorted by plot and character observations in the first viewing (cf. Mat No. 9). During the course of the story, Solomon Northup meets (or rather: is subjected to) many other characters, which adds a certain complexity to the plot. With a break between (2) and (3), the students should take notes on several important characters’ appearances, their facial expressions, gestures, and body language, and lastly associated visual and auditory effects. Again, the results can be shared in class, and the character list can be continued later. This task has primarily been developed in order to ensure a basic comprehension of the film and to find out which scenes would be fit for more detailed analysis in revision. Then, after the third episode, a more specified character analysis presents itself (cf. Mat No. 10). The students have watched the film until Mistress Epps has refused to give Patsey one of her self-made biscuits; in front of the other slaves and her husband she verbally and physically humiliates the slave woman. She seems to suspect her husband’s destructive love for Patsey; she, her husband, Patsey, and Solomon, too, find themselves in a multifaceted relationship of love, hatred and revenge. To understand ongoing interrelations, the students can create freeze images. Receiving the audio-visual content for the first time, pictures, scenes, postures and statements of characters emotionally touch the viewer and may trigger imaginative processes (cf. Scheller 1996: 136). In the freeze images, these personal experiences can be shown and compared to those of other students. In a second optional step, the freeze image characters can be given a voice by another group of students standing behind them; the rest of the class can ask questions, for example to Solomon: Why did you not defend Patsey in this situation? While the additional students have to answer the questions verbally, the ‘frozen’ students can show their answer through movements of their body and their facial

159

160

USA

expressions. The creation of freeze images invokes a change of perspective which is an inherent goal of film education as cultural education (cf. Surkamp & Nünning 2009: 196). The fourth stop and the tasks designed for it require a similar change of perspective, this time by means of a creative writing exercise (cf. Mat No. 11). On the content level, Solomon gets to know the former overseer Armsby, who seems to be sympathetic to the slaves on Mr. Epps’ farm. Solomon offers him all his earnings from a concert he played at and asks Armsby to deliver a letter from him to his family. The students will empathise with Solomon’s situation and are asked to write the letter to his family. As the situation is to be as similar to the feature film’s plot as possible, the students only have a small sheet of paper and can only write 150 words. After they have written the letter, the class can discuss what Solomon may feel like after giving it to Armsby, and what reactions it may evoke in its recipients, Solomon’s wife and children. In order to share the results, the letters can be left on each student’s desk. The pupils can walk around in class, read what others have written, and then share similarities and differences between the letters: How may the story continue? After this session, the fifth and last sequence of the film can be watched. The students will inevitably experience a form of shock, depression or disappointment since Solomon’s plan, shortly after he has written the letter, is given away and his words will not reach their destination. This way, they can intuitively sense Solomon’s desperation. A chief point the film tries to make is to show how he helplessly falls ever more deeply into the clutches of slavery, desperately not trying to lose his humaneness (cf. Tillet 2014: 359). The tyranny in Solomon’s situation is thematically shown by two interconnected focuses: the role of women and the role of violence in 12 Years a Slave. Both are worthwhile to take another look at after the film has been shown once completely. 4

Topical focus: the role of women and violence in 12 Years a Slave

Not only does 12 Years a Slave portray the fate of Solomon Northup; a number of other characters share his misfortunes, many of whom are women. Most prominently, there is Patsey. There are also the unknown woman of the beginning sequences, Eliza, a slave woman who loses both her children in the process of being sold, and Harriet Shaw, “[…] the black wife of a neighbouring white plantation owner” (Li 2014: 329). Her and Patsey’s roles have been significantly extended in the film compared to the original material, suggesting that “Mc Queen’s real focus is on the interior life of enslaved women” (ibid.: 327). In no scene is Solomon able to help the female characters – he cannot comfort Eliza who suffers from losing her children, he cannot rescue Patsey, he refuses to kill her at her wish, and, in the end, he has to brutally whip her upon Master Epps’ request. Black men’s inability to protect enslaved women is crucial to the plot (cf. ibid.: 328); hence the role of women should be considered in more detailed sequence analyses. Two worksheets will approach this topic, first in an analytical way, and second more creatively. Mat No. 12, after asking students to name possible functions of the unknown slave, Eliza and Mistress Shaw for the narrative, focuses on Patsey: How is she characterised in the film? What is her function for the narrative and how is this conveyed technically? Four scenes have been opted for: The introduction of Patsey to the plot by Master Epps, who praises her for her hard work on the fields (00:55:37-00:58:21), Mistress Epps jealously throwing a bottle on Patsey (00:59:40-01:01:41), then Patsey’s and Solomon’s

A History of Violence: 12 Years a Slave

conversation in which she, in a famous line “I’ve got no comfort in this life”, pleads for him to kill her (01:18:26-01:21:00), and the last scene of Solomon and Patsey in which he has to leave her behind on Epps’ farm (02:00:32-02:03:57). The given protocol will help the students to focus on specific aspects of film. As Lütge (2012: 34f.) suggests, it encompasses scene, time and plot, camera angles and movement, image composition, colour and lighting, as well as sounds and soundtrack. In the analysis, the students will find out about Solomon’s incapability to help Patsey, a fact which manifests in the last scene, in which the viewer is left wondering what happens to her afterwards: McQueen gives us only a glimpse of Solomon in domestic safety. Instead, he lingers on the preceding scene, in which Patsey cries out to Solomon as he leaves the plantation for the last time. Her plea is for Solomon not to abandon her again but rather to give her the freedom that she so desperately longs for and that he is now guaranteed. (Tillet 2014: 360)

The gap in content can be used for productive writing tasks which will explore the larger meaning of the scene (cf. Mat No. 13). The students can be asked to finish Patsey’s story themselves; in doing so, they should be able to freely choose the perspective of narration and tense (though their choice should of course be justified). A second, more difficult option would be to assign a different perspective to each student for telling the story: 1st person, 2nd person (a perspective which is not often used, but very interesting: “You feel the tears running down your face …”), 3rd person, Master Epps’ perspective in 1st person, and, finally, his wife’s perspective are possible. The students can hereby experience firsthand that narrative texts are carefully crafted – they represent a series of choices in favour of and many more choices against certain narrative and stylistic options (cf. Waldmann 1999). In the end, the class will be able to answer the question of why Patsey is not shown after Solomon has left – because the message of 12 Years a Slave is not one of closure but rather impotence in the face of slavery’s horrors, “[…] and while Northup is also beaten and abused, women are at the centre of the most visceral and haunting scenes of violence” (Li 2014: 328). Indeed, “[…] violence is the key trope that signifies 12 Years as a legitimate portrayal of slavery” (Cobb 2014: 341). Much like in tragedy, the validity of violent scenes “[…] is not concerned with the act of violence but with what the act says about life – the struggle of the protagonist, the issues at stake, the effect of his or her suffering” (Hatlen 1992: 71). Brutality in the film can be divided into physical and nonphysical acts, since, in a way, the attempt to dehumanise slaves in order to morally justify their exploitation, already can be seen as a violent action. In 12 Years a Slave, this is particularly shown in the slave auction led by Theophilus Freeman (00:27:4900:32:03); how he treats human beings like live stock can be analysed in class, again using the given sequence analysis protocol (cf. Mat No. 14). In addition to scenes of haunting psychological violence, director Steve McQueen also decided to show explicit scenes and bloodshed, which may at all keep teachers from showing the film in class, or they might refrain from broaching the issue. However, making it a subject of discussion could actually benefit the students’ development. It is no secret that, in a globalised world, we are bombarded with so many media messages (cf. Potter 2005: 5). A large part of it inevitably contains explicit content. If an encounter with violence also seems predetermined, it seems to be better to understand its purpose and to learn when it is used in the sense of art. Apart from many other Hollywood productions which may or may not purposefully use violence, 12 Years a Slave uses the body and

161

162

USA

flesh to truthfully tell the bigger story of slavery – in McQueen’s words: “The story is about the environment, and how individuals have to make sense of it, how we locate the self in events” (in Gates 2014: 191). Students are asked to reflect on this question when reviewing three key scenes (cf. Mat No. 15): (1) Solomon is captured and beaten upon refusing his new identity (00:12:56-00:16:21), (2) Solomon is hung from a tree on Master Ford’s farm (00:45:1300:52:21), and (3), Solomon beats Patsey upon Master Epps’ request (01:46:4500:53:53). The first of the scenes corresponds to the later auction sequence as his kidnappers try to physically beat Solomon’s old identity out of him. Initial refusal soon makes way for pain. The second scene, which happens after Solomon has had an argument with John Tibeats (Solomon being blameless), shows how he is hung, barely keeping his feet on the ground. The other slaves seem too afraid to help him. In the background, we even see their children playing. All in all, the nature in the background of the scene is beautiful, a deliberate contrast to show life’s perverseness (Gates 2014: 192). The third and most brutal scene – Epps discovers that Patsey has been away to Shaws’ farm in order to collect some soap for herself; he is furious at her presumed disobedience – can be seen in similar light. Epps orders Solomon to whip his friend: In contrast to the sensory deprivation that haunts most of the film, the whipping is a spectacle of gruesome beauty: the steadied handheld camera closes up on Solomon’s face and then slowly follows the whip’s arc from his grief stricken eyes to Patsey’s tortured back; the welcoming hues of the Louisiana plantation and the brazen whiteness of the Big House collide with Patsey’s tattered clothes and bloodied back. Only laughing birds, the stinging lash, and a desperate human wail puncture a strange and overwhelming silence. (Tillet 2014: 355)

The scene’s objective is to de-familiarise the recipient with a scene they know from many other films about slavery and still provoke the audience to react with empathy, repulsion, or even anger. This is done by shifting the audience’s attention and identification from Solomon to Patsey, then to Epps’, and finally back to her (cf. ibid.). An analysis in class will ideally show that violence in 12 Years a Slave does not have an arbitrary character. Quite the contrary, it adds to the film’s credibility as an accurate portrayal of slavery that shows the vulnerability of the enslaved characters. The film uses the story of Solomon Northup to show a larger picture, the social and cultural history of the United States during slavery. In the end, the class can reflect on the question whether this approach in 12 Years a Slave (for example in comparison to Django Unchained) is more or less operable and whether the public can be positively or negatively influenced by it. All in all, the in-depth analyses of the role of women and violence in the film will enable students to dissect scenes in detail and to understand the reason behind their making. What Waldmann (1999) has already demanded in terms of teaching drama, has now to be applied to film studies. 5

Post-viewing: how to conclude

The conclusion of 12 Years a Slave offers much potential for debates, which will allow to reflect on the new contents (cf. Mat No. 16). The following questions can be used for group or class discussions as well as written reflections:

A History of Violence: 12 Years a Slave

1. When Solomon sees his family at the end of the film, he apologises (02:03:5802:08:21). What does he apologise for? Also, his wife tells him there is nothing to forgive. How can this be interpreted? 2. Does the film depict hopelessness and despair or, on the contrary, hopefulness? 3. 12 Years a Slave received three Oscars in 2014: Best Picture, Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Lupita Nyong’o), and Best Writing (Adapted Screenplay). Has the film deserved to win these (and many other) prizes? As a reference, other important feature films of the year include The Wolf of Wallstreet, Gravity, Dallas Buyers Club, American Hustle, and The Great Gatsby (all of which have at least been nominated for Oscars).

The first question refers to the ending of the film. The students are asked to recapitulate the events and give their personal opinion. The second question has a similar approach to reviewing to events, however, with a rather philosophical nature. The students are asked to reflect on their personal viewing experience: How did they feel when watching the scenes and what is left after having seen them? Here, the emotional involvement, demanded by Lütge (2012), is recaptured. The third question asks for a review of the film. Here, the students can give their own opinion and compare 12 Years a Slave to other film productions. Another option would be to reconsider the initial approach of imagining the story of the formerly unknown black man on a photograph. If the students have written the story of this man they now got to know as Solomon Northup, they can go back to the ideas they had before watching 12 Years a Slave. The stories can be re-read in class. Are the students’ stories similar to the events they have witnessed on screen? What different statements are made about slavery by the students in comparison to Solomon Northup’s real story? Here, the class is asked to review their productive writing task, its potential and limits: The meaning of the text is constituted by the reader; therefore, different horizons of meaning are created and should be included in the analysis. A strictly traditional analysis of literary features, dramatic and cinematographic aspects would not fully comply with the ambiguous nature of any cultural text. 6

Conclusion

An essential part of working with feature films is the development of a critical and reflective literacy, “[…] the ability to capture all kinds of texts and cultural products in their different layers of meaning, critically scrutinise and challenge them and productively extend them” (Elsner & Viebrock 2013: 28). This chapter has shown how 12 Years a Slave can be used to achieve these objectives. Taking the emotional involvement of the students as a starting point, the film offers great opportunities for integrating analytical and critical activities with productive and creative methodology. As the film depicts Solomon Northup’s kidnapping and his forced way into slavery, the students can experience the horrific impacts of forced labour from his point of view. The pictures and atmosphere in 12 Years a Slave help to bridge the students’ distance to a topic inherent to American history: Lasting from 1619 to 1865, slavery has had an enormous impact on the development of the United States’ national and cultural identity (as well as its economic growth). Solomon Northup’s story again is special, not only because the film is based on a real account, but also because Northup has been a free man, an educated and well-respected musician who, during his years as a slave,

163

164

USA

refused to give up his true identity and humanity. In order to explore the themes and topics inherent to 12 Years a Slave with students, meaningful pre- and while-viewing tasks include research before watching the film, and several productive writing tasks, which explore the motivations of characters and cinomatographic features of the film. After the first viewing, a more detailed analysis of selected scenes allows the students to gain more insights into the portrayal of women in 12 Years a Slave and the role of violence. At the same time, students will be enabled to identify with the characters, especially Solomon, but also they will take an analytical, more distanced perspective in order to understand the film’s effects, including a comprehensive topical anlysis looking at filmic devices and the interplay of content and cinematography. Through 12 Years a Slave, students will closely look at one of the darkest chapters in American history which is essential for understanding all of its history from this point onwards: the Civil War and its end in 1865, the formation of the Ku Klux Klan, the Civil Rights Movement, and more current events such as the Ferguson riots in 2014/15. The questions relevant to students today may be: What does freedom mean to us, what did it mean to others in the past? How does discrimination affect us, how can we stand up against it? How was discrimination shown in our societies in the past? How is it shown today? 12 Years a Slave allows students to reflect on these question against the background of slavery, to relate the topics to their personal experiences, and to form a profound opinion as a result of this. Film reference 12 Years a Slave. Director: Steve McQueen. Screenplay: John Ridley. USA: Bass Films. BluRay 2013. 134 minutes.

References Cobb, Jasmine Nichole (2014), Directed by Himself: Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave. American Literary History 26: 2, 339-346. Elsner, Daniela & Viebrock, Britta (2013), Developing Multiliteracies in the 21st Century: Motives for New Approaches of Teaching and Learning Foreign Languages. In: Elsner, Daniela; Helff, Sissy & Viebrock, Britta (Eds.) (2013), Films, Graphic Novels & Visuals. Developing Multiliteracies in Foreign Language Education – An Interdisciplinary Approach. Münster: LIT, 17-32. French, Liam; Moore, Stuart & Parker, Kayla (2012), Moving Image Production and the Pedagogical Development of Media Literacy. In: Bahloul, Maher & Graham, Carolyn (Eds.), Lights! Camera! Action and the Brain: The Use of Film in Education. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 111-116. Gates, Henry Louis Jr. (2014), 12 Years a Slave. A Conversation with Steve McQueen. Transition 114, 185-196. Hatlen, Theodore W. (1992), Orientation to the Theater. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall. Li, Stephanie (2014), 12 Years a Slave as a Neo-Slave Narrative. American Literary History 26: 2, 326-331. Lütge, Christiane (2012), Mit Filmen Englisch unterrichten. Berlin: Cornelsen. Mason, Matthew (2009), Slavery and Politics in the Early American Republic. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1-8.

A History of Violence: 12 Years a Slave

Morgan, Kenneth (2005), Slavery in America. A Reader and Guide. Athens: University of Georgia Press. Nünning, Ansgar & Surkamp, Carola (2006), Englische Literatur unterrichten. Grundlagen und Methoden. Seelze-Velber: Klett-Kallmeyer. Potter, James W. (2005), Media Literacy (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks; London & New Delhi: Sage, 1-40. Rushdy, Ashraf H. (1999), Neo-Slave Narratives: Studies in the Social Logic of a Literary Form. New York: Oxford University Press. Scheller, Ingo (1996), Szenische Interpretation. Praxis Deutsch 136, 22-32. Spinner, Kaspar H. (2001), Kreativer Deutschunterricht. Identität – Imagination – Kognition. Seelze: Kallmeyersche Verlagsbuchhandlung. Surkamp, Carola & Nünning, Ansgar (2009), Englische Literatur unterrichten 2. Unterrichtsmodelle und Materialien. Seelze-Gelber: Klett-Kallmeyer. Tillet, Salamishah (2014), “I Got No Comfort in This Life”: The Increasing Importance of Patsey in 12 Years a Slave. American Literary History 26: 2, 354-361. Waldmann, Günter (1999), Produktiver Umgang mit dem Drama. Eine systematische Einführung in das produktive Verstehen traditioneller und moderner Dramenformen und das Schreiben in ihnen. Baltmannsweiler: Schneider Verlag Hohengehren. Winston, Joe (2012), Introduction: Second and Additional Language Learning Through Drama. In: Winston, Joe (Ed.), Second Language Learning Through Drama. Practical Techniques and Applications. London, New York: Routledge, 1-5.

Internet resources https://www.youtube.com/user/crashcourse/featured (Accessed 01.04.2016).

165

USA

Life Is Strange – Life Is Change: Dallas Buyers Club in the EFL Classroom Viviane Lohe

The chapter at hand deals with the film Dallas Buyers Club (2013), which is about the protagonist Ron Woodroof, his HIV diagnosis, its consequences, and his fate and kismet. Though the film might seem to be too explicit for the EFL classroom at first glance, it provides lots of opportunities to work with – also with regards to curricular guidelines. HIV/AIDS, homosexuality/transgender and ‘white trash’ (a dismissive term referring to poor and uneducated white people in the U.S.) are topics and contexts of the film and may be critical to teach. Thus, the aim of the chapter is to come up with reasonable suggestions for teaching. Watching the film with all the background information that is given in this article will lead to a critical perspective on the film, but it will hopefully also trigger the readers’ interest to work with the film in EFL classrooms. Firstly, the chapter summarises the content of the film as well as its central topics and sociocultural background. Key scenes for each topic will be outlined and analysed for their aesthetic value. In the second part, an analysis of the film’s teaching potential will be given as well as methodological suggestions and concrete ideas for tasks that can be used in the EFL classroom. 1

Film summary

The film Dallas Buyers Club (2013) is based on true events. It tells the story of Ron Woodroof, who is diagnosed with HIV in 1985. Ron Woodroof is an electrician and a man-about-town who takes drugs, drinks lots of alcohol and visits prostitutes regularly. Following an accident at work, he is admitted to hospital where doctors find that he is HIV-positive and tell him that he has got 30 days left to live. In the first place, he refuses to accept the diagnosis, and at the same time he is stigmatised and avoided by his friends and environment. At the hospital, Dr. Eve Saks tells him about AZT, a drug against HIV that is being tested there but has not been approved officially by the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) yet. He also meets Rayon, a transwoman who takes part in the study that researches the (side) effects of AZT. In desperation, he illegally assigns a hospital worker to steal AZT for him. When the resources run out and his general health worsens (due to AZT and cocaine), Woodroof drives to Mexico to get more of the medication. The doctor in Mexico tells him about the dangers of AZT, recommending vitamins and proteins instead. Woodroof buys large amounts of the alternative medication and, back home, also engages in peddling drugs. His attempts

168

USA

to sell it remain unsuccessful but as he comes back into contact with Rayon and they become friends, they found the Dallas Buyers Club, which charges 400 dollars per month for the membership and provides ‘patients’ with vitamins and proteins. Since the medical condition of the members and of Woodroof and Rayon improves, the club becomes more and more popular amongst people suffering from HIV and AIDS. Then, Woodroof faces resistance: When a doctor of the hospital finds out about the club, he feels that his AZT trial is violated. Besides, the FDA tries to end Woodroof’s business. Initially, the FDA’s attempts to close the club fail but later they manage to prohibit any drug that is not approved. Dr. Eve Saks becomes more and more suspicious about the negative effects of AZT and supports Woodroof and his club. In 1987, Woodroof goes to court against the FDA but eventually loses the case. Meanwhile, Rayon has died from his constant drug abuse in combination with AIDS. On-screen texts announce that the FDA later allowed Woodroof to take the alternative medication for personal use and that he died in 1992, seven years later than the doctors had originally predicted. Hence, the narrative structure follows a typical pattern: After an introduction (to Woodroof’s circumstances), a problem is posed (HIV/AIDS diagnosis), the protagonist tries to solve the problem and faces several difficulties as well as he records some successes (FDA vs. the Dallas Buyers Club; health improves vs. loses his case) and meets ‘good’ and ‘bad’ people (Rayon and Eve Saks vs. FDA and Dr. Sevard) on his way. Eventually, there is somewhat like a positive ending as the FDA allows HIV/AIDS patients to buy alternative medication for personal use and Ron lives much longer than everyone thought. 2

Central topics

2.1

HIV/AIDS

The film is set in in Texas in the mid-1980s. HIV/AIDS was discovered in 1981 amongst gay men in New York. In the beginning, not much was known about the disease and there was a strong public anxiety as more and more people were infected. Initially, it was believed that only gay men could get HIV/AIDS and it was only in 1983 when it became public that there were also women who contracted the virus through heterosexual sex. However, gay men and other minorities were often stigmatised as the main transmitters of the disease that was hence often referred to as the “gay plague” (e.g. Daily Telegraph 1983). Homosexual men and drug-users were regarded as the ones who brought the disease on themselves and they were being expelled from society. Many heterosexuals “proclaimed that AIDS is God’s punishment for the arrogance, the sin, and the moral heresy of the gay militant” (Lang 1990: 181). During the following years, risk groups started to defend themselves against the prejudices. In 1986, AZT was tested and given to AIDS patients. Thousands placed a lot of hope in it, but it was stopped soon as the double blind test, usually employed in medical research, tests were seen as unethical in this case. In March 1987, AZT was approved by the FDA due to its positive effects in the studies. Within the next years, it became obvious that anyone can be infected with the virus, yet still the public anxiety decreased slowly and even today HIV/AIDS is sometimes referred to as a disease of gay men only. Medically, the death rate has decreased significantly due to new medical developments and educational work by many organisations all over the world (cf. AVERT 2014).

Life Is Strange – Life Is Change: Dallas Buyers Club in the EFL CLassroom

Dallas Buyers Club depicts the stigmatisation of AIDS patients and the struggle to survive – not only physically. Ron Woodroof is a heterosexual man, who is infected, whereas most of the other people portrayed in the film are homosexuals or drug users. The film describes the stigmatisation that AIDS patients were confronted with: In one of the first scenes, Ron Woodroof talks to his friends about the death of the actor Rock Hudson and they call him a “cock sucker”. Later, when his friends know about Ron’s illness, the viewer sees the words “faggot blood” on the garage door, summing up what the public assumptions about AIDS were. The scene in which the doctors tell Woodroof about his disease (00:07:46-00:11:13) functions as a key scene for the topic HIV/AIDS, and for the whole film as well. Woodroof wakes up in a hospital bed and searches for drugs to steal when Dr. Sevard and Dr. Saks come in to tell him that he is HIV positive. The doctors ask him whether he has ever had homosexual sex and Woodroof angrily states that he is no “faggot”, and he says “Look at me! What do you see? A goddamn rodeo is what you see!” Interestingly, the scene sums up Ron’s original personality perfectly: He is a homophobic, stereotypical macho, a petty criminal, he uses strong language and does not respect authorities. His clothes are filthy, his eyes bloodlined. He does not believe the doctors and he treats them disrespectfully. The scene starts with low key illumination and we only see Woodroof. When the doctors appear, the light is much brighter as they turn on the light switch. This is also typical of the whole film: When we see Woodroof at the beginning, when he is sick, the light is low key and later, when he gets better, the light is brighter. The scene is shot over the shoulder mainly, so that the protagonist’s reaction is in the focus. We see his body language which is very aggressive: He shows his chest, points at the doctors, his eyes are wide open whereas the doctors are shown from behind only, wearing face masks, gloves and making soothing movements with their hands. Woodroof reacts with anger and shock and only when the doctors tell him that he has 30 days left, he pauses and looks inward, probably understanding the gravity of his situation. But yet again, he falls back into his anger, triggered by despair and leaves the room, throwing the test results in the air saying “There ain’t nothing out there that can kill fucking Ron Woodroof in 30 days” – and he ends up being right. 2.2

Homosexuality/Transgender

Dealing with HIV and AIDS in the mid-80s, the film shows a lot of homosexuals and transgender people who suffer from the disease. Only few women are shown, many of them being prostitutes. The film reproduces stereotypes of the time: Only gay people, prostitutes and drug users have HIV/AIDS, Woodroof being the only person who was infected by unprotected heterosexual sex. Moreover, most homosexuals and transgender persons are depicted as complete outsiders, having their own culture and refuges in bars and clubs. The only couple that is shown as ‘normal’, is an integrated and assimilated elderly pair (Michael and Ian), the rest are mavericks. However, even if the gay and transgender scene is illustrated stereotypically and in contrast to the heterosexual world, the viewer has to keep in mind that a lot has changed with regards to LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender). Nowadays homosexuals are integrated better due to social movements and equal rights, and they do not flee into parallel societies anymore as they had to in 1980’s conservative Texas. Thus, the film probably reproduces authentic stereotypes that were common at that time. Homosexuals were constantly discriminated against and “faggot”, “tinkerbell”

169

170

USA

and “sweetheart” were some of the more unoffending insults, whereas in the later 1980s “a substantial proportion of American heterosexuals stopped viewing homosexuals as sinners, or criminals, or as mentally ill” (Feldman 1990: 3). Another thing to keep in mind is that Dallas Buyers Club is supposed to be a true story – but it is not in all cases. The author Bill Minutaglio (2014) states that when he met Ron Woodroof in 1992, he did not encounter a homophobic person. Steven Friess (2014) even claims that Woodroof was at least bisexual and maybe even gay himself. Moreover, in the film gay men are shown as dazzling personalities who dress either as women or eccentrically. But not only do they dress strangely, they also behave stereotypically and excessively. Particularly Rayon, who is a transgender woman, is portrayed in clichés: What did the writers of “Dallas Buyers Club” and Leto as her portrayer decide to make Rayon? Why, she’s a sad-sack, clothes-obsessed, constantly flirting transgender drug addict prostitute, of course. There are no stereotypes about transgender women that Leto’s concoction does not tap. She’s an exaggerated, trivialized version of how men who pretend to be women – as opposed to those who feel at their core they are women – behave. (Friess 2014: n.p.)

Even if the whole film deals with homosexuality and homophobia, I would like to point out one scene that is of particular importance with regards to the description of homoand heterosexuals (00:46:05-00:48:13). After having taken the drugs from Woodroof and consequently feeling better, Rayon waylays Ron and pretends that he needs more. Woodroof reacts with homophobic comments yet again and so Rayon withdraws his bid and leaves. Only later do they make a deal. What is more interesting in this scene is the portrayal of Ron in contrast to Rayon. Woodroof is shown as a masculine person, wearing a cowboy hat, boots, pilot sunglasses. He sits with his legs apart, counts money, carries a gun and he stresses that he is a heterosexual man when he calls Rayon “tinkerbell”. He even is not willing to shake Rayon’s hand. Rayon, in contrast, wears a lot of shrill make up, chews gum, talks nasally and behaves like a stereotypical transgender woman in that scene. Leaving aside that fact that Rayon outsmarts Ron, the characterisation is just as stereotypical as it is shown in the quote above and needs to be watched critically. 2.3

Ron Woodroof’s metamorphosis

Ron Woodroof experiences several changes within the film. Not only does he change significantly on the level of his personality but also on the physical level. The most important transformation is the conversion from a very homophobic to a more tolerant and open-minded person. Even in the first scenes, Woodroof proves his homophobia when he talks about homosexual actor Rock Hudson in a derogatory way. Also, when the doctors tell him about his disease, he says: “I ain’t no faggot, motherfucker. I don’t even know a fucking faggot”, clearly straightening out his position towards homosexuals. In one of the key scenes (00:29:30-00:33:10), Woodroof meets Rayon, the transwoman, and blatantly shows his disgust. He keeps exorbitant physical distance and claims “I’m straight, aight?” Although they have teething troubles first, they become friends later. One reason is that they have similar petty criminal energies to make money, which is presented in the scene described above already: They meet and gamble in the hospital. In the most important scene with regards to the protagonist’s personality transformation (00:54:36-

Life Is Strange – Life Is Change: Dallas Buyers Club in the EFL CLassroom

00:56:54), Woodroof defends Rayon against a former friend, T.J., who is not willing to shake Rayon’s hand, insulting him to be a “faggot”. Woodroof takes T.J. in a headlock and forces him to take Rayon’s hand. Afterwards, he even tells him to go back to his “miserable life”, a hint towards ‘white trash’ and its dumbness, also indicating that Woodroof is not part of the subculture anymore. Rayon’s flattered smile shows how happy he is about Ron’s act of humanity. A remarkable part about this scene is that Woodroof does not even tell T.J. that Rayon is not his partner but just a friend, showing that he does not any longer care about societies’ prejudices. What is more, Woodroof changes from a drunkard to a healthy man, always worrying about his diet. In the beginning he is shown as a man-about-town, drinking in bars, taking drugs, smoking etc. In the course of the film, he quits drinking and taking drugs (with some minor relapses) and starts thinking about his diet and his health in general. He regularly takes the medical supplies he buys for his clubs and also recommends the other members to stay as clean as possible. The transformation is not only presented on the psychological level, but also his physical appearance and his health improve. While he is very thin, has wounds and wears rundown clothes initially, he later gains some weight, his hair and skin look healthy and he cares for his clothes. Wearing filthy T-shirts and working clothes first, he wears suits and neat shirts later, especially when he travels to other countries, indicating the change from a ‘white trash’ cowboy to a sophisticated cosmopolitan. Moreover, Woodroof is portrayed as an egoist from the beginning but later there are a few hints that he has become a man that is concerned not only about his own but also about the health of all HIV/AIDS patients, indicating that he has changed from an antihero to a hero and from an egoist to a Samaritan. At first glance, it seems that he has built the Buyers Club for financial reasons only. However, he fights for the rights to take the drugs for all HIV/AIDS infected in court at the end. Another thing that indicates that he does not only have egoistic motives is that he gives the proteins to his friend whose father has Alzheimer’s for free. 3

Sociocultural backgrounds and historical contexts

The film depicts the poor side of Dallas and its typical (often negative) features one would associate with Texas: rodeo, patriotism and conservatism, cowboys and masculinity as well as racism. The film is not set in the rich and glamorous Dallas that one might have in mind from the long term soap opera Dallas, but in a poor and lowlife environment. The protagonist Woodroof is part of a scene that is dominated by alcohol, racism and conservative men carrying guns. In the very first scene, we see a rodeo from Woodroof’s point of view while he has sex with two women in a hideout. The rodeo is introduced by a person on a horse who carries the U.S. American flag, in the background somebody is singing the Star-Spangled Banner. This scene already hints at the Texan patriotism and shows one of the most traditional cultural activities at the same time. Woodroof having sex with two women who are presumably prostitutes, however, points at conservative Texans’ double standards at that time that are presented throughout the whole film. The setting is perfectly summed up in one scene when we see Ron Woodroof’s home (00:04:33-00:05:52): Woodroof and his friend, who is a police officer, drive towards the trailer park the protagonist lives in. Filthy mobile homes, broken cars and trucks, bored children and grey dreariness symbolise the ‘white trash’ culture which is seen as

171

172

USA

“the stereotypes of rural poor whites as incestuous and sexually promiscuous, violent, alcoholic, lazy and stupid” (Newitz & Wray 1997: 2). Except for being rural and incestuous, all adjectives also fit Woodroof and most of the other male characters that surround him. Another key scene that illustrates the ‘white trash’ lifestyle shows Woodroof and his friends waiting for work as they are day labourers (00:06:1600:07:13). The men are depicted as very masculine, they arrogantly talk about women as sex objects and they also talk racistically about “sand niggers” in Saudi-Arabia. The film also ironically mocks the stereotypes. The scene in which Rayon and Woodroof meet for the first time, Rayon says to Woodroof: “I guess you’re handsome, in a Texas-hick, white trash dumb, kind of way”. Rayon wittily unmasks Woodroof’s homophobic attitude which is caused by simple ignorance. Also, when Woodroof visits the hospital to talk to a doctor and Dr. Eve Saks comes to treat him, he angrily requests a doctor (“I don’t want a nurse”), assuming that a woman cannot work in a higher position (00:17:47-00:18:53). Saks replies that she is “a fucking doctor”, mocking his language as well as his rudeness and eventually stealing his thunder. Also, the film mocks the unwavering belief in God and religion and the upright Evangelicalism that is associated with the state. In one scene (00:23:43-00:25:16), the protagonist is shown in dim candle light suggesting that he is in a church. Folding his hands he talks to God and asks for more time and a sign (that he receives in the next second in form of the hospital worker). When he has finished his prayer, he takes a sip from an alcoholic drink, and as the camera angle changes from a close up of his face to a medium shot the viewer realizes that he is not in a church but in a strip club. Hence, the film depicts a stereotypical ‘white trash’ environment and the conservative 1980’s Dallas but at the same time it humorously plays with these stereotypes and offers a great opportunity to critically reflect prejudices in the film in EFL classrooms as ‘white trash’ still is a relevant sociocultural phenomenon that is widely discussed in current American public life and media.1 However, just as Woodroof transforms psychologically and physically and mirrors societal changes within the seven years the film is set, Texas has changed from a rural to an increasingly urban society characterized by sprawling metropolitan areas such as Houston, Dallas and San Antonio, from a predominantly agricultural and ranching economy to a highly sophisticated industrialized and communications giant, from an Anglo-dominated populace to a racial and ethnic kaleidoscope, from a Protestant bastion of Methodists and Baptists to Catholic ascendancy and religious pluralism, from a male-controlled state to one where women stand much closer in equality, from primitive frontier medical practices to a major center of world-class medical institutions dedicated to cutting-edge technology and research. (Storey & Kelley 2008: 3)

4

Film analysis

4.1

Cinematography

Interestingly, Dallas Buyers Club was filmed with a hand camera only, which can be seen sometimes when the pictures slightly shake. This causes a very authentic effect, giving the viewer a feeling of involvement. It also fits the environment of the filthy 1

Cf. for example http://thesocietypages.org/specials/white-trash/ 01.04.2016.

Life Is Strange – Life Is Change: Dallas Buyers Club in the EFL CLassroom

parts of Dallas. It creates the feeling that it might even be a documentary and it underlines the fact that the film is based on a true story. The framing is rather traditional: We mostly see long shots or long medium shots (meaning that one or more people are shown in a particular environment) as well as medium shots (persons are shown waist-up), close ups (face is seen) and sometimes extreme close ups (details of a face or an object are shown). The film uses many over the shoulder shots to express dialogues. As for the angles, the film often uses high and low angles to illustrate a certain position of power. Ron Woodroof is often filmed from a low angle, which causes the effect that he is perceived as a strong person. However, when he is in a weaker position, for example in the scene in which Rayon forces him to take a deal that is unfavourable for Ron, he is filmed from above, stressing that he is the one who loses his upper hand. Dr. Eve Saks is sometimes filmed from a higher angle, especially when she talks to Dr. Sevard who is in a higher position (cf. Chatman 1990: 135). The film plays a lot with the focus: Very often, people or objects are blurry and others are clear. In the bar scenes, the background is mostly blurry whereas the persons talking are clear, emphasizing the shady atmosphere. 4.2

Editing

The film uses the method of continuity editing mostly. Continuity editing is also known as the classical or Hollywood way of editing as the scenes are put together in a chronological order. However, there are a few exceptions: There are several flashback scenes cut in, e.g. when Ron sees a man in the bar and through a flashback, the editors let the viewer look into the thoughts of Woodroof at that particular moment (00:24:3900:25:18). He realises that the man works in the hospital and hence he is the one to be able to steal AZT for Ron. In a previous scene, Woodroof sits in the library and researches about HIV/AIDS (00:16:44-00:17:44). He finds out that the disease is not only transmitted through homosexual sex but also through heterosexual unprotected sex. The flashback scene that follows that scene shows Woodroof having sex with a woman, indicating that this was the way he got infected. In a later scene, Woodroof’s Buyers Club already is flourishing but he needs prescriptions, so he steals them from Dr. Saks using a Mexican hat as a diversionary tactic. However, we as the audience do not realise this until there is a flashback scene a few minutes later when Saks notices that she was stolen from. Flashbacks are used to facilitate the formation of inferences and to clarify important parts of the narrative structure. There are also jump cuts in the film. Following the scene in which Woodroof sees the words “faggot blood” and a note to vacate his home, he enters his trailer with a shotgun and searches his trailer for money. The scenes are very short and we see a lot of cuts, emphasising the despair and anger as well as his impetuosity. The montage sometimes uses jump cuts for practical and economic reasons: Ron Woodroof travels the world for new drugs but we see airplanes, airports and typical urban snippets only. As the travelling is not as important as other parts of the plot, it is shown through short jump cuts that zoom from the airplane to the airport to an excerpt of the city without using actual zooms but with using cuts (also called an axial cut) (cf. ibid.).

173

174

USA

4.3

Mise-en-scène

Mise-en-scène is about the composition of a picture or a scene in a film (cf. Liebelt 2003: 7). It is about space, in contrast to editing which is about time. One thing that is very striking in Dallas Buyers Club is the use of light. There was almost no artificial light used, meaning that when a scene was shot in a bar for example, only the lights in the bar were used and no additional lighting to make faces etc. brighter. In the film, most scenes that are not filmed outdoors are very shady and dark and sometimes it is even difficult to see faces. Only in hospital, the light is very bright. Scenes that were filmed outside and in daylight are bright also, highlighting the relentless Dallas sun and heat. The scenes shot in the trailer park are also mostly bright and the viewer can almost feel the heat and dust. Additional lighting or less light and filters in the outdoor scenes would have made the film less authentic. The setting within closed rooms is nightmarish sometimes; Woodroof’s trailer is small, dark and messy, whereas Eva Saks’ flat is brighter and the interior is much clearer, stressing the difference between the ‘white trash’ and the educated environment. Interestingly, the hospital in Dallas is very white and shiny too, but the hospital in Mexico is filthy and darker. This is also indicated by the doctors’ uniforms: The doctors in Dallas wear white clothes and the doctor in Mexico seems to be less reliable at first glance as he has long greasy hair and does not wear a uniform. Woodroof’s costumes and make up change during the course of the film, his clothes transform from filthy and ripped to neat and orderly, representing his inner change. Other members of Ron’s peer group wear filthy clothes as well. Moreover, they wear masculine clothes such as cowboy hats, boots and flannel shirts, most of them also having a moustache. People from the gay or transgender subculture are mostly portrayed as people who take care of their appearance, Rayon being the stereotypical example as he wears women’s clothes, make up and primps his hair. Only when he visits his father, who dislikes his son’s female part, in one of the most depressing scenes of the film to ask for money and tell him about his disease, he dresses as a man. 4.4

Sound

There are two ways to realize sound in films: diegetic and non-diegetic sound. Diegetic means that the viewers as well as the characters can hear the sound (music from a radio, concert, dialogues etc.). Non-diegetic means that only the viewer can hear the sound (e.g. voice overs that comment scenes, music etc.) (cf. Chatman 1990: 135). Dallas Buyers Club mostly uses non-diegetic music, e.g. the recurring theme “Life is Strange” by T. Rex. However, the song is once played diegetically when Rayon and his boyfriend dance to it. Also, the music in the bars is diegetic and can be heard by the characters as well. A few times there is a high-pitched awkward squeak that illustrates Woodroof’s physical pain or vertigo. The viewer does not know for sure, however, if the sound is being heard by Woodroof, too, or if it is just to demonstrate his feelings better. 5

Considerations for teaching

The film is rated appropriate by the FSK for children at the age 12 or older. This may be reasonable but for the usage at school it should be dealt with from 10th grade

Life Is Strange – Life Is Change: Dallas Buyers Club in the EFL CLassroom

onwards as the language is hard to understand and as the students need a certain amount of orientational knowledge to work with it in detail. In the following, suggestions for teaching will be given for senior classes (Oberstufe). According to the educational standards for Germany, the three main competence areas for the EFL classroom in senior classes are the development of ‘functional communicative competences’, ‘intercultural communicative competences’ as well as ‘methodological competences’ (KMK 2012: 13). Films can be used to foster several subcompetences of the functional communicative competences. In pre-, while- and post-viewing activities not only the most obvious subcompetence ‘listening comprehension’ in combination with ‘visual literacy’ (Hör-/Hörsehverstehen) can be developed but also all other subcomeptences depending on the methodological focus. Writing tasks as well as speaking tasks such as role plays and many other creative activities are possible. Being able to communicate about films can be even seen as a separate competence (cf. Henseler et al. 2011: 21). In addition to functional communicative competence, intercultural communicative competences can be built up. Dealing with the film can lead to profound sociocultural and historical orientational knowledge about Dallas and the central topics of the film. Going one step further, students can develop practical knowledge and they can even reflect the depiction of members of certain subcultures in the film critically. This also includes the ability to be aware of the fact that films do not necessarily reproduce reality and that films sometimes even manipulate. Dallas Buyers Club is particularly suitable to develop a critical attitude towards films as it is supposed to be a true story, whereas there are dozens of articles on the Internet that provide different information. Students can also develop the ability to change perspectives in general and to change their historical perspective: What is different nowadays with regards to the central topics AIDS/HIV, homosexuality/transgender, the description of Ron Woodroof and his sociocultural environment? The film also provides many possibilities to train filmaesthetic competences. The peculiar way of using light, the metaphoric costumes, editing that matches the story and the characters’ emotions perfectly and the use of angles are only a few examples that are special for the film and can be dealt with in the EFL classroom. Visual, verbal/linguistic and acoustic codes can be easily linked to a bigger picture that adds up to the plot. The story is told chronologically mostly and the narrative structure follows a pattern with a traditional arc of suspense so that there is not too much distraction from other (formal) aspects of the film. Dallas Buyers Club can be easily connected to most of the topics for the Landesabitur (federal university-entrance diploma), for example in the state of in Hesse: ‘White trash’ can be discussed in the context of the “American Dream” or in the context of “structural problems” and “social/political issues”, homosexuality and transgender can be linked to “gender issues” or “love and happiness”. HIV/AIDS as well as even pharmaceutical lobbyism can be dealt with when talking about “science”, “biotechnology” or “‘progress’ in natural sciences”. Ron Woodroof’s transformation can be perfectly integrated when dealing with “revolt and revolution”, “ideals and reality”, “the troubled mind” or “love and happiness” (cf. HKM 2014: 4f.). However, there are also some problems that could occur when using Dallas Buyers Club in the EFL classroom. Teachers have to make sure that dialogues and other utterances can be understood. The protagonist as well as many other characters have a strong Texan accent and use a lot of slang. Moreover, Ron Woodroof tends to mumble. In addition to that, sometimes the vocabulary is specific, particularly when the FDA or

175

176

USA

doctors talk about HIV/AIDS and medicine. To solve this problem, either subtitles can be used or the teacher has to make sure that everything has been understood using the interval presentation, meaning that she/he stops the film after certain sequences (cf. Thaler 2010: 144). The activation and development of prior knowledge is essential for the central topics as most students are probably not familiar with the sociocultural backgrounds as well as with HIV/AIDS or the topic homosexuality (at least not in a foreign language). The pictures are sometimes graphic/explicit and the teacher has to make sure that the film is suitable for each individual class. Also, if there is a slight suspicion that someone could be personally involved too much (for example alcoholic family members, HIV/AIDS, being homosexual or struggling with one’s sexual identity), teachers have to be very careful and should maybe even refrain from using Dallas Buyers Club in class in this case. However, if used, the film triggers a lot of potential for creative follow-up tasks that foster many competences and develop sociocultural background knowledge about a particular region of the U.S. and of societal, structural and historical changes. 6

Tasks and methodological approaches

6.1

General suggestions for working with the film

Pre-viewing activities: With regard to the central topic HIV/AIDS, students can research about the topic on the Internet: When, where how was HIV/AIDS discovered? How is HIV transmitted and how is not transmitted? What were stigmata that the infected had to deal with? What does it mean psychologically/socially/physically to be HIV positive today? For the topic homosexuality/transgender, students could also do research about the history about LGTB movements in the USA Moreover, transgender can be dealt with using the recent example of Caitlyn Jenner who had her coming out in 2015 (cf. Saner 2015). Students could do a brainstorm: What problems do transgender people face? Afterwards, media reactions towards Jenner’s coming out can be presented and discussed in class. The students could also analyse the film poster and communicate their expectations of the film. With regards to the sociocultural background, students could do chains of associations: What comes to your mind when you think about Dallas and/or Texas? While-viewing activities: As the film has several turning points, it is possible to stop the film in-between. The most suitable scene is the one when Ron Woodroof is diagnosed with HIV and the doctors tell him that he has 30 days left (00:07:4600:11:13). Two possible questions would be: What happens next? Or: What would you do in his situation? As the language is sometimes difficult, teachers could provide scrambled dialogues for complicated scenes and tell the students to unscramble them, e.g. in scenes when Woodroof talks to his friends. With regards to the form of the film, students can build groups and pay attention to one particular part of film analysis (editing, sound, angles, framing, mise-en-scène etc.) and the effect it causes. This can also be done with single scenes. Afterwards, students can form new expert groups and discuss their results. Post-viewing activities: One of the most obvious activities is to do research about the ‘real’ Ron Woodroof and compare his story to the film. Afterwards, students could prepare an interview with the director and ask why he has changed some aspects (e.g.

Life Is Strange – Life Is Change: Dallas Buyers Club in the EFL CLassroom

Ron Woodroof is supposed to be homosexual himself and he had a family) or added others (e.g. most of the other characters did not exist). They could also write reviews for a LGTB online portal: How are transgender persons portrayed in the film? How would you as a transgender person rate the film? They could also write newspaper articles about the court case. What is interesting as well is to compare the ‘old’ to the ‘new’ Woodroof. This can be done through role plays, diary entries or letters to another character: How would the old and would the new Woodroof deal with or react in a particular situation? The sociocultural background could be compared to other films, e.g. films about the South 2 or films that deal with ‘white trash’ (for example the depressing but excellent film Winter’s Bone). In addition, the film can be compared to other films that deal with the beginnings of HIV/AIDS (e.g. Philadelphia). 6.2

HIV/AIDS

For this topic, the scene in which the protagonist receives his diagnosis is the most suitable. It can be either used as a pre-viewing activity, showing a still of Woodroof facing the camera and the doctors’ backs talking to him wearing facemasks. The students could communicate and discuss their expectations: What could the film be about? Who is the protagonist? What kind of character is he? It is even more suitable for a while-viewing activity as it is the key scene of the film. When the scene starts, the teacher turns off the volume and the students see the pictures only (silent viewing). They have to take notes about the body language of the characters shown, the costumes, the light and the editing. Afterwards, they have to guess what the scene was about. As a follow-up, the scene will be watched again, this time with sound and the students talk about their expectations and the happenings in the film again. The teacher pauses the film and the students have to imagine how it continues. Another follow-up activity could be a short writing task that combines the reflection of the content with linguistic aspects. The question is: What would you do if you had 30 days left to live? The students have to write down their answers on their own and then talk to their neighbour and then share their thoughts with the others. The task also functions as a repetition of the if-clauses. 6.3

Homosexuality/Transgender

For homosexuality and transgender, there are plenty of suitable scenes. One of the most interesting ones is the one when Ron and Rayon meet again and Rayon wants more of the pills (00:46:05-00:48:13). The scene is particularly interesting as the pictures are very stereotypical and Ron is shown as a self-confident and masculine man whereas Rayon is portrayed as a hysterical woman. However, the dialogue contrasts the visual image: Rayon holds the upper hand and acts more civilised, revealing Ron’s blockheadedness and superficiality. As a pre-viewing activity, the teacher could stop the film right before the scene starts and tell the students that Ron and Rayon will meet again. She/he could ask “What happens when they meet again?” to activate their prior knowledge, to raise expectations and to arouse curiosity. For the while-viewing activity, the class will be divided in two groups: One group listens to the sound only and the other group does silent viewing. The groups have to be separated and while 2

For further information cf. http://www.norwichfilmfestival.co.uk/selling-the-north-dallasbuyers-club-and-hollywoods-exploitation-of-the-south 01.04.2016.

177

178

USA

one group watches/listens, the other group leaves the classroom. For the post-viewing activity, both groups have to tell each other what they have seen/listened to. As a follow-up, new groups of six people have to be formed, three coming from the silent viewing group and three coming from the sound only group. In the group, they have to come up with a role play that combines sound (dialogue, music) and images (body language, movements, setting etc.) – the group members have to rely on the descriptions of the others. The groups then have to act out the scene in front of the class and at the end they negotiate about the most reasonable role play all together. In the last stage, they watch the scene with all codes and compare their role plays to the actual scene (What was different? Why?). 6.4

Ron Woodroof’s metamorphosis

In this part, two scenes should be analysed: firstly, the one when Rayon and Ron meet for the first time in hospital, and secondly, the scene in which Ron defends Rayon in supermarket (00:54:36-00:56:54). The activity is a post-viewing task and the students have to compare the scenes with regards to behaviour, body language, language, costume and clothes as well as formal aspects. They also have to discuss their importance for the rest of the film. The students have to form groups and each group analyses a certain aspect, afterwards they meet in expert groups and tell their results to each other. In addition to that, the scene in which Ron and Rayon meet again and Ron wants to wrap up a deal with Rayon (see paragraph above) could be included as well, as this is a scene that takes place during Ron’s transformation. The teacher could also use stills of the three scenes and let the students compare them according to Woodroof’s change of appearance. 7

Conclusion

Dallas Buyers Club is not the typical film to work with in the EFL classroom. You can find nothing on the Internet that indicates that any teacher has ever worked with it when teaching English as a Foreign Language - wrongly so, as the film is quite different to the films usually dealt with in class. The educational mission is not as obvious as in other films used for FLT. However, and maybe precisely for this reason, teachers should implement it into their lessons. It provides the chance to immerse into another culture and into another time as authentically as possible as it does not leave out slang, violence, bad role models and as it touches sensitive subjects like homosexuality, serious illness and poverty. Dallas Buyers Club is not a ‘beautiful’ film but a film that triggers confrontation with difficult topics, which have an impact on young adults’ everyday lives and that they have to deal with according to curricular guidelines as well. It offers dozens of ways to work with and in this chapter it has been proven worthwile and integrable into foreign language teaching and cultural learning. Film reference Dallas Buyers Club. Director: Jean-Marc Vallée. Screenplay: Craig Borten & Melissa Wallack. United States: Voltage Pictures & Truth Entertainment. DVD 2013. 117 minutes.

Life Is Strange – Life Is Change: Dallas Buyers Club in the EFL CLassroom

References AVERT (2014), History of HIV and AIDS. [Online: http://www.avert.org/history-hiv-andaids.htm 01.04.2016]. Chatman, Seymour (1990), Coming to Terms. The Rhetoric of Narrative in Fiction and Film. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press. Daily Telegraph (1983), "Gay Plague" May Lead to Blood Ban on Homosexuals, 2 May 1983. Feldman, Douglas A. (1990), Introduction: Culture and AIDS. In: Feldman, Douglas A. (Ed.), Culture and AIDS. Westport, Connecticut, London: Praeger Publishers, 1-7. Friess, Steven (2014), Don’t Applaud Jared Leto’s Transgender ‘Mammy’. Time Magazine, 88 February 2014. [Online: http://time.com/10650/dont-applaud-jared-letos-transgendermammy/ 01.04.2016]. Henseler, Roswitha; Möller, Stefan & Surkamp, Carola (2011), Filme im Englischunterricht. Grundlagen, Methoden, Genres. Seelze-Velber: Klett-Kallmeyer. Hessisches Kultusministerium (HKM) (2014), Hinweise zur Vorbereitung auf die schriftlichen Abiturprüfungen im Landesabitur 2016 (Abiturerlass). [Online: https://kultusministerium. hessen.de/sites/default/files/media/hkm/la16-abiturerlass.pdf 01.04.2016]. KMK Kultusministerkonferenz (2012), Bildungsstandards für die fortgeführte Fremdsprache (Englisch/Französisch) für die Allgemeine Hochschulreife. [Online: http://www.kmk.org/ fileadmin/veroeffentlichungen_beschluesse/2012/2012_10_18-BildungsstandardsFortgef-FS-Abi.pdf 01.04.2016]. Lang, Norris G. (1990), Sex, Politics, and Guilt: A Study of Homophobia and the AIDS Phenomenon. In: Feldman, Douglas A. (Ed.) (1990), Culture and AIDS. Westport, Connecticut, London: Praeger Publishers, 169-182. Liebelt, Wolfgang (2003), The Language of Film. Fachausdrücke Interpretationsfragen und Redemittellisten für die Arbeit mit Filmen im Englischunterricht. Hildesheim: Niedersächsisches Landesamt für Lehrerbildung und Schulentwicklung (NiLS). [Online http:// www.nibis.de/nli1/bibl/pdf/tfm06.pdf 01.04.2016]. Minutaglio, Bill (2014), The real legacy of the real Dallas Buyers Club is that it didn’t really have one. The Guardian, 2 March 2014. [Online: http://www.theguardian.com/ commentisfree/2014/mar/02/real-dallas-buyers-club-matthew-mcconaughey-character 01.04.2016]. Newitz, Annalee & Wray, Matt (1997), Introduction. In: Newitz, Annalee & Wray, Matt (Eds.), White Trash. Race and Class in America. London: Routledge, 1-12. Saner, Emine (2015), Caitlyn Jenner: from Olympic hero and reality TV star to transgender heroine. The Guardian, 5 June 2015. [Online: http://www.theguardian.com/tv-andradio/2015/jun/05/caitlyn-jenner-from-olympic-hero-and-reality-tv-star-totransgender-heroine 01.04.2016]. Storey, John W. & Kelly, Mary L. (2008), Introduction. In: Storey, John W. & Kelly, Mary L. (Eds.), Twentieth-Century Texas. A Social and Cultural History. Denton, Texas: University of North Texas Press, 1-8. Thaler, Engelbert (2010), Filmdidaktik. In: Hallet, Wolfgang & Königs, Frank G. (Eds.), Handbuch Fremdsprachendidaktik. Seelze-Velber: Klett-Kallmeyer, 142-146.

179

USA

A Broken Oven, a Dysfunctional Family and a Missing Turkey Leg: Thanksgiving in Peter Hedges’ Pieces of April Maike Grau

In this chapter, Peter Hedges’ comedy drama Pieces of April (2003) will be discussed as a film which can help to explore origins of Thanksgiving and holiday traditions in the USA today. The film follows a young woman’s preparations of a Thanksgiving dinner for/with her estranged family, who travel from suburban Pennsylvania to New York City’s Lower East Side. A broken oven forces her to ask neighbours for help and viewers are taken on a miniature tour of this culturally diverse neighbourhood. In an EFL classroom, activities and additional resources, which will be provided in the download section, can support students’ understanding of the film’s cultural references and support their critical media competencies. 1

Introduction Once there were people here called Indians. Native Americans. Whatever. Then a boat came called the Mayflower and it landed on a big rock carrying people like me. The first year on their own was hard… is really, really hard… Let me start again… This was long ago, before we stole their land, and killing most of them, and moved the rest to reservations – before they lost their language and their customs… OK, forget what I just said… Ok, Ok! Once there was this one day where everybody seemed to know they needed each other… This one day when they knew for certain they couldn’t do it alone. And so… (Pieces of April, 00:58:38)

In this scene towards the end of the film, April, a young white woman, tries to explain the story of Thanksgiving to her Chinese neighbours. We see her sitting in the family’s living room together with the elderly couple who seem to have little English language competences, their daughter and two grandchildren. Chinese music is playing from a TV show in the background. April struggles with this task for several reasons, including her awareness of the linguistic and cultural distance between her and at least part of her audience. She is not sure what the family’s historical background knowledge is, so she tries to keep her lesson as simple and as general as possible. As she goes on in her storytelling, she is increasingly conscious of her identity as a white American, an identity she is not proud of at this moment. This part of American history is closely connected to the First Thanksgiving, so she is suddenly unsure how to continue her

182

USA

story. Looking for a better way to explain it, she finds it difficult to give a coherent account of the historical events. On the one hand, she feels guilty about the relations between settlers and Native Americans, on the other hand she identifies with the settlers as people who found it hard to live in a new place. Since she has lived on her own in New York City for several months, she empathises with the people who came on the Mayflower. Confused and unsure what to make of it for herself and especially for her audience, in her third attempt of an explanation she moves on to a more general view of the history of Thanksgiving. This time, she knows that she has the appropriate version for her audience, signalling to the daughter to translate her into Chinese for her elderly parents: “Once there was this one day where everybody seemed to know they needed each other […]”: Her choice of the word ‘everybody’ signals that this is not only a lesson for the settlers way back in history, but also her personal reflection of what she learned throughout this Thanksgiving day. Her plan to prepare a turkey dinner in order to reconcile with her estranged family has been jeopardised through a number of problems. Not only does she know very little about cooking, but, worst of all, her oven is not working. She has learned to depend on people living around her for help: people who listened to her story, people who taught her how to make cranberry sauce, and people who shared their oven with her. According to her interpretation of Thanksgiving, what she has learned through her Chinese neighbours and others is basically what the first settlers learned during their first hard winter in New England. In this scene, then, she reflects on her recent experience and shows gratitude to the Lee family, but also to other neighbours who have helped her survive this day. This chapter suggests to use this story of a young woman’s first Thanksgiving in the multicultural city of New York to explore what the film suggests is a complex topic in American history and contemporary society. Ideally taught in the weeks leading up to the fourth Thursday in November, the story around April’s unconventional family reunion can provide insights into this national holiday as a cultural phenomenon. At the same time, film-based activities can support students’ listening and viewing comprehension skills, their awareness of reception processes and other elements of critical media competences. 2

Pieces of April – summary Joy: Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad we’re going. Jim: Good Joy: This way instead of April getting off the bus with some new piercing or some ugly awful new tattoo and, God forbid, stay overnight - - This way we get to show up, experience the disaster that is her life, smile through it, and before we know it, we’re on our way back home. (Pieces of April, 00:17:55)

Pieces of April is about a young woman called April, who has invited her family to visit her in New York City, where she has lived on her own for almost a year now. Knowing that her mother is diagnosed with cancer, she is planning to have a turkey dinner, which may be their last Thanksgiving together. While we only get short glimpses of this reunion at the very end, the main part of the film is divided up into three different storylines, following April as she prepares for the meal, her family, as they leave their

A Broken Oven, a Dysfuntional Family and a Missing Turkey Leg: Pieces of April

home and drive towards the city, and finally April’s boyfriend Bobby, who tries to find a suitable outfit to meet April’s parents for the first time. The film starts in April’s run-down apartment in New York’s Lower East Side. We see how she and her boyfriend Bobby are starting their day together, nervous about the upcoming visit from April’s family. Throughout the film, conversations between different characters reveal more about the troubled family relationships and April’s mixed feelings as she waits for her parents, her siblings and her grandmother. While grandma Dotty seems to live in her own world, her parents Joy and Jim Burns, April’s brother Timmy and her sister Beth are equally unsure about the upcoming family meeting. Their journey from a middle class suburban neighbourhood in Pennsylvania to an economically challenged inner-city area in New York represents the distance April has put between herself and her family. Another indicator is the difference between appearances: While her family dresses up for the occasion, Jim and Timmy in suit and tie, Joy and Beth in dresses, April’s outfit seems to be chosen to protest this conservative lifestyle with red braided hair, piercings, tattoos, scruffy jeans and T-shirt. These signs of resistance and her role as the black sheep of the family are underlined through the family’s re-telling of the most dramatic moments in April’s childhood and youth, ranging from a fire in the kitchen to shop-lifting and drug abuse. Especially her mother refuses to remember anything positive about April, even from her early childhood. Joy’s role as terminally ill mother and the most vulnerable member of the family, around whom her husband and her children constantly rotate, is essential for the tone of the whole film, which oscillates between ironic, comical and sad, but never gets sentimental. Even though she is the first one to sit in the car, ready for the trip long before everyone else, she keeps reminding everyone about April’s naughtiness. Yet, despite Beth’s constant suggestions that she should cancel this trip because of her fragile health, Joy maintains that it is a good idea because it will confirm her rejection of her eldest daughter and give her an excuse to keep her distance, which she expresses with her characteristic dry humour in the above quotation. While all three storylines lead towards the Thanksgiving dinner, they are also full of improvisations, funny and more serious incidents, which seem to make a reunion impossible, ranging from April’s broken oven and Joy’s health issues to Bobby’s encounter with April’s violent exboyfriend and his gang. In a moment of final suspense, Bobby’s travels through the city and the Burns’s road trip coincide, as the family arrives in front of April’s building and drives off in horror faced by the general roughness of the neighbourhood and Bobby’s appearance after having been beaten up. Again, it is Joy who, despite the family’s flight out of the city, continues to be the driving force behind the reunion with April when she finally realises that she has to see her daughter. Despite her negative attitude, she is the first one to knock on April’s door, followed by the rest of the family. The Thanksgiving dinner and final scene of the film is shown mostly through Timmy’s camera and reveals the family around the dinner table, joined by some of April’s neighbours. Pieces of April is a low-budget production which premiered at the Sundance Festival in 2003 and was critically acclaimed through several nominations and awards. According to screenwriter and director Peter Hedges, the story is based on personal experience at different stages of his life, his own mother’s illness and death being the dominating influence. This sad underlying theme, however, is presented in an unconventional way in this film, triggered by another personal memory of its author:

183

184

USA

In the late 1980s I lived in an apartment with an undependable oven. It seems there was an epidemic of undependable ovens because it was around that time I heard about a group of young people who were celebrating their first Thanksgiving in New York City. They went to cook the meal but the oven didn’t work, so they knocked on doors until they found someone with an oven they could use. I remember thinking this could be an interesting way to have all sorts of people cross paths who normally wouldn’t. (Hedges 2003: vii)

The storyline around the broken oven allows Hedges to create humorous and unexpected scenes in which April finds herself meeting some of her neighbours for the first time, one example being Wayne with the new oven, who seems helpful at first, but who turns out to have his mean side as well when he feels hurt by a comment April makes. This causes a series of almost slapstick moments, when April has to climb up the fire ladder to get back her half-cooked turkey which Wayne has taken hostage. A fight between the two, in which Wayne snatches a leg from the turkey for his dog and April takes his toupee in an act of revenge, and thus settles the affair. The result of this mix of humorous moments with the underlying theme of terminal illness and complicated family issues is what could be labelled a comedy-drama1: a story with humorous elements, unique characters and a happy ending, even if this moment only lasts very briefly and the family and the audience know that Joy is going to die. As Field (2003: 133) summarises: “Despite what could have been heavy subject matter, the film functions excellently as a comedy.” 3

Pieces of April in an EFL classroom: benefits and challenges Now what I’m most proud of in Pieces of April is what’s not said and what you don’t see. You never see the mother’s bald head, and you don’t see the vomit, and you don’t see the violence. It allows an audience member to be a participant in the telling of the story, as opposed to being told everything. (Hedges in Field 2003:135)

In this interview about Pieces of April, Hedges challenges his audience to take an active part in the process of storytelling. In order to do this, according to the film critic James Monaco (1995: 152), viewers do not need to learn a new language such as French or mathematics, adding the observation that babies and even cats watch TV in their own ways. However, we know from studies into human perception that viewers’ understanding of images and films changes dramatically with their growing knowledge and experience in reading these (cf. Zacks 2015). Therefore, looking at the way images and sounds in a film are carefully chosen and edited to represent reality in a certain way, helps to understand how they trigger our emotions, create particular moods and direct our mental storytelling. In the same way, it makes sense to analyse the ways in which our background knowledge and our cognitive abilities influence our reading of films (cf. ibid: 193). Consequently, working with films in a classroom should focus on guiding students in their understanding and processing of the story told on screen and challenging them to discuss their viewing experience with their peers. According to reader-response theory, it is the individual readers or viewers who create meaning as they enter into a dialogue with a text. In classroom applications of this theory, students are encouraged 1

On the difficulty of defining film genres, see Esteban (2014).

A Broken Oven, a Dysfuntional Family and a Missing Turkey Leg: Pieces of April

to talk about their personal reactions to a film, and they are also made aware of their own role in the creative processes of storytelling (cf. Blell & Lütge 2004). As Bredella (2004) shows in a film analysis based on reader-response theory, the individual viewers and their background knowledge have to be considered as the focus of the teaching and learning process. This ranges from knowledge about the language of film and critical media competence in general, to cultural background knowledge, and, in the case of a foreign language classroom, of course also linguistic knowledge. The teacher’s role can be seen to enhance students’ growing awareness of their role in making sense of the storytelling in films. Through activating already existing background knowledge and researching further topic areas learners’ understanding of films can be supported. In the case of Pieces of April, guidance and support can be provided concerning the way the story is told through three interwoven storylines (cf. Mat No. 3: April, Bobby, the Burns family); New York City as its geographical location and Thanksgiving as underlying cultural phenomenon can be made more meaningful through additional texts and activities. Finally, in order to enter into a critical dialogue about the film, students have to be supported in developing their spoken and written English as well as their listening and viewing comprehension competencies. The level of comprehensibility of a movie in an ELT context is to some extent related to the learners’ familiarity with spoken English, but also to the film’s density of language and language delivery (cf. Arcario 1993: 111ff.). Compared to many other films and especially sitcoms, Pieces of April is a film with a relatively low density of language, i.e. it is not dialogue-based, and with a clear language delivery, i.e. it does not include strong dialect. In addition to that, and especially for less experienced groups, a film’s visual composition is essential for supporting students’ understanding of the movie. The high degree of visuality as a principle of Hedges’ film-making enables learners to get the gist of the story through characters’ actions, body language, through setting and other visual means, a feature which can be tested by turning the sound off and trying to work out what is happening in a scene (cf. Mat No. 8: ‘silent viewing activity’). While the comprehensibility of a film for teaching is one aspect to keep in mind, the students’ interest in the topics, characters and the story of the movie is equally important. April represents a young person trying to find her own life apart from her family and despite the odds, which is a topic many teenagers may be able to identify with. However, as Hedges points out himself, Pieces of April is not a ‘feel-good movie’. Even though it leaves out many explicit facts about the lives of its characters, there is little doubt that the reality is far from pretty: The family’s behaviour around Joy shows that she is seriously ill, April’s flat and its location clearly indicate that she has little money, just like her neighbours. We do not see the scene in which Bobby is beaten up, but the result is horrifying enough to scare the Burns family into turning around and leaving the city, its violence and poverty. In a classroom situation, the students’ reaction to the film and its issues will depend on their individual dispositions and experiences. In general, an exploration of the film is suggested for year 9 and older, but the question of the suitability of the film can ultimately only be answered by the classroom practitioner. While some students might not enjoy the film because of Joy’s condition or the strained family relationships it portrays, others will pick up on its wit and humour, its characters and the short moment of happiness and reconciliation the film offers at the end. In general, working with films in language learning classrooms is often described as useful for a number of reasons, including the exposure to spoken language and the

185

186

USA

strong emotional involvement films can generate compared to written texts. The strongest argument for using films is perhaps their popularity and motivational effect on learners of all ages (e.g. Thaler 1997: 10). However, once taken out of their natural habitat and planted into a foreign language classroom, the authenticity and entertainment value of films can be lost easily, as “[t]he vast majority of viewers watch for relaxation and entertainment” (Lonergan 1984: 5). Students, therefore, have to be reminded that classroom activities on film scenes and topics are intended to enhance their experience of watching not only this film but movies in general by familiarising them with strategies for viewing comprehension. The following activities are presented as a series of options to choose from, rather than a programme that has to be completed, which will have to be adjusted to each learner group. Depending on the learners’ experience with film-based activities, their language competencies, cultural background knowledge, and, last but not least, the time frame assigned to this unit of work, the film can be watched as a whole and then discussed, focusing on key scenes, or it can be presented in the so-called segment approach, i.e. bit by bit, framed by activities to guide students’ attention and discussion of key topics (cf. Thaler 2007: 11). Dividing up the film into too many pieces and across too many lessons can lead to a frustration and a loss of interest on the students’ part. Therefore, my suggestion is to choose suitable activities to activate learners’ prior knowledge (pre-viewing activities) and keep while-viewing activities to a minimum, which enables an almost natural and uninterrupted viewing process. A range of activities is suggested to be carried out in the post-viewing phase. Some of the activities will be presented below, others are only included in the additional resources (download material). Although there is no clear-cut boundary between the objectives associated with the tasks with many of them overlapping, they will be grouped into the three categories ‘viewing comprehension and personal reactions’ – ‘critical media competencies’ and ‘ cultural studies’. 3.1

Examples of activities with a focus on viewing comprehension and expressing students’ personal reactions to the film

New York is a city with many faces and attractions, a city of fashion, music and trends in global youth cultures. It is present in our minds through countless media images, in songs, films and TV shows. A look at English textbooks used in Germany for Year 82 reveals that most of them include a unit on New York as one of the most important cities in the development of the United States of America, for its history of immigration and present-day diversity. Despite this assumed familiarity with New York City, a visual stimulus such as a video clip or photos can enhance students’ awareness of their own background knowledge and thus help them visualise the setting of the film. In order to get a closer look at the city as it is presented in Pieces of April, the following website can be used: http://onthesetofnewyork.com/piecesofapril.html. This website provides photos of some of the films’ settings: April’s street and her apartment. Stills from the film, showing the Burns family home in a Pennsylvania suburb can be added to show the contrast between the locations. The photos can be used on screen or on worksheets for students to describe the settings and the characters. Students can also be asked to

2

E.g. Portobello Road 4, unit 4: ‘From Manhattan to the Bronx’; Red Line 4, unit 1: ‘I love New York City’; English G 21 4: unit 1: ‘New York, New York’.

A Broken Oven, a Dysfuntional Family and a Missing Turkey Leg: Pieces of April

predict possible stories which could take place in these surroundings and with the characters they can see. In the post-viewing phase, activities to encourage students to voice their own understanding of the film, their questions and comments, can be carried out using the ‘think – pair – share’ method to allow them time to formulate their answers and offer them the opportunity of support through collaborative pair and group work. This process can be started by questions such as: How would you summarise the film in one sentence? What did you like about it and what did you not like? Which character(s) did you like best/least? What did you think about the ending? As a follow-up, students receive a compilation of short film summaries of Pieces of April from various sources (cf. Mat No. 6) and are asked to compare them against each other and against their own reading of the film. They underline the elements which they consider as important for talking about Pieces of April and decide which of them they like most and least, before they get together with a partner and compare their results. Finally, in a whole group discussion the summary which most people liked is examined to find out criteria of a good film summary. An activity which can help students understand how the three plot lines (April, family, Bobby) are woven throughout the film until they finally meet up at the very end can be supported by film stills (cf. Mat No. 3). By bringing them into the chronological order, and categorising them into the three sub-plots, students can check their understanding of the story. This can be followed up by group work, in which students select a key scene for each of the plot lines and then decide on one which they will act out. An alternative form can be to create a freeze frame which symbolises the relationships between the characters in the scene. Another creative way for students to show their own participation in film-making can be to act out film scenes which are not shown. Since April has to knock on many doors throughout Thanksgiving Day, viewers can easily imagine similar scenes which have not made it into the final version of the film. In pairs or groups of three, students can think about such scenes, imagine other types of people April meets with the turkey in her hands, and act out the scenes. 3.2

Examples of activities to enhance students’ critical media competencies

Silent viewing

Film is primarily a visual medium, and filmmakers use a multitude of elements such as setting, colour, lighting or action to create meaning and to trigger emotional reactions in viewers (cf. Zacks 2015: 59 ff). Taking away the audio channel (cf. Mat No. 8) can help students to be more aware of all the information which is transmitted through the visual channel and can thus enhance their understanding of a film scene. A striking moment in Pieces of April is the arrival of the Burns family in front of April’s apartment, and their subsequent flight from the city (01:01:56-01:05:05, only focusing on the Burns family, not on April’s plot). Students are provided with guiding questions before watching the scene at least once without sound: What is the setting of the scene? What is the effect on the viewer and on the Burns family? What do we learn about the individual family members? How do they show their emotions? What is their body language? What about Bobby’s appearance? What does he do? What about the editing of this part of the film? How are the scenes cut and sequenced? Students should not take any notes while they watch as they need to take in as many visual details as

187

188

USA

possible. After the scene, they are given time to write down and then discuss their impressions in pairs or small groups. Depending on the group, the silent viewing of the scene can be repeated, and eventually the students will get the opportunity to watch it with sound. The guiding question now is: What is the additional information you get about this scene through the sound track? Finally, they read the director’s comment on this scene and underline the visual elements and techniques he points out as key elements from his perspective (cf. Mat No. 8). ‘Time capsule’ – predicting and discussing the ending of the film

Predicting activities encourage viewers to interpret the foreshadowing used in the story and their knowledge about film genres and stories in general and can thus support comprehension. Despite the fact that April’s story starts with a broken oven and difficult family relations, funny scenes such as the dropped turkey, the strange neighbours or the burial of the squirrel point towards the comedy genre, including a happy ending. However, viewers will also realise that there is a serious undertone in this comedy, so the film is likely to have a twisted ending. By challenging students to predict the ending of the story, they can apply previous experiences with different kinds of stories to this film, even if they are not able to predict the exact same ending which the director has created. This activity can be done at any time throughout the film as the tension towards the outcome of April’s dinner preparations gets stronger and stronger. A good moment is the scene in which April’s most supportive neighbour, Evette, hands the half-cooked turkey back to April with the words “Good luck” (00:32:10). By this time, viewers know about some of the obstacles on the way towards the planned Thanksgiving celebration, both on April’s and on the family’s end. Students can be asked about their prediction for the ending of the story: What kind of Thanksgiving will the Burns family have this year? Why do you think so? In pairs, they are to decide on a plausible ending of the film, which they write on a piece of paper. All predictions are collected and put into the ‘time capsule’, an envelope which will be sealed and opened again after the class has finished watching the film (adapted from Collie & Slater 1994: 31). A continuation of this activity is of course necessary to give students the opportunity to compare their own predictions with the final scene of the film. This can be done in combination with a discussion of the ending, which again encourages students to tap into their experience and intuitive knowledge of storytelling. As the ‘time capsule’ is opened and the predictions are discussed, students can be asked what they think are criteria for a satisfying ending in a film. As it happens, the director’s comments reveal that the ending of Pieces of April was one of the most difficult tasks he and his team were faced with: They wanted to have a family reunion, but it could not be too happy. Students can discuss their own reactions to the ending and the question if it is a suitable one for this movie. Finally, the making of the final scene can be traced in the director’s comments, which reveal that this scene was filmed and edited various times. Hedges also gives reasons for his decision on the final version, despite the fact that some critics thought there should be a more explicit reconciliation scene between mother and daughter (cf. Mat No. 7). 3.3

Examples of activities with a focus on cultural studies

While the story of Pieces of April takes place on Thanksgiving Day and different members of the Burns family travel and work towards a Thanksgiving meal, including

A Broken Oven, a Dysfuntional Family and a Missing Turkey Leg: Pieces of April

turkey, cranberry sauce, stuffing and, most of all, a family sitting around a table together, it does not show anyone who is actually following these traditions. In fact, most of the characters April meets on her frantic trip through the apartment building do not have this kind of Thanksgiving, either because they live on their own, do not eat meat, or have other cultural traditions and interests. And yet, these individual choices and circumstances, and especially April’s unique Thanksgiving celebration only stand out as untypical on the background of the traditional Thanksgiving as a default setting. In order to understand implicit references in the film, viewers need to be familiar with this American holiday. For learners of English outside the USA, understanding the film’s deeper implication is only possible if they know about Thanksgiving as a complex cultural phenomenon. In a classroom, students will therefore need to activate and pool their pre-knowledge about Thanksgiving, which will help them interpret elements of the story, such as why April has invited her parents on Thanksgiving (it is a day when many American families get together for a meal), why it is a major problem that she only realises that her oven is broken on this day (no repair service is available on this holiday), why Evette and Eugene, although they really want to help her, cannot offer her to cook the turkey all the way through (because they are also preparing a meal, which takes several hours to cook), etc. This background will also help viewers understand the personal meaning Thanksgiving acquires in this story for April, why she struggles when she talks about the history of European settlement in America. And only then will it make sense that she sees herself as a part of this history, asking for help from people with other cultural backgrounds in what for her is a foreign territory. As it is a major holiday in the American calendar, students will be familiar with Thanksgiving through previous English lessons and out-of-school exposure to mediacoverage of the USA In textbooks for Year 8, which focus on the USA, Thanksgiving is mentioned as a ‘special day in the U.S.’ with a brief paragraph outlining its origins (Red Line, p. 111), or as a ‘festival in the USA’ with a description of a traditional Thanksgiving dinner (Portobello Road, p. 55). Thanksgiving is also part of popular culture and included in sitcoms (Friends, How I Met Your Mother, Modern Family), cartoons (Peanuts, Simpsons) and movies (e.g. The Blind Side). Recurring topics in media representations of Thanksgiving are extended families or circles of friends getting together for a meal, eating turkey, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie. More often than not, these get-togethers are not free of problems, and great expectations of peaceful family reunions end up being different than what they were planned to be. German teenagers’ knowledge about Thanksgiving may well be influenced through these media representations transported through film and television series, so an activity to find out what students know and would like to learn about this holiday based on their previous knowledge is an important step towards further explorations of this cultural phenomenon. Students will be challenged to deepen their understanding about the holiday through post-viewing activities. In the activities with a focus on Thanksgiving in an ELT classroom, I have taken what has been called “a pragmatic approach to the concept of culture” (Hu & Byram 2009: XIX). Given the cultural heterogeneity and hybridity in today’s globalised societies (for example, Barker 2012: 28f., Ryan 2010: 170f.), foreign language education professionals are still searching for effective ways to include this complexity in classroom applications (for example, Blell and Doff 2014). Byram’s (1997: 31ff.) well-established model for intercultural communicative competence is an important basis for this chapter, because it goes beyond the idea of knowledge as the primary

189

190

USA

objective of teaching cultural studies, adding an individual’s attitudes and skills as equally important factors. In the following activities, students will use and develop their skills to interpret texts which reveal more than one perspective on Thanksgiving as a cultural phenomenon (cf. also Hallet 2002). By using Moran’s (2001) practical approach to teaching culture, students are provided with a tool for analysing cultural phenomena. As will be seen below, Moran (2001: 24, my italics) presents a fivedimensional model of interrelated dimensions, which he presents in his definition of culture: “Culture is the evolving way of life of a group of persons, consisting of a shared set of practices associated with a shared set of products, based upon a shared set of perspectives on the world, and set within specific social contexts.” This definition shows that the above-mentioned dilemma of having to reduce something which is heterogeneous and evolving to a definable concept for the classroom is addressed in this model. By including the dimension of the individual when talking about cultures, Moran (2001: 25) encourages teachers not to lose sight of the fact that “[e]ach person is a distinct mix of communities and experiences, and all persons take on a particular cultural identity that both links them to and separates them from other members of the culture.” The aim of the activities presented here is for students to explore Thanksgiving history and traditions from different perspectives. Furthermore, reading and discussing the film and additional texts can help them develop skills of researching and understanding texts related to cultural phenomena in general. Using the categories provided by Moran can be useful for discussing not only Thanksgiving, but also other phenomena from more than one perspective, including phenomena in their own cultural surroundings. 4

Dimensions of Thanksgiving

Figure 1: Dimensions of Thanksgiving (adapted from Moran 2001: 24)

In the following, the five dimensions in Moran’s model will be applied to examine multiple perspectives on Thanksgiving as a cultural phenomenon in order to show some

A Broken Oven, a Dysfuntional Family and a Missing Turkey Leg: Pieces of April

of the results of a task-based film analysis in an English classroom. The figure above (Dimensions of Thanksgiving) is also included in the appendix (cf. Mat No. 4) and can be used by the whole class on the projector or by students individually on worksheets to add notes as they work on Thanksgiving-related tasks. Alternatively, it can be used at the end to review students’ insights into the topic, any comments and open questions after their explorations of Thanksgiving history and traditions. Thanksgiving-related products are probably the most obvious cultural elements which can be noticed in Pieces of April. In the first few scenes we see April and Bobby in the kitchen, unwrapping, washing, dropping, and stuffing a turkey. Throughout the film we are introduced to various other versions of cooking the Thanksgiving dinner, starting with neighbour Eugene’s comment that “nobody likes it [cranberry sauce, M.G.] from the can” (00:26:37) and followed by Evette’s wonderful cooking lesson. Later, another neighbour makes it clear that she will not have anything with a face in her apartment. As a vegan, she offers April alternatives to the traditional turkey dinner altogether. Her perspective can be further explored using animal rights campaign materials (cf. Mat No. 4), whereas historians have discovered that almost none of the items included in a typical Thanksgiving meal existed in the original 1621 celebrations. They also show that many of the products which are part of today’s tradition were in fact created as a myth around this holiday 3. The practices carried out on Thanksgiving are closely related to products. A major part of the film’s story revolves around dinner preparations and, eventually, around the meal shared by April’s family and some of her neighbours. These practices of spending a whole Thursday celebrating with one’s family were made possible by historians and political leaders in the 19 th century. According to Grace & Bruchac (2004: 40), the first announcement of Thanksgiving as a national holiday by Abraham Lincoln in 1863 was directly related to the Civil War and the idea that “during this time of turmoil, the myth of brave Pilgrims inviting Native people to sit with them in community and peace was very comforting”. Practices also include communication, and the film shows how the family, both on April’s end and in the Burns’s car, talk about shared memories and their family relationships in general, in which a third category is important as different perspectives on this family and family in general are revealed. Likewise, diverse perspectives on Thanksgiving, its history and traditions are revealed throughout the film. Not only the vegetarian (or vegan) perspective, also the perspective of the First Nations on the so-called First Thanksgiving, and, more importantly, the way relations between them and the settlers changed drastically in the following years, are mentioned in the film. In order to understand these perspectives, students should research the notion of Thanksgiving as ‘Day of Mourning’ for descendants of Native Americans (e.g. www.uaine.org). Practices are shared by communities, which in the case of Thanksgiving means extended families spending the holiday together. April has invited her parents, her 3

Grace & Bruchac (2004), through its combination of photographs of re-enacted scenes and texts, can provide stimuli for discussion. Philbrick (2008) offers a historical review written for young adult readers. A short clip such as ‘Bet you didn’t know – Thanksgiving’ available at: http://www.history.com/topics/thanksgiving/history-ofthanksgiving/videos/bet-you-didnt-know-thanksgiving can be used as a starting point to create questions, which can then be researched on websites such as http://www. scholastic.com/scholastic_thanksgiving/ 01.04.2016.

191

192

USA

siblings and her grandmother. However, we do not learn anything about Bobby’s family, and the film also shows other inhabitants of the apartment building who seem to spend the day on their own. Communities are also ethnic, cultural or religious groups, as well as any other organisations people can belong to. In the film, the Chinese family does not appear to have their own Thanksgiving meal, although they form part of April’s ad-hoc community eventually, as well as the two bikers who brought Joy and Timmy to April’s house, Evette and Eugene, who have prepared their own Thanksgiving meal but are nevertheless included in April’s special celebration. Exploring the traditional and newly formed communities shown in the film and their way of celebrating or not celebrating for different reasons can help students understand why categories such as origin and nationality have lost relevance in today’s global and changing societies. All of these four categories, products, practices, perspectives and communities, are closely connected to the last one, persons, because it is only through its individual members that cultural practices come to life. Likewise, cultural practices are interpreted and carried out differently by each individual and show the many influences, personal circumstances, choices, groups and affiliations they belong to. April’s Thanksgiving dinner is the perfect example for this personalised cultural practice: Although she manages to have a turkey on her dinner table in the end, it has been cooked in three different ovens and has one ‘repaired’ leg made of tofu. The outcome of her journey, therefore, is clearly a Thanksgiving meal with a twist, which represents her personality and her current situation much better than the perfect Thanksgiving meal she had in mind when she started to prepare it. 5

Conclusion

This chapter presented Pieces of April as a film worth exploring in an English language classroom, first because of its comprehensibility, both in terms of language and story. Peter Hedges, in an interview with Rob Feld (2003: 135), emphasises that “If I aspire to anything it’s to tell stories that are easy to understand but are hard to handle”, which leads over to the second point, the topics raised in the film and their suitability for a classroom context. Pieces of April is essentially a film about a family reunion in the face of the mother’s terminal illness, which, as its director emphasises, is not an easy topic for discussion. Yet, because of the way in which this and other issues in the characters’ lives are handled, it is also a film which offers many different outlooks on life and contemporary society. The activities introduced here are designed to support students’ viewing comprehension and develop their competencies to critically analyse and discuss topics raised in the film. This process can also enhance students’ awareness of their own role as viewers in the process of meaning making. Moreover, given the film’s setting in New York on Thanksgiving Day, some of the activities challenge students to re-think the significance and the origin of this holiday. In the post-viewing phase, students are asked to analyse the way Thanksgiving is presented in the film. Researching additional texts helps learners find out more about myths and traditions around the Pilgrims and the so-called First Thanksgiving, as well as multi-ethnic New York City. By linking their own background knowledge with information from various other sources, students include as many perspectives as possible in their own interpretation of this cultural phenomenon. This procedure aims at improving students’ understanding of film scenes

A Broken Oven, a Dysfuntional Family and a Missing Turkey Leg: Pieces of April

which refer to critical discourses around Thanksgiving and, on a more general level, at raising their awareness of the importance of background knowledge for understanding films. Working with a model for analysing different aspects of Thanksgiving is useful for developing students’ skills of interpreting cultural phenomena. In addition, this critical look at a cultural phenomenon enhances their understanding of the changing and heterogeneous nature of culture in general. This way, teaching Pieces of April can enrich classroom discussions of Thanksgiving, linking these to key topics in American cultural studies and other examples of multi-dimensional cultural phenomena in contemporary American society. Finally, Pieces of April tells a story which triggers personal and emotional reactions. The beauty of film-based lessons is that they are never just about viewing comprehension or cultural studies topics, but about stories which offer imagined personal experiences. Andrew Wright’s (2003: 10) “story health warning”, advising educators not to over-use activities, thereby “killing the goose that lays the golden eggs”, applies just as much to films as to any other medium for storytelling. Good storytelling, regardless if it is on paper or in films, deserves to be enjoyed more than to be analysed. The ultimate aim of teaching a movie should therefore be to support students’ appreciation of the story told in the film. Film reference Pieces of April. Director: Peter Hedges. Screenplay: Peter Hedges. USA: MGM. DVD 2003. 77 minutes.

References Arcario, Paul (1993), Criteria for selecting Video Materials. In: Stempleski, Susan & Arcario, Paul (Eds.), Video in Second Language Teaching: Using, Selecting, and Producing Video for the Classroom. Alexandria, VA: Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL), 109-121. Barker, Chris (2012), Cultural Studies. Theory and Practice (4th ed.). London: Sage. Blell, Gabriele & Doff, Sabine (2014), It takes more than two for this tango: Moving beyond the self/other-binary in teaching about culture in the global EFL-classroom. Zeitschrift für interkulturellen Fremdsprachenunterricht 19: 1, 77-96. [Online http://zif.spz.tudarmstadt.de/jg-19-1/beitrag/Blell_Doff.pdf 01.04.2016] Blell, Gabriele & Lütge, Christiane (2004), Sehen, Hören, Verstehen und Handeln. Filme im Fremdsprachenunterricht. PRAXIS Fremdsprachenunterricht 6: 402-405. Bredella, Lothar (2004), Bend it like Beckham: Überlegungen zu einer rezeptionsästhetischen Filmdidaktik. Der Fremdsprachliche Unterricht Englisch 38: 68, 28-32. Byram, Michael & Hu, Adelheid (2009), Introduction. In: Hu, Adelheid & Byram, Michael (Eds.), Interkulturelle Kompetenz und fremdsprachliches Lernen. Modelle, Empirie, Evaluation: Intercultural Competence and Foreign Language Learning: Models, Empiricism, Assessment. Tübingen: Narr, VII-XXV. Byram, Michael (1997), Teaching and Assessing Intercultural Communicative Competence. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters. Collie, Joanne & Slater, Stephen (1994), Literature in the Language Classroom. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

193

194

USA

Edelhoff, Christoph (Ed.) (2008), Portobello Road. Braunschweig: Bildungshaus Schulbuchverlage. Estéban, José de (2014), Genres: where to draw the line? British Film Institute [Online: http://www.bfi.org.uk/news-opinion/bfi-news/genres-where-draw-line 01.04.2016]. Feld, Rob (2003), Conversations with Peter Hedges. In: Hedges, Peter, 131-143. Grace, Catherine O’Neill & Bruchac, Margaret M. (2004), 1621. A New Look at Thanksgiving. Washington, D.C.: National Geographic Society. Hallet, Wolfgang (2002), Fremdsprachenunterricht als Spiel der Texte und Kulturen. Intertextualität als Paradigma einer kulturwissenschaftlichen Didaktik. Trier: WVT. Haß, Frank (Ed.) (2009), Red Line 4. Stuttgart: Klett. Hedges, Peter (2003), Pieces of April. The Shooting Script. New York: Newmarket Press. Lonergan, Jack (1984), Video in Language Teaching. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Moran, Patrick R. (2001), Teaching Culture: Perspectives in Practice. Boston: Heinle & Heinle. Philbrick, Nathaniel (2008), The Mayflower and the Pilgrim’s New World. New York: Penguin. Ryan, Michael (2010), Cultural Studies: A Practical Introduction. Chichester etc.: Wiley Blackwell. Schwarz, Hellmut (Ed.) (2009), English G 21, B4. Berlin: Cornelsen. Thaler, Engelbert (2007), Film-based Language Learning. PRAXIS Fremdsprachenunterricht 1, 9-14. Wright, Andrew (2003), The Place of Stories in ELT. In: Paran, Amos & Watts, Eleanor (Eds.), Storytelling in ELT. Whitstable: IATEFL, 7-10. Zacks, Jeffrey (2015), Flicker. Your Brain on Movies. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Great Britain

Being Bangladeshi British: On the Situation of First and Second Generation Immigrants in the Film Brick Lane Annika Kreft

This chapter focuses on the potential of the film Brick Lane (2007) in EFL (English as a foreign language) classes of higher secondary school. You will learn about the film’s plot and focal points first. Furthermore, historical and sociocultural background information on Bangladeshi immigration to and integration into the UK are explored. A film analysis provides insights into the narrative, dramatic and cinematographic composition of Brick Lane. An analysis of the teaching potential and sample tasks present you with possibilities for including the film in the EFL classroom. 1

Film summary

Not least since former Foreign Secretary Robin Cook pointed out in one of his speeches in 2001 that Chicken Tikka Masala is Britain’s national dish (cf. The Guardian 2001), it was emphasised that immigrants from South Asia form a recognised and irreplaceable part of British society today. Despite of ethnically motivated discrimination, they have shaped city districts as well as gastronomy and have established cultural traditions. Most of them have Bangladeshi origins and already live in Britain in their second or third generation. The life and challenges of a Bangladeshi family living in London’s East End is also the focal point of the film. Brick Lane was released in 2007 and is based on a novel of the same name by Monica Ali. The drama deals with the life and emancipation of a Bangladeshi woman, Nazneen Ahmed, who had to move to London as a teenager in order to marry a man twice her age. Together with her parents and her younger sister, Nazneen enjoys a happy childhood in a village in Bangladesh until her mother commits suicide. In order to save her family’s honour and to protect themselves financially, Nazneen, aged 17 years, is married to much older Chanu Ahmed, who lives in London. The young woman leaves her home in Bangladesh and moves to Brick Lane, a street in London’s East End. For the next 16 years, Nazneen lives in a little flat in an apartment block with her husband. They have two daughters, Rukshane “Shahana” and Bibi. They also have a son, but he dies after only a few months. The couple pursues a clear distribution of tasks: Chanu earns money for the family and Nazneen takes care of the children and the household. She lives reclusively without any contact to their environment. Only the letters she receives from her sister, who is still living in Bangladesh, are a welcome change as they

196

Great Britain

let her wallow in happy memories and make her forget about her everyday life. As a consequence, Nazneen’s biggest dream is to return to Bangladesh one day. Unfortunately, her husband has to accept job-related setbacks and unemployment which makes a return to Bangladesh unaffordable in the near future. That is why Nazneen decides to earn money by sewing clothes. Even though Chanu feels offended in his pride as the family’s bread-winner, he lets his wife work. From now on, Nazneen receives clothes to sew every Thursday by the young Muslim Karim, with whom she starts having an affair shortly after. Slowly, she begins to feel happy and more at home in Brick Lane. The flashbacks to Bangladesh gradually disappear. However, the situation changes after 9/11. The growing hostility towards immigrants causes Chanu to prepare his family’s return to Bangladesh. Karim becomes more and more radicalised which is why Nazneen decides to end the affair with him. Meanwhile, she realises that times have changed in Bangladesh, too, and that she has created an idealised image of her country of origin through her memories and the letters of her sister over the last years. Strengthened by her older daughter Shahana, who belongs to the second generation of immigrants and grew up in London, Nazneen comes to a decision to not follow her husband to Bangladesh but stay in England with her two daughters. Before he leaves, Chanu accepts her decision and finally passes on the responsibility for Shahana and Bibi to his wife. 2

Main topics

The general focal point in the film is the situation of Bangladeshi immigrants of first and second generation in London. Against this background, three subtopics can be identified.

Figure 1: Thematic focal points in the film Brick Lane.

Being Bangladeshi British: Brick Lane

2.1

Home and belonging

The term “home” is a central topic and its understanding by the differerent characters is explored in the film. For the second generation immigrants such as Shahana and Karim, who were born and raised in the United Kingdom, London is their home. The situation of the first generation immigrants is displayed in different ways (cf. Rygiel 2011: 62ff.): As Chanu cannot settle in London, he finally has to return to Bangladesh, his home. In contrast, Nazneen goes through a development. During the movie, she learns that the term “home” is complex and, due to migration, no longer “depend[s] upon clearly defined, static notions of being ‘in place’, firmly rooted in a […] particular geographical location” (McLeod 2000: 214). Her question of home is directly connected to her struggle of identity. 2.2

Tradition and change

Tradition is mirrored in different ways. For instance, Chanu and Nazneen have an arranged marriage with a distinct distribution of roles. Their daughters learn to speak Bengali, recite the famous Bangladeshi writer Tagore, and, like their mother, wear traditional clothes (a sari). What is even more emphasised in the film is the change that traditions may undergo: Nazneen has to realise that the understanding of the woman’s role she grew up with and stuck to over the years does not fit her life in England anymore. She needs to emancipate herself in order to be able to fulfil her hopes and care for her daughters (cf. Rygiel 2011: 68). An example of an independent woman is represented by the Ahmed’s neighbour Razia, who encourages Nazneen in her emancipation progress by suggesting that she should start sewing. 2.3

Integration and conflict

In the film, problems of integration, hostility towards foreigners and conflict between different ethnic groups play a role as well (cf. Töngür 2013: 565ff.). Chanu struggles to find a suitable position and, even if successful, is not able to settle into a job. The apartment building where the Ahmed’s live is regularly troubled and attacked by opponents of immigration. The events of 9/11 lead to an extremely tense atmosphere in England, which contributes to Chanu’s decision to prepare the family’s return to Bangladesh. Furthermore, Karim’s active involvement in a radical Muslim organisation (“The Bengal Tigers”) finally makes Nazneen end the relationship with him. 3

Bangladeshi migration to Britain: a historical and sociocultural view

Bangladeshi migration took place in different waves. In the early 20th century, when Bangladesh was still part of British India, a small number of people immigrated to the UK. Usually, male migrants took the journey in order to earn money and enable a better life for their families who often followed them later (cf. BBC Home no year, cf. Sandhu 2003). The number of immigrants increased in the 1970s because of the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971, in which West Pakistan fought against East Pakistan. As a consequence, former East Pakistan became the independent Republic of Bangladesh. The war caused many families to flee to Europe and frequently to Britain. Most of the migrants settled in different parts of England such as Birmingham, Bradford or Luton

197

198

Great Britain

but the biggest community was established in the London borough called Tower Hamlets. The arrivals from Bangladesh often lived in overcrowded flats around Brick Lane and Spitalfields. Due to their relatively poor education and poor English language skills, Bangladeshi immigrants often had to face unemployment or found low-paid jobs only. For instance, they were employed as cooks or waiters in one of the many curry houses or as workers in the textile and shipping industry (cf. Rasinger 2013: 47f.). Another problem that went along with immigration was racial discrimination which culminated in the murdering of the 25-year-old Bangladeshi Altab Ali on his way home from work by three teenaged boys (cf. Sandhu 2003). The following decades were also shaped by occasional ethnically-motivated incidents. In spring 2001, a wave of serious race riots between the local and the British Asian communities began in Oldham and spread over several cities during the summer (cf. Töngür 2013: 565). The 9/11 attacks further contributed to the tense atmosphere. Nowadays, the integration of Bangladeshi immigrants into British society is still made difficult through unemployment, overcrowded accommodation and discrimination but there exist plenty examples of successful integration, displayed by a growing number of academics or representatives in media and politics. Whereas the National Census counted around 300,000 immigrants living in the UK, current estimates indicate more than 500,000 people with Bangladeshi roots who almost all originate from the Sylhet region in the North East of Bangladesh. More than half of them settled in the greater London area and, within England’s capital, almost 43% live in Tower Hamlets (cf. Rasinger 2013: 47). An issue that accompanies the different generations of Bangladeshi immigrant families is the question of belonging and traditions. In contrast to the first generation who dreams of returning to Sylhet one day, the second and third generation feels more at home in Britain. The main reasons for this are a higher proficiency level in the English language, better education and the fact that “the people to whom they are most committed live in Britain“ (ibid.: 48). However, the strong solidarity among Bangladeshi communities offers support and encourages members of the second and third generation to keep traditions. For instance, even though love marriages increase, the tradition of arranged marriages is still a common practice today. Also families keep on sending money to their relatives in Bangladesh, although this practice has decreased over the years because many of the latter have already moved to the UK themselves (cf. ibid.: 48f.). A visual proof of South Asian immigrants being an integral part of Britain’s society and culture can be shown by the example of Brick Lane. The street in London’s East End, which is also fondly called Banglatown by Londoners, is seen as the heart of vibration of the Bangladeshi community. Due to its Indian restaurants, Bengali grocery markets and the growing arts scene, it has become a popular sight among tourists. In addition, outdoor celebrations such as Baishaki Mela, the Bengali New Year, attracts many visitors with and without Bangladeshi roots every year (cf. BBC Home no year). 4

Film analysis

As mentioned before, Brick Lane tells the story of the protagonist Nazneen Ahmed and the other characters that influence her development: Chanu Ahmed (Nazneen’s husband), Shahana Ahmed (their older daughter), Karim (the clothes deliverer and Nazneen’s lover) and Razia (neighbour of the Ahmed’s). The opening sequence is set

Being Bangladeshi British: Brick Lane

in a village in Bangladesh whereas the rest of the film takes place in London’s Brick Lane. The main setting is the apartment building, particularly the family’s flat. Additional scenes take place at the market, Razia’s flat, a clothes depot and a community room. The film follows an anachronic narrative order of events (cf. Henseler et al. 2011: 75).1 It includes flashbacks to Nazneen’s childhood in Bangladesh which slowly decrease until the end. The plot can be separated into different parts which are shaped by significant events such as the suicide of Nazneen’s mother, the protagonist’s decision to sew clothes, the start of the love affair with Karim, 9/11, her sister’s last letter, the second meeting of the Bengal Tigers and Nazneen’s decision to stay in London. The events of 9/11, in particular, represent a turning point as they influence the advancement of the plot. Throughout the film there is a difference between the portrayal of characters of the first and second generation marked by the language spoken (cf. Töngür 2013: 562). Whereas the first generation speaks English with a Bangladeshi accent, the second generation (Shahana and Karim) have a British accent. Nazneen dresses in a traditional sari and, particularly at the beginning, assumes the role of a subordinate wife: She walks a few steps behind Chanu, covers her body and parts of her face in public and rarely speaks with foreigners. Therefore, she represents a contrast to Razia, who lives a self-determined life, works, smokes and wears Western clothes. Shahana, like her little sister Bibi, is forced to wear a sari and to speak Bengali even though she does not want to. However, her rebellious manner supports Nazneen’s emancipation process. In the case of Karim, his outward appearance is in agreement with his gradual identification with a radical religious organisation and, at the same time, indicates a growing alienation between him and Nazneen. The film uses a wide range of cinematographic elements to transfer its thematic focal points. The colours and lighting play an important role because they mirror Nazneen’s progress in the story (cf. Viebrock 2011: 36f.). For instance, the scenes set in Bangladesh (opening sequence and flashbacks) contain bright colours, warm light and nature whereas the flat in London and its environment appear gloomy and depressing due to its cold colours and lack of warm light. With Nazneen’s acceptance of her situation, the amount of light increases and more coloured props appear such as a blossoming tree in front of the apartment building or clothes in bright fabrics. An important scene visualising Nazneen’s progress takes place right after the start of her and Karim’s affair (00:43:35-00:47:47): Nazneen removes the curtains, cleans the windows and warm light shines into the flat for the first time. However, the intensity of colours and light as used for the scenes set in Bangladesh is never reached in the scenes taking place in London. Another characteristic of the film is the soundtrack. Turning points and climaxes are accompanied by music (which also includes traditional Bengali songs). The music is used off-screen which means that it is only audible for recipients, i.e. in a nondiegetic manner. In addition, the film starts with a voice-over by Nazneen in which she sings a few verses and comments on her past in Bangladesh and therefore creates a tense atmosphere together with the visual input. A variety of camera perspectives and shots as well as editing styles are used for different effects. For instance, in the opening sequence, when Nazneen walks home to 1

Detailed explanations of the terms used in this chapter to describe narrative, dramatic and cinematographic aspects can be found in Henseler et al. (2011).

199

200

Great Britain

her flat, the axial cut is used (cutting as a tool for zooming) which ends with an extreme long shot showing the massive apartment building which creates an oppressive atmosphere (cf. ibid.: 42). In contrast, the dramatic climax of Shahana’s escape is filmed with a hand camera. The montage of over-the-shoulder shots from Nazneen’s and Shahana’s perspective together with the sound and setting, create a very realistic impression of the events – as if the viewers are running themselves. Finally, with the use of flashbacks, a common narrative technique, the plot is punctuated and poses a contrast between past and present. 5

Considerations on the film’s teaching potential

This part addresses the film’s teaching potential in view of the German national educational standards2 (KMK 2012). The film deals with Bangladeshi immigration to the UK. As migration in general is an important and up-to-date topic all over the world, students may be concerned themselves or they may know people with migration histories. In some cases, students might have experienced temporary migration such as a high school year abroad. They will – to some extent – have an idea of what it means to be torn between cultures and which challenges may appear. In the daily news, they also get to know about increasing waves of migration (refugees, migrant workers) which concerns Germany and the UK as well. London, as a melting pot of cultures, is the setting of Brick Lane. As it is a famous holiday destination, some students might have already been there and visited Brick Lane which has become a well-known tourist attraction of London’s East End. For the rest of the class, the use of Google Street View (cf. Viebrock 2011) may help to create an authentic visual impression of the setting. In the future, students will get in touch with (temporary) migration in a direct or indirect way and may struggle with certain issues addressed in the film, such as the question of home and belonging. By reflecting on and discussing Brick Lane with their classmates, the students will learn about the diversity and complexity of migration, its consequences and challenges. They are able to inform others about their opinion and can relate to their own experiences which supports an individual and differentiated examination of the film and provides opportunities for the development of intercultural and transcultural competence. Furthermore, generation-based topics, for instance growing up and emancipation from the parents, play an important role in Brick Lane and are part of the learners’ lives (cf. KMK 2012: 12). In this case, Shahana Ahmed serves as a character for identification. Generally, Brick Lane deals with the current situation of the UK and its society which is an inherent part of the curricula for higher secondary school. The film’s up-to-date topics, such as migration or growing up, represent transcultural, global issues that are close to the learners’ world of experience and part of public life. The film provides various possibilities for questioning and enlarging students’ own knowledge on the background of (im)migration, for identifying and critically reflecting regarding prejudices, values and attitudes, or for supporting change of perspective and empathy which consequently fosters the intercultural communicative competence (cf. ibid.: 19f.).

2

Bildungsstandards für die fortgeführte Fremdsprache (Englisch/Französisch) für die Allgemeine Hochschulreife.

Being Bangladeshi British: Brick Lane

Due to its composition, the film offers different opportunities to examine its narrative, dramatic and cinematographic aspects. By completing specific tasks, the students’ awareness for the making of a film is raised. Further, the learners identify and critically examine the effect of film features which contributes to the development of audiovisual as well as text and media competence (cf. ibid.: 15, 20). Finally, the novel by Monica Ali, which the film is based on, is also available. Contrasting both formats enables the learners to find out the specific characteristics and stylistic devices resorted to in both written and filmic storytelling (cf. Henseler et al. 2011: 233f.). 6

Pre-, while-, post-viewing activities

The tasks presented in this section focus on the subtopics ‘home and belonging’ and ‘tradition and change’. By dealing with the tasks, students  understand the background of Bangladeshi immigration to the UK,  reflect on the notion of home and tradition and how it can be transferred to their lives,  identify and elaborate on special features of film aesthetics used in Brick Lane. 6.1

Pre-viewing activities

Task 1: The film poster (cf. Mat No. 2) is shown in class and the students are asked to describe its composition and have a first guess about the plot. In the lower part, they can see two girls playing in the grass whereas the upper part shows a woman looking back as well as houses and street lamps. Both parts differ in their colours and setting. In the middle of the poster, “Brick Lane” is written in capital letters. In the next step, it needs to be clarified that Brick Lane is a street in London’s East End. In order to get an impression of how it looks like in reality, the students use Google Maps (cf. Viebrock 2011: 34f., 37). With the help of the tool Street View, students are able to go for a virtual walk down Brick Lane, observe the environment and take notes. Following this, the students will notice for example the street signs in two languages (English and Bengali), the curry houses or the unusual look of the street lamps which will finally lead to Bangladeshi immigration and its historical background (cf. Mat No. 1). Finally, the students can speculate again about Brick Lane using their newly gained insights. In the course of this introductory exercise, students identify and apply knowledge about the target cultures, and transfer it to the film’s plot (cf. KMK 2012: 19). Task 2: Before the viewing starts, the students do a short personal writing exercise. On a piece of paper they write down their understanding of home (What is home for me?). The teacher collects their results and keeps them for a post-viewing exercise (cf. Task 8 below). In this exercise, students activate prior knowledge and combine it with personal experiences. 6.2

While-viewing activities

Task 3: Colours, light and sound play an important role concerning the creation of a certain atmosphere in the film (cf. Viebrock 2011: 36). In order to raise awareness for this issue, students watch the introduction sequence of the film showing Nazneen’s childhood in Bangladesh and her current situation in London (00:00:30-00:06:50).

201

202

Great Britain

After collecting general impressions, the following questions are discussed which can be carried out in the manner of the Think – Pair – Share method: A) Compare the colours, light and sound used in the sequence – What kind of atmosphere do they create? B) How does Nazneen feel in Bangladesh and London? C) What do you think are her hopes for the future? The students will recognise that more bright colours and warm light are used in Bangladesh. Nazneen seems happy when playing in nature with her little sister. The second part of the introduction sequence set in London appears cold and gloomy. Brick Lane and its complex apartment buildings seem to crush Nazneen. Later in the film, the love affair with Karim starts. This sequence (00:43:3500:47:47) is of particular interest because the use of colours and light changes: It is the first time that warm light shines into the flat, bright colours appear and Nazneen seems to come to terms with the situation. Instead of dialogues, it is mostly accompanied by music. This sequence can be contrasted with the introduction sequence concerning colours, light and sound. The students will realise that there has been a development in Nazneen’s perception of feeling at home. They learn about the power of certain aspects of film aesthetics and how they help to create a certain atmosphere (cf. KMK 2012: 15, 20). Task 4: While watching the film, the students jot down Nazneen’s emancipation progress in a coordinate system (cf. Mat. No. 2). On the x-axis, some key events of Brick Lane’s plot are indicated. There is some space left so that students can add events they consider to be important as well. The y-axis indicates numbers representing the levels of emancipation. By reflecting on Nazneen’s development in the film and visualising it through a graph, students start to empathise with the main character and her situation as well as evaluate different perspectives. The results will be discussed as a postviewing exercise. Furthermore, it should be critically reflected on the following questions: A) What are the main factors influencing Nazneen’s development in the movie? B) Is Nazneen an independent woman in the end? C) How are the aspects of feeling at home and emancipation connected in this movie? Task 5: Another task that directly addresses the role of women in the film may be a supplement to the exercise described in Task 4. At least two relationships are worth to be analysed in more detail during the while-viewing phase. The first one is between Nazneen and her teenage daughter Shahana, who is a catalyst to Nazneen’s development. The students can easily identify and empathise with the latter as they are going through the same phase of life. The second relationship concerns Nazneen’s role in the marriage with Chanu. It is an arranged marriage in which the couple follows a traditional distribution of tasks. Chanu wants to be regarded as the head of the family and is against everything that erodes his authority. For instance, when Nazneen gets a sewing machine to earn money in the textile trade, he feels personally hurt but lets her do as she likes. An important sequence for the development of the Ahmed’s relationship is the second meeting of the Bengal Tigers at which Chanu wants to give a short speech (01:12:38-01:16:00). First, the scene in the community room (01:13:37-01:15:29) is watched with the sound being switched off in class. The students develop their own script for the scene in groups and present their results. Following this, they speculate about how the scene influences Nazneen’s and Chanu’s relationship as well as the rest of the plot.

Being Bangladeshi British: Brick Lane

Task 6: The dramatic climax in the film is Shahana’s escape from home after an argument with her parents (cf. Mat. No. 3). The scene (01:21:47-01:26:06) takes place on the evening before the family’s return to Bangladesh. Shahana wants her mother to speak up for herself and tell her father that she wants to stay in London. When Nazneen is not able to express her will, Shahana leaves the flat and runs away. Her mother wants to bring her back and follows her through London’s streets at night. She is finally able to stop her at a train station. The scene combines different aspects of camera perspectives, colour/lighting, editing/montage, mise-en-scène (location, acting, costumes) and sound/music. By analysing the audio-visual input, students familiarise with film aesthetics and how they contribute to the creation of a dramatic atmosphere . It could further be discussed how the students would feel if they were in Shahana’s position and had to move to a foreign country, which is their parents’ home country. One possibility is to carry out the analysis with the help of the jigsaw method. In this case, small groups of students (“home groups“) work on only one aspect of film aesthetics – either camera perspectives, colour/lighting, editing/montage, mise-enscène (location, acting, costumes) and sound/music (cf. Henseler et al. 2011: 63) – and then exchange their results in expert groups (cf. Kreft & Lohe 2016). An overview of specialist terms for film analysis is provided online by the Colombia School of Arts (no year) or by Liebelt (1996). The presented task selection only points out some aspects of Brick Lane. While watching the film, the students can use viewing logs or visual organisers that support a better understanding of the plot (cf. Henseler et al. 2011: 99). In order to be able to examine the characters, their individual development and relationship to each other in more detail (cf. Viebrock 2011: 38), it is worth to watch the film in intervals. Additionally, before viewing the respective scenes, possible endings of the film can be developed (For instance: A) the family returns to Bangladesh, B) the family stays in London, C) only Nazneen and the children stay in London) and discussed in class. 6.3

Post-viewing activities

Task 7: The students watch an interview with Sarah Gavron, the director of Brick Lane (cf. BlackTree TV 2008). In the video clip, Gavron provides insights into the composition of the film, points out its main aims and contrasts it with the novel. It is approximately nine minutes long and does not offer any subtitles. Even though Gavron speaks in a clear and loud voice, it is advisable to watch it repeatedly and clarify unknown vocabulary. After watching the clip, the students write a film review in which they can also refer to the aspects mentioned by Gavron (cf. Mat No. 4). While completing this task, the learners need to collect relevant information, structure arguments in an effective way and write them according to the standards of a film review (cf. KMK 2012: 17). Task 8: The class discusses the notions of home in the case of Nazneen (first generation immigrant), Shahana and Karim (second generation immigrants). In a next step, the learners relate the characters’ experiences and feelings to their own lives which enables a differentiated approach: They recall their own experiences in the first year if they migrated to Germany themselves (first generation immigrants), they find out about their relatives’ experiences after the migration to Germany (following generation immigrants), or they imagine how they would feel if they had to leave Germany (no migration background) (cf. Viebrock 2011: 36). After that, the teacher hands out the pieces of paper collected in Task 2 and the students are able to add aspects. By

203

204

Great Britain

completing this task, learners reflect on their individual experiences and, if necessary, adapt their opinions and attitudes, which helps to foster what is called ‘intercultural communicative competence’ in the national educational standards (cf. KMK 2012: 19). 7

Summary

The film Brick Lane offers many recent thematic links and starting points for discussion. It allows for the inclusion of different task formats. Students primarily get to know about the background of Bangladeshi immigration to Britain and elaborate on its consequences for the first but also following generations. The topics dealt with in the film (‘home and belonging’, ‘tradition and change’, ‘integration and conflict’) are global, transcultural issues that play a role in the students’ lives to some extent as well. In addition, Nazneen’s teenaged daughter Shahana is a character learners can easily relate to and identify with. Finally, the film provides an interesting range of film aesthetics (flashbacks, colours, light) which can be analysed and whose influence on the perception of the plot should be discussed critically. Film reference Brick Lane. Director: Sarah Gavron. Screenplay: Monica Ali, Laura Jones, Abi Morgan. United Kingdom: Optimum Releasing Ltd. DVD 2007. 102 minutes.

References BBC Home (no year), Immigration and Emigration. The World in a City – Banglatown [Online: http://www.bbc.co.uk/legacies/immig_emig/england/london/article_3.shtml 01.04.2016]. BlackTree TV (2008), Brick Lane, Director Sarah Gavron Interview [Online: https://www. youtube.com/watch?v=gDwTiel8rXw. 01.04.2016]. Colombia School of Arts (no year), Film Language Glossary [Online: http://ccnmtl.columbia. edu/projects/filmglossary/web/filmterms.html 01.04.2016]. Henseler, Roswitha; Möller, Stefan & Surkamp, Carola (2011), Filme im Englischunterricht. Grundlagen, Methoden, Genres. Seelze: Klett-Kallmeyer. KMK Kultusministerkonferenz (2012), Bildungsstandards für die fortgeführte Fremdsprache (Englisch/Französisch) für die Allgemeine Hochschulreife. [Online: http://www.kmk.org/ fileadmin/veroeffentlichungen_beschluesse/2012/2012_10_18-BildungsstandardsFortgef-FS-Abi.pdf. 01.04.2016] Kreft, Annika & Lohe, Viviane (2016), Fostering EFL Learners’ Audio-Visual Competences using Films and TV Shows. IATEFL Manchester Conference Selections 2015. Liebelt, Wolfgang (2003), The Language of Film. Fachausdrücke Interpretationsfragen und Redemittellisten für die Arbeit mit Filmen im Englischunterricht. Hildesheim: Niedersächsisches Landesamt für Lehrerbildung und Schulentwicklung (NiLS). [Online: http://www.nibis.de/nli1/bibl/pdf/tfm06.pdf 01.04.2016]. McLeod, John (2000), Beginning Postcolonialism. Manchester: Manchester University Press. Rasinger, Sebastian M. (2013), Language shift and vitality perceptions amongst London’s second-generation Bangladeshis. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development 34: 1, 46-60.

Being Bangladeshi British: Brick Lane

Rygiel, Dorota (2011), When the West becomes the Home: the Portrayal of Bangladeshi Immigrants in Monica Ali’s Brick Lane. In: Witalisz, Alicja (Ed.) (2011), Migration, Narration, Communication. Cultural Exchanges in a Globalised World. Frankfurt/Main: Lang, 61-69. Sandhu, Sukhdev (2003), Come hungry, leave edgy. London Review of Books 25: 19, 10-13 [Online: http://www.lrb.co.uk/v25/n19/sukhdev-sandhu/come-hungry-leave-edgy. 01.04.2016]. The Guardian (2001), Robin Cook's chicken tikka masala speech. Extracts from a speech by the foreign secretary to the Social Market Foundation in London [Online: http://www. theguardian.com/world/2001/apr/19/race.britishidentity 01.04.2016]. Töngür, A. Nejat (2013), Rebellion: Second Generation Bangladeshi Immigrants in Brick Lane by Monica Ali. The Journal of International Social Research 6: 26, 561-567 [Online: http://www.sosyalarastirmalar.com/cilt6/cilt6sayi26_pdf/tongur_nejat.pdf 01.04.2016]. Viebrock, Britta (2011), A Home called Brick Lane. Über Migrationserfahrungen und Identität im Film Brick Lane sprechen. Der fremdsprachliche Unterricht Englisch 110: 3438.

205

Great Britain

Identity, Intercultural Relationships and Growing up in the 1970s: Teaching Anita and Me to Promote Inter- and Transcultural Learning Britta Freitag-Hild

This chapter introduces you to the comedy drama Anita and Me (2002) produced by Metin Hüseyin, a film adaptation of Meera Syal’s novel of the same name, which was the author’s first novel and published in 1996. Anita and Me tells the story of Meena Kumar, the twelve-year-old daughter of Indian immigrants who have settled in a small town in the English West Midlands. The chapter examines the film’s educational potential for inter- and transcultural learning and suggests methodological approaches and tasks in order to open up the film to foreign language learners. The designed teaching unit will focus especially on Meena’s identity and her development throughout the story, her family and friends, intercultural relationships between British and Asian characters, and the cultural context (cf. download material). 1

Black and Asian British films since the 1990s

In the early 2000s, several British Asian film comedies like East is East (2002) or Bend it like Beckham (2002) were extremely successful with national and international audiences alike. Bend it like Beckham (2002) was even advertised as the “best British comedy since Bridget Jones’ Diary”, thus reflecting the advance of British Asian films into the mainstream. As Barbara Korte and Claudia Sternberg (2004: 9) argue in their study Bidding for the Mainstream? Black and Asian British Film since the 1990s, the widespread appeal of black and Asian British fiction “reflects and obvious tendency in British dominant culture to ‘open up’ to black and Asian themes, talent and traditions”: [B]lack and Asian story material is now received as attractive beyond the niche of “special-interest” films. Film culture obviously links up with the fact that a considerable section of the entire English public of the 1990s and beyond has become perfectly familiar with (or has even indigenised) “ethnic” (or “ethnified”) popular commodities from chicken tikka masala – voted explicitly as Britain’s most popular national dish – and Ali G’s controversial ethnic-slant comedy to more serious or substantial phenomena of cross-cultural fertilisation (cf. ibid.: 9f.). According to Korte and Sternberg (cf. ibid.: 176), the huge success and popularity of black and Asian British films can be attributed to the film producers’ use of established film formats, traditional film conventions and their choice of universal themes which also appeal to a wide audience.

208

Great Britain

Like other British Asian comedies, Anita and Me reflects this choice of universal themes such as family, friendship, or generation conflicts. The topics as well as the use of established formats (coming of age, comedy, drama) and the captivating soundtrack can be expected to attract a wider audience: The film story is set in 1970s England and is centred on Meena Kumar and her family. Meena is very clever and talented in writing and telling unbelievable stories, but she is the only Indian girl at school and in town and therefore often viewed as different. Therefore she is really happy when she is accepted as a Tollington ‘wench’ by Anita, a girl from next door, who is two years older than her and the leader of a gang. However, Meena’s friendship to Anita breaks when it becomes obvious that Anita’s boyfriend holds racist views against “darkies” like Meena and her family and she even took part in a racist attack on an Indian man one night in Tollington. The film is not only a story about growing up as a British Asian teenager in the 1970s, but also about life in an old mining-village and the community’s way of dealing with the first Indian family that has settled there. 2

The film’s educational potential for inter- and transcultural learning: exploring identity, intercultural relationships and the cultural context

The film addresses a number of topics which could be discussed in the foreign language classroom. This article, however, will put an emphasis on only three of them: Meena’s identity and her development throughout the story, the many-faceted relationships between Asian and British characters, and the cultural context. All of these topics provide many opportunities for a change of perspectives, for reflecting intercultural encounters and negotiations and for dealing with intercultural conflicts, thus helping to develop the learners’ intercultural competence and their awareness of the diversity within the cultural communities and the complex cultural identities. The following analysis of the film’s educational potential will therefore try to show what insights can be gained by learners when dealing with the film. Afterwards tasks will be suggested for the development of intercultural competence and for sensitising the learners to the diversity of cultures and identities, which is a central goal for transcultural learning). Intercultural learning, as it is understood here, helps learners to develop their ability and willingness to change perspectives and see the world with different eyes, to distance themselves from their own views. Thus, it engages learners in a dialogic exchange or negotiation of different ideas, views or perspectives (cf. Bredella & Christ 2007). Transcultural learning, in addition, puts a special focus on the complexity and internal heterogeneity of cultures and identities in order to make learners aware of the diverse views and perspectives within these cultural communities (cf. Freitag-Hild 2010).1 It is important, first of all, to take a closer look at the environment in which Meena grows up because it helps to understand her particular situation. The film portrays small town life in the Black Country, an old mining area in the English West Midlands, during the 1970s. It is set in the fictional town of Tollington, where the local mine has shut down and unemployment is high. While the men are getting drunk in the local pub, the women are taking over as the breadwinners. The story of the film is told by 1

For a more elaborate overview of ‘Fremdverstehen’ and intercultural understanding cf. Bredella & Christ (2007); Bredella (2012). For transcultural approaches cf. Freitag-Hild (2010: 20-63).

Identity, Intercultural Relationships and Growing up the 1970s: Anita and Me

Meena, a twelve-year-old girl whose parents migrated from India to the United Kingdom. Meena and her family are the only Indians in town. In contrast to their neighbours, who are mostly working class, Meena’s parents are well-educated and work as a teacher (Meena’s mother) and accountant (father). In line with the cliché of the Asian family who values education and their children’s academic success, Meena’s parents want her to work hard in school, be the star pupil and pass the entrance exam for the nearest grammar school so she can become a doctor. Meena, herself a clever girl with a talent in writing and a love for telling extraordinary stories, does not always observe the rules of her parents and extended Asian family circle, but is happy when she becomes friends with Anita, even though she is not fully accepted by the villagers. The ‘wish to belong’ and to be like the other children in Tollington also shows in Meena’s ‘Brummie’ accent, in her wish to eat fish fingers for dinner instead of homemade food or in her longing for fountains and gnomes in the garden instead of growing vegetables. We therefore get to know what growing up with diverse cultural influences in 1970s England means – from the perspective of a twelve-year-old girl who wants to ‘fit in’ with the other Tollington young people, but is expected to be a ‘good (Indian) daughter’ by her parents and also faces discrimination in her environment. One central theme of the film is Meena’s friendship to Anita, which is also connected to Meena’s personal development and her evolving identity. When Meena gets to know Anita at the outset of the film, she is fascinated by her appearance: Anita is pretty but rather sulky, impolite and uses vulgar language. As the leader of ‘the wenches’, she embodies rebellion against the expectations of her environment. Meena is proud when Anita accepts her as a new member of her gang. Together they read Jackie Magazine (a 1970s teen magazine), hang out at the fair, build a den in the ‘forbidden’ garden (which is, by the children, believed to belong to a ‘Yeti’ because no one has ever seen the owner), dream of living together in a flat in London and steal sweets from Mrs Ormerod’s shop. Thus Anita opens up a completely different world to Meena, which is very much unlike the one she knows from home or from her many ‘aunties’ and ‘uncles’ whose children want to ‘play fairies’ with Meena and recite poems in Hindi. Only later does Meena realise that Anita cannot be trusted but that she must distance herself from her and ‘the wenches’: Meena is in complete bewilderment when she accidentally learns that Anita took part in a ‘Paki-bashing’ incident in town together with her boyfriend, Sam Lowbridge, one of the trouble-makers in the community, who also disturbs the village’s peace at the fair by making racist remarks in public for everyone to hear. When her grandmother (‘Nanima’) from India comes to visit, Meena becomes more self-confident about who she is and where she and her family come from. By listening to her Nanima’s songs and stories from India, she learns about her parents’ life back in India, which also gives herself a ‘new’ sense of identity: “I like your songs, Nanima. They’re like my stories. They fill up a hole somewhere.” At the end of the film, Meena is also able to confront Sam with his behaviour. She has regained her self-confidence by that time: Jackie Magazine has agreed to print one of her stories, she has passed the entrance exam to the grammar school, and she and her family are leaving Tollington to move to a better area where Meena will attend the local grammar school. In contrast to Anita, whose family has fallen apart and who is without any prospects of a better life, Meena’s life has taken a positive development. Another aspect that is central to the understanding of the film concerns the manifold relationships between the British and the Asian characters in Tollington. As has already been pointed out, Meena and her family are the only Indians in town and are different

209

210

Great Britain

from their English neighbours in many respects: Both parents are well-educated; they have studied and belong to the upper middle class, even though they complain that they were not able to find work in England in the jobs they were trained for ‘back home’. In contrast to the shattered working-class families in their neighbourhood where husbands drink alcohol and beat their wives or where mothers leave their families and children, the Kumars are a family who live together in harmony and view the shattered families in their neighbourhood with concern. Every now and then, Meena’s family meets other Asians who live in the area in order to celebrate festivals like Diwali, by singing, dancing, playing music, cooking traditional meals or telling stories from home. These ‘aunties’ and ‘uncles’ do not belong to the Kumar family, but are friends who share the experience of being immigrants, who have come to the UK for a better life, have brought their traditions, like to gossip about the British way of life and feel unwelcome every now and then. It is important, in that respect, to take a quick glance at the cultural (or historical) context of the story. Anita and Me is set in England in the year 1972, at a time of growing scepticism against immigration from the New Commonwealth. While immigration from Commonwealth countries had been unrestricted in the 1950s and 60s, the first Commonwealth Immigrants Act from 1962 made it harder for people from the ‘New Commonwealth’ to enter the country. Only a few years before the story is set, Enoch Powell, a conservative Member of Parliament, held the well-known ‘Rivers of Blood’ speech in Birmingham (1968) in which he stirred fears of being ‘swamped’ by more and more immigrants getting into the country and warned the British public: “Like the Romans, I seem to see ‘the river Tiber foaming with much blood’” (Powell 1997: 3). At the same time, the National Front, which had been founded in 1967, gained influence in the country, and in 1970, the Oxford English Dictionary listed the word ‘Paki-bashing’ for the first time to refer to violent attacks against immigrants from South Asia (cf. Korte & Sternberg 1997: 19). Although the political dimensions of immigration to the UK are not reflected in the story, there are several white British people in town who hold racist views, are prejudiced against Meena, her family or any South Asian or just use any opportunity to express their own frustration by insulting Meena or her family. And yet, the film still represents a light-hearted approach to Meena’s story which is largely due to Meena’s comical way of introducing and commenting on the characters and situations. 3

How to promote inter- and transcultural learning: materials, tasks and scenarios

A focus on inter- and transcultural learning when teaching Anita and Me requires thinking about the different competences to be developed and complex task designs. As I have suggested elsewhere (cf. Freitag-Hild 2010a: 110ff.), the following task types for inter- and transcultural learning can help to develop different skills, attitudes or competences and can be a guideline for teaching Anita and Me: 1. Warming up tasks: In order to create a positive mind-set for dealing with cultural differences it can be helpful to raise the learners’ curiosity by using visual prompts like a film poster, character names, title etc. 2. Tasks for self-reflection: Intercultural understanding requires ‘decentering’ from one’s own perspective, of becoming aware how one’s own view is shaped by culture.

Identity, Intercultural Relationships and Growing up the 1970s: Anita and Me

3.

4. 5. 6. 7.

Especially the discussion of the learners’ reactions to characters and their actions can be used as a starting point for critical self-reflection. Tasks for understanding and changing perspectives: Learners have to reconstruct and take over other perspectives in order to develop empathy and understanding. This can be done with the help of interpretive tasks, scenic interpretation or creative writing tasks which help to explore the characters’ perspectives. Analytical tasks: It is important to understand the specific ‘voice’ that a film represents and to reflect how the filmic devices influence the audience’s reception. Tasks for interaction and negotiation: Intercultural and transcultural learning can only take place if learners interact with each other and negotiate their views. Contextualisation tasks: Texts (including films) take part in the cultural discourses of their time(s). In order to understand which particular view or voice is expressed in the text learners need to explore the cultural context(s) with the help of other texts. Reflection tasks: In order to help learners acquire strategies for intercultural communication outside the classroom, it is necessary to reflect about one’s own intercultural learning process and to think about how and why one’s own views have changed or not.

While it is recommendable to start any teaching session with a warming up task and to round it off with a reflection task, the choice of task types always depends on the teacher’s goals: If the focus is on understanding the characters, their relationships or the make-up of the film, tasks for understanding and changing perspectives as well as analytical tasks can be chosen. Tasks for self-reflection and interaction rather expect the learners to exchange and negotiate different cultural views. Last but not least, in order to make the cultural context accessible to the learners, the teacher also has to think about how to choose texts or text arrangements and about how to design adequate tasks. 4

How to present the film

The viewing process should be divided into several parts in order to guide the learners’ reception and focus on aspects which are central for the understanding of Anita and Me. Therefore the following passage will suggest guiding questions which can serve as while-viewing activities, while a discussion of aspects like Meena’s development, intercultural encounters and cultural context should take place after viewing the whole film. In order to raise the learners’ curiosity about the topics of the film, the first few minutes of the film can be used to speculate about the story. Meena introduces Anita and herself so that the topic of friendship may be expected; the first scene also includes some foreshadowing as it shows parts of the scene in which Meena’s and Anita’s friendship breaks up. However, the fact that, at the end of the scene, Meena and Anita are falling into a lake, also raises the question of what will happen. In any way, these first few minutes – until the film title can be seen on the screen – should be used as a prompt for a pre-viewing activity to speculate about topics of the film, about the characters and what the story will be like (cf. Mat No. 1). The first two ‘chapters’ of the DVD start with Meena’s voice-over which introduces Tollington, its inhabitants and, of course, her family to the audience. She takes the audience on a tour through the village and uses this opportunity to tell us about the

211

212

Great Britain

old mining-village, about Mrs Ormerod and Uncle Allan, the vicar. Meena also talks about her love of stories, about her parents and their expectations as well as about her neighbours, who we get to know through mini scenes in the backyard which allow us to get a glimpse into their troubled family lives. Last but not least we witness one of the visits of the many ‘aunties’ and ‘uncles’ who belong to the Kumars’ extended family. The aim at the beginning of the film should be to support the learners’ understanding of Meena’s environment, to understand what life in Tollington and in Meena’s family as well as the Asian community seems to be like, and to reflect about how the characters are presented. One while-viewing activity (cf. Mat No. 2) therefore asks the learners, first of all, to take notes about life and the people’s lifestyle in a) Tollington, b) Meena’s family and c) the Asian community. They should be able to describe and compare life and lifestyles of people in Tollington, in Meena’s family and of the Asian community and to reflect about how the characters are presented. Thus, learners can also analyse which filmic devices are used for characterisation (for example, outward appearance, clothes, hairstyle, mimes and gestures, voice, what the characters say or do, Meena’s voice-over comments, etc.) and what effect this has on us or what impression we get of the characters. The second part of the film focuses on Meena’s friendship to Anita and continues until the racist attack against the Indian man who happens to be in town because of the motorway which is being built in Tollington. It is helpful to draw the learners’ attention to Meena’s and Anita’s relationship and how it develops. When Meena meets Anita and the ‘wenches’, a new world opens up to her. Meena’s ‘new’ life as a Tollington ‘wench’, however, ends with her parents’ ‘ban’ to meet Anita because they do not approve of Meena’s new friends: One day, Meena makes her two younger cousins steal Mrs Ormerod’s charity tin, and her parents are afraid of Anita’s bad influence on their daughter. For Meena, the ‘ban’ feels like being ripped in half and she misses her friend. The ‘ban’ can be used as a prompt for a first creative post-viewing activity (cf. Mat No. 3). Learners step into the shoes of either Meena or the parents and reflect about the incident: They choose whether they want to write a diary entry from Meena’s point of view or whether they prefer to act out a role play between Meena’s parents who are worried about their daughter and Anita’s influence. While these activities focus on a change of perspectives, learners could also be asked to write a letter (including a reply) to the Cathy and Clare column of Jackie Magazine, which could give Meena some piece of advice about what she should do. It is also possible to ask the learners to have a role interview with either Meena or Anita in which the learners take over the characters’ roles and explore their thoughts and feelings (cf. Scheller 2004; Freitag-Hild 2008: 8ff.). Writing a role biography in advance could help the learners to prepare for acting out such a role and for understanding a different perspective from the inside. The third part starts with Meena’s grandmother visiting the family. Nanima becomes a very important person for Meena’s development. Through her, Meena regains her self-confidence and also develops a sense of identity. Learning of Anita’s taking part in the ‘Paki-bashing’ incident, Meena is also able to distance herself from Anita. The story then ends with Meena’s success as a short story writer – her story is accepted by Jackie Magazine – and her family moving to a different area where Meena can attend the local grammar school. Learners should be asked to describe Nanima’s relationship to Meena and analyse her role for Meena’s development (cf. Mat No. 4). The fact that she is quite an extraordinary and funny character can also be the startingpoint for a discussion in which the learners exchange their views about her.

Identity, Intercultural Relationships and Growing up the 1970s: Anita and Me

4.1

Focus on identity: how we define ourselves

Anita and Me tells Meena’s story about growing up as the only Indian girl in town – a girl who wants to fit in and is happy when she is accepted as a Tollington ‘wench’, who is expected by her parents to be a ‘good’ Indian daughter, but who also faces racism and discrimination. Meena’s development throughout the story is one with many ups and downs and should be at the centre of the whole teaching unit. The following task herefore asks learners to reflect about the development of Meena’s personality and her identity, to identify different stages, to analyse the role and influence of the people around her and to discuss which groups Meena seems to belong to (cf. also Freitag & Rupp 2009). By dealing with this task, learners should become aware of how and as a result of what experience Meena’s character, her behaviour or her identity changes. This focus should help learners to understand the specific character of Meena’s development as that of a second generation immigrant who is juggling different cultural heritages and identities; in addition, it can also help them to reflect about how their own identity is formed or evolves. After the film-viewing learners are given the task to reconstruct and then illustrate Meena’s development in a flowchart or diagram (cf. Mat No. 5). It is important that learners are able to explain which different stages they identified, to describe these stages and to explain which role certain events or individual characters (for example, Anita, Nanima, parents, Sam, etc.) have. The illustration could then take different forms: Learners could make a flowchart, add pictures, symbols, drawings or comic strips, quotations and try to show how Meena develops by pointing out causes and effects or relationships between characters and how they influence Meena’s behaviour or self-image. It is recommended to let the learners prepare this ‘multi-genre paper’ (cf. Henseler 2014) individually (for example, as homework) to support their individual meaning-making processes. Back in class, learners can share their results in cooperative group work and explain or compare their individual ideas. In the end, they should be able to present the results of their group discussion in a ‘new’ or common model which everybody can agree with, thus arriving at an interpretation that has been verified by other learners (cf. also Freitag-Hild 2010b). Of course, the illustration can also be used as a pre-task for writing a character portrait of Meena. As an alternative, Meena’s development could be staged in freeze frames or role plays by choosing five or six different situations which represent one stage of her development. In addition, learners should deal with the question of how Meena sees herself and how she would define her personal and/or cultural identity. In order to do so, it is, first of all, necessary to make clear what we understand by identity and to discuss learners’ ideas about who or what influences our identity (cf. Mat No. 6). In the case of Anita and Me, it is important to think about the different groups Meena belongs to – either by chance or by choice (cf. Film education 2015). Afterwards learners should discuss which of these groups Meena identifies with and what they mean to her. Another possibility would be to introduce some quotations from the novel which reflect Meena’s changing identity. Learners could be asked to explain and elaborate which groups Meena identifies with and who she wants to belong to or how this feeling changes throughout the film. It is also possible to compare Meena’s thoughts as reflected in the novel’s quotations with what we learn about her character in the film and to see whether the quotations from the book can be matched to situations or stages in the film. At the end, it can also be helpful to compare Meena’s identity and her sense of

213

214

Great Britain

belonging to that of her mother’s and her grandmother’s because there are big differences between the different generations. 4.2

Focus on intercultural encounters: developing intercultural communicative competence

There are many short scenes in Anita and Me in which characters with a different cultural background interact or at least talk about each other. In many of these scenes stereotypes, prejudices or even racist attitudes prevent the characters from entering an intercultural ‘dialogue’ where they could learn from one another, get to know different or other perspectives and where they view this intercultural encounter as an enriching experience. The reflections of intercultural encounters in Anita and Me could therefore promote the learners’ ‘intercultural communicative competence’ and help them to become ‘intercultural speakers’ (Byram 1997) who show openness and curiosity towards cultural difference, who are able to take over other perspectives and who are willing to distance themselves from their own in order to enter into a mutual exchange of ideas (cf. Mat No. 7). Two of these scenes shall be examined here because they can serve to train the learners’ intercultural communicative competence: The first scene takes place at the Kumar’s dinner table, (00:48:37-00:50:59). Anita has been invited for dinner and she is taken aback when she notices that everybody eats with their fingers and without knife or fork. Meena saves the situation because she tells Anita that it is very common in ‘posh’ restaurants to eat with one’s fingers, and Anita also learns that burping can be considered a compliment for a tasty meal. Another scene shows Meena together with her grandmother in front of Mrs Ormerod’s shop (00:57:46-00:58:30). Mrs Ormerod is welcoming Nanima to England and is trying to be very friendly, but does not really succeed: She shouts at Nanima, speaks very slowly and with exaggerated facial expressions and gestures, which make Nanima angry because she is treated like an ignorant person. In order to train the learners’ ‘intercultural communicative competence’, learners should reflect and analyse the characters’ behaviour and reflect about alternative and more respectful or tolerant ways of reacting in these situations. The film scenes can be stopped at a certain point (for example, after Anita’s bewilderment (00:50:18) or after Mrs Ormerod’s greeting (00:58:00)) so that learners can brainstorm different possible reactions. Of course it would be useful to let learners act out these scenes and to reflect which different reactions or ways of behaviour might be successful and then compare their ideas to the film. In this way learners can explore ways of interacting in intercultural encounters. It is also recommended to reflect the question in which scenes within the film racism, stereotypes or prejudices played an important role. Thus, learners are also sensitised to what it needs to communicate successfully in an intercultural situation in which people with different cultural backgrounds meet and enter into a dialogue. 4.3

Focus on the cultural context: the 1970s – Enoch Powell – immigration from South Asia

In order to understand how Anita and Me refers to the cultural discourses of multicultural and transcultural Britain, it is necessary for learners to explore the cultural contexts and to reflect in how far Meena’s example can be viewed as

Identity, Intercultural Relationships and Growing up the 1970s: Anita and Me

representative or exceptional (cf. Mat No. 8). Of course, it is only a fictional story, but one that reflects the growing skepticism against immigrants at that time. In addition, the film also uses music, fashion and props to help the spirit of the 1970s come back to life, and the film refers to the ‘Black Country’ as the setting of the film. Already at the outset of the film, when Meena takes us on a tour through the village on her bike, the soundtrack, Meena’s dress and her hairstyle as well as her Brummie accent transport us to 1970s England and the mining area. Other contexts that can help to understand the film within its cultural contexts are the constantly changing race relations in the UK, Enoch Powell’s Birmingham Speech as well as immigration from South Asia and its background. Last but not least, knowledge about India or Indian minorities in the UK would support the learners’ understanding of the Indian community as it is portrayed in the film (e.g. Diwali, South Asian clothing, food, music). One task should therefore focus on contextualisation and help learners to read and explore these cultural contexts. This can be done either by inviting learners to give presentations on one of these topics or by doing an Internet research and a follow-up discussion in which learners reflect how the additional knowledge they have gained changes their perception of the characters, the story or their understanding of the film as a whole. 5

Conclusion

Anita and Me is a suitable film for intercultural and transcultural learning for a number of reasons: The film focuses on topics such as family, friendship and belonging, which the learners can relate to. In addition, exploring Meena’s identity and her development helps learners to reflect about how their own identity develops and what role people in their environment play. Because the intercultural encounters portrayed in the film do not always run smoothly, the film also encourages learners and teachers to explore different ways of behaviour in intercultural encounters and to develop their intercultural communicative competence. It is a film that can, on the one hand, motivate learners to explore the story, its characters and cultural contexts especially because of Meena’s comical way of presenting the characters and their story and that, on the other hand, contains many scenes that encourage learners to reflect about questions like ‘who you are’ or ‘how to become an intercultural speaker’ (Byram 1997). In order to engage the learners in in-depth reflections, the suggested activities provide a combination of different task types focusing on the negotiation of different views, on changing perspectives, on analysing the film and its characters and on exploring the cultural context(s) of the 1970s. Film reference Anita and Me. Director: Metin Hüseyin. Screenplay: Meera Syal. United Kingdom: Icon Home Entertainment. DVD 2002. 92 minutes.

References Bredella, Lothar (2012), Narratives und interkulturelles Verstehen. Zur Entwicklung von Empathie-, Urteils- und Kooperationsfähigkeit. Tübingen: Narr.

215

216

Great Britain

Bredella, Lothar & Christ, Herbert (Eds.) (2007). Fremdverstehen und interkulturelle Kompetenz. Tübingen: Narr. Byram, Michael (1997), Teaching and Assessing Intercultural Communicative Competence. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters. Film education (Ed.) (2015), Anita and Me Study Guide. [Online: http://www. filmeducation.org/pdf/film/AnitaMe.pdf 01.04.2016]. Freitag, Britta (2008), Methode im Fokus: Szenische Interpretationsverfahren. Der fremdsprachliche Unterricht Englisch 42: 95, 8-11. Freitag, Britta & Stroh, Silke (Eds.) (2008), Transcultural Identities: Britain. Der fremdsprachliche Unterricht Englisch 42.95. Freitag, Britta & Rupp, Jan (2009), Black and British: Fictions of Migration. In: Hallet, Wolfgang & Nünning, Ansgar (Eds.), Romandidaktik – Theoretische Grundlagen, Methoden, Lektüreanregungen. Trier: WVT, 321-336. Freitag-Hild, Britta (2010), Theorie, Aufgabentypologie und Unterrichtspraxis inter- und transkultureller Literaturdidaktik. British Fictions of Migration im Fremdsprachenunterricht. Trier: WVT. Freitag, Britta (2015), Visualisierungsaufgaben im Literaturunterricht: Lernerorientierte Zugangsweisen zu Andrea Levys Roman Small Island in Schule und Hochschule. In: Hecke, Carola & Surkamp, Carola (Eds.), Bilder im Fremdsprachenunterricht. Neue Ansätze, Kompetenzen und Methoden (2nd ed.). Tübingen: Narr, 181-198. Henseler, Roswitha (2014), Literatur multimodal und multimedial präsentieren. Der fremdsprachliche Unterricht Englisch 132, 10-11. Korte, Barbara & Sternberg, Claudia (Eds.) (1997), Many Voices – Many Cultures. Multicultural British Short Stories. Stuttgart: Reclam. Korte, Barbara & Sternberg, Claudia (2004), Bidding for the Mainstream? Black and Asian British Film since the 1990s. Amsterdam, New York: Rodopi. Powell, Enoch (1997 [1968]), The Birmingham Speech. In: Mitchell, Michael (Ed.), Viewfinder Topics. Minorities in Britain. Never at ease? München: Langenscheidt-Longman, 3. Scheller, Ingo (2004), Szenische Interpretation. Seelze-Velber: Kallmeyer. Syal, Meera (1996), Anita and Me. London: Harper Collins.

Great Britain

Developing ‘Intercultural Communicative Competence’ with Ae Fond Kiss Marja Zibelius

The present chapter is aimed at exploring the potential of the romantic drama Ae Fond Kiss (2004) for the acquisition of intercultural competences among secondary school students. In this context, readers will first of all learn about the concept of ‘intercultural communicative competence’ (ICC) and the possibilities it offers for foreign language teaching. In a next step, the film is introduced and critically assessed. Specific links to the German secondary school curriculum are provided. The activities that are presented give insights into some possibilities for use of the film Ae Fond Kiss for the development of ICC. 1

Introduction

Teaching students to communicate, in speech or writing, in a foreign language is inextricably linked with preparing them for intercultural encounters. The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) outlines that, in order to achieve successful communication, a language user necessitates among other competences “[i]ntercultural awareness” (Council of Europe 2001: 103), which forms part of a person’s declarative knowledge, their “[i]ntercultural skills and know-how” (ibid.: 104) and the “development of an ‘intercultural personality’ involving both attitudes and awareness” (ibid.: 106). The CEFR further highlights the fact that “it is a central objective of language education to promote the favourable development of the learner’s whole personality and sense of identity in response to the enriching experience of otherness in language and culture” (ibid.: 1). Various curricular guidelines in the federal states of Germany and other European countries mirror this need for the acquisition of intercultural competence along with linguistic skills. Diverse models of how to encompass the vast field of ‘culture’ and ‘intercultural communication’ have been proposed (cf. for example the contributions in Jackson 2012). For foreign language education purposes, Michael Byram’s (1997) model of intercultural communicative competence (ICC) has been widely acknowledged. It is hoped that through this, teachers will enable their learners to engage in processes of intercultural learning. The aspiration of foreign language education is thus not to transform language learners into ‘(near-) native speakers’ of a language, but to help them become intercultural speakers or mediators. In the following, Byram’s model shall be used as a basis to discuss the film Ae Fond Kiss. This is done against the background that despite a growing interest in intercultural

218

Great Britain

learning, “the potential films have for culturally oriented English learning has by no means been sufficiently exploited” (Surkamp 2008: 16f.). 2

Byram’s model of ICC

Based on concepts of communicative competence, Byram links different aspects of intercultural communication with competences that are to be developed in foreign language education. To form his model of ICC, he further adds “socio-cultural factors not usually taken into consideration” (Byram 1997: 31) 1. At the centre of this representation of ICC in foreign language teaching is the development of “critical cultural awareness” (ibid.: 31ff.), described as a language user’s “ability to evaluate – critically and on the basis of explicit criteria – (some of the) perspectives, practices and products in one’s own and other cultures and countries” (Byram 2008: 128). Prominence is in this context given to the term ‘criticality’, i.e. the learner’s reflection about values, objects and ideas he/she encounters when dealing with speakers from other cultures or countries (ibid.). It also includes a critical view on one’s own cultural background (cf. also Müller-Hartmann & Schocker-von Ditfurth 2014: 26). To help students become intercultural speakers, Byram lists the following components that are involved in intercultural competence (1997; Byram et al. 2002): The basis lies in a language user’s attitudes towards those whom he/she considers as different (cf. Byram et al. 2002: 12). On the cognitive level, knowledge of the ‘self’ and the ‘other’ and of interaction practices in both contexts are crucial. Just as important as attitudes and knowledge are a learner’s skills of comparing, interpreting and relating, which are concerned with viewing objects and situations from one’s own and from another person’s perspective and thus with being able to comprehend how something that is communicated might be (mis)understood. A further set of skills concerns a language user’s skills of discovery and interaction, which are necessary to facilitate the acquisition and integration of new knowledge about others since no one could possibly know all the relevant factors that might shape an individual’s actions. This can be achieved for example by skilfully questioning speakers from other cultures about underlying values and beliefs, which may be subconscious to them. Byram describes his own model with respect to the role of the foreign language teacher as follows: the ‘best’ teacher is neither the native nor the non-native speaker, but the person who can help learners see relationships between their own and other cultures, can help them acquire interest in and curiosity about ‘otherness’, and an awareness of themselves and their own cultures seen from other people’s perspectives. (Byram et al. 2002: 10)

3

Developing ICC in the FL classroom

Based on Byram’s model, various practical hints for the development of ICC in foreign language classrooms have been proposed (cf. also MSW 2014). With reference to 1

Although it is widely recognised in the field of foreign language teaching, we also need to acknowledge that Byram’s model of ICC is more than fifteen years old. This becomes particularly evident in his use of the term ‘culture’. Research on globalisation and migration movements have suggested a more dynamic relationship that no longer equates ‘culture’ with ‘nation’. Therefore, Blell & Doff (2014) rather speak of ‘transcultural competences’.

Developing ‘Intercultural Communicative Competence’ with Ae Fond Kiss

attitudes and the affective level, learners’ openness and curiosity can for example be stimulated by creating interest in and opportunities for identification with the topics and materials to be studied (cf. Müller-Hartmann & Schocker-von Ditfurth 2014: 24f.). Learners can furthermore be encouraged to introduce and talk about their own experience, to genuinely engage with the ‘other’ and to ask questions about things they have noticed, discovered or would like to learn about the country of reference (Byram 1997: 50; cf. also Seelye 1993: 31ff.). Müller-Hartmann & Schocker-von Ditfurth (2014: 24f.) further emphasise a focus on similarities between the own and other environments and experiences. As regards the area of knowledge, learners will profit from being introduced to and discussing factual information not simply about the country of reference, but also about their country of residence and aspects of their cultural identity (cf. Byram 1997: 51). Knowledge about possible causes for cultural misunderstandings and an awareness of how one ‘naturally’ interacts in one’s own environment also fall in this category. Müller-Hartmann & Schocker-von Ditfurth (2014: 25) and Mayer-Großkurth (2010) further refer to the treatment of auto-stereotypes and hetero-stereotypes. Skills of interpreting and relating aim at facilitating a change of perspective. They can for example be put into practice by “putting ideas, events, documents from two or more cultures side by side and seeing how each might look from the other perspective” (Byram et al. 2002: 12). Müller-Hartmann & Schocker-von Ditfurth (2014: 25) suggest the use of tasks where students relate or re-write a scene from a different perspective; role play activities where learners are required to put themselves into the place of someone else and projects or simulations where they “experience a situation from a different cultural point of view (e.g. how does an American school work [...])” (ibid.: 25). Classroom activities that target skills of discovery and interaction are concerned with the discovery of new aspects of a culture and the ability to acquire and operate new “knowledge, attitudes and skills under the constraints of real-time communication and interaction” (Byram et al. 2002: 13). Byram (1997) circumscribes these skills as savoir apprendre/faire, i.e. ‘knowing how to learn’ and ‘knowing how to do’. Learners might for example discover aspects that form part of a person’s identity that might not be central to their own experience (cf. Müller-Hartmann & Schocker-von Ditfurth 2014: 26). Yet, they need to be aware of the fact that whatever they observe may be contextdependent and not transferable to other situations (cf. Seelye 1993; also MayerGroßkurth 2010). “Dealing with speakers from another culture always involves the evaluation of that culture” (Müller-Hartmann & Schocker-von Ditfurth 2014: 26). However, critical cultural awareness is concerned with avoiding stereotyping and instead “perceiving the interlocutor as an individual whose qualities are to be discovered, rather than as a representative of an externally ascribed identity” (Byram et al. 2002: 9). To achieve the development of critical cultural awareness, students require competences in all of the four other areas of ICC. Beyond this, they need to have developed a critical view on their own culture (cf. Müller-Hartmann & Schocker-von Ditfurth 2014: 26). [H]owever open towards, curious about and tolerant of other people’s beliefs, values and behaviours learners are, their own beliefs, values and behaviours are deeply embedded and can create reaction and rejection. Because of this unavoidable response, intercultural speakers/mediators need to become aware of their own values and how these influence their views of other people’s values. Intercultural speakers/mediators

219

220

Great Britain

need a critical awareness of themselves and their values, as well as those of other people. (Byram et al. 2002: 13; emphasis in original)

Tasks and activities that can promote the development of such an awareness may include those that “help learners to question existing views in their own or the other culture” (Müller-Hartmann & Schocker-von Ditfurth 2014: 26). Examples could be a critical comparison of how topics are approached and dealt with in documents from different cultures or an analysis of underlying (explicit or implicit) values and scripts in texts and documents from one’s own and from other cultures (cf. Byram 1997: 53). Furthermore, exchanges between students from one class (who supposedly ‘share’ one ‘culture’) about their impressions and viewpoints seem feasible to allow learners to come to an understanding that even their own culture is not homogeneous, but complex and made of multiple identities. Byram (2008) takes this one step further by recommending that students also become more familiar with ‘otherness’ in their own country, in particular regarding linguistic or ethnic minorities. He also suggests the use of class partnerships or correspondences “to compare and act on a topic in two or more countries” (ibid.: 130). 4

Film synopsis and reception

Ae Fond Kiss is an award-winning film by the British director Ken Loach. It opened in British cinemas in 2004 and premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival Berlinale earlier the same year. Interestingly, the film was released in Germany and other countries with the title Just a Kiss.2 The original title refers to a folk song by the 18 th century Scottish poet Robert Burns, which is about two lovers who are parting. The song is sung in the film at various occasions. Ae Fond Kiss is a romantic drama set in Glasgow. Its protagonists are Casim, a second generation Punjabi-born Pakistani immigrant living in Glasgow with his parents and two sisters, and Roisin, an Irish immigrant who is a Music teacher at Casim’s younger sister’s school. Casim and his family are Muslim. His father owns a small but successful grocery store. Casim is a DJ and dreams of opening his own club. He is soon to marry his cousin Jasmine from Pakistan. Casim’s younger sister Tahara is in her final year of school and has won a prestigious scholarship to study Journalism at the University of Edinburgh. However, as becomes obvious throughout the film, her parents urgently want her to be less independent and to stay with the family and study to become a doctor at a Glasgow university. Casim’s older sister Rukhsana is happily engaged to a Pakistani man and is portrayed as demure, devoutly respecting the Muslim family and community values (such as her own arranged marriage; for details on these values, cf. Monti 2009a: 95f.). When Casim and Roisin fall in love and Tahara announces her plans to study in Edinburgh, “[a] cataclysm is underway” (Thomas 2004: n.p.): Tariq, Casim’s father, has nightmares about losing his only son as he once lost his twin brother, who was kidnapped during partition when he was a child. In a fit, Tariq demolishes the apartment that he and Casim had just finished building for Casim and Jasmine. Rukhsana’s wedding is cancelled when her fiancée‘s family annuls the marriage arrangement due to the shame that Casim has brought on the family. Roisin loses her 2

Cf. Fisch & Viebrock (2013) for a comparison of the different film posters released in different contexts to promote Ae Fond Kiss.

Developing ‘Intercultural Communicative Competence’ with Ae Fond Kiss

job at the Catholic school because she is seeing a non-Catholic man. The film finishes with an open ending in which Casim decides to keep living together with Roisin and in which they both joke about their future together. Ae Fond Kiss is characterised by Ken Loach’s and screenwriter Paul Laverty’s extremely successful attempt to portray a multitude of perspectives, putting the audience into a position to empathise with a variety of characters. The audience can for example sense the quandary that Casim finds himself in, with every possible choice he has having strong repercussions on his entire life and future. Yet, “[t]he filmmaker's scope expands to take in Casim’s parents and two sisters, whose public shame and private despair at having the only son move in with a ‘goree’ – a white girl – is made palpably, wrenchingly real” (Wilson 2004: n.p.). You feel Tariq’s raging panic that his son’s defiance presages the end of civilization as he knows it. [...] But just as strongly you understand Casim's excruciating dilemma. If he stays with Roisin, he will disgrace his family and be exiled from their protection. If he capitulates to his father, he will face living a claustrophobic, straitjacketed existence of paying lip service to values he doesn’t share. As in so much of life, there are no easy solutions. (Holden 2004: n.p.)

The film “explores many aspects of cross-cultural relationships with honesty and without oversimplifying it” (Rotten Tomatoes, Audience Review by Cynthia S.). Loach has been praised with taking “pains to present all sides of the issues he raises” and yet “courageously [...] [facing] up to the truth about people’s lives” (Thomas 2004: n.p.). As Thomas (ibid.) states: With Loach, it’s the people who come first, and social consciousness never lapses into preachiness. In collaboration with the gifted writer Paul Laverty on this film, Loach is especially skilled at restraining his own anger at injustice and ignorance, relying on the power of presenting life as he finds it. All of Loach’s formidable strengths, which include a sense of humor, come together in the wrenching “A Fond Kiss,” which is the third in his Glasgow trilogy that began with “My Name Is Joe” (1998), about a recovering alcoholic rebuilding his life, and the ironically titled "Sweet Sixteen" (2002), in which poor youths see no alternatives to crime.

5

Teaching ICC with Ae Fond Kiss

On defining culture, Wilkinson (2012: 302) states: “Culture is not just literature, but rather all aspects of how people live their lives.” By actively viewing films, “students can become omnipresent observers – in short, they can fully encounter other cultures with their customs and social practices without actually stepping out of their classroom” (Rot Gabrovec 2007: 20). In the same way as literary texts do, (feature) films give learners the favourable opportunity “to peek into other cultures, to listen to gossip about other people or to eavesdrop on and observe other people without being accused of being a Peeping Tom” (ibid.). The film Ae Fond Kiss achieves exactly this by depicting the everyday life and problems of an English adolescent in the city of Glasgow. It extends traditional boundaries of Britishness by portraying a young second generation immigrant man of Pakistani descent. In this way, it additionally “allows insight into multi-cultural life” (Hesse 2010: 186) in a British city and “shows in detail what kind of environment many migrants in Great Britain may experience” (ibid.). The film mediates cultural

221

222

Great Britain

knowledge because it “presents characters and events in their socio-cultural contexts and depicts the [...] modern setting in great detail to the students” (Surkamp 2008: 16). Ae Fond Kiss gives a vivid illustration of the fact that ‘being British’ does not necessarily mean being a white middle-class child or being a migrant of Indian or African descent. By doing so, it takes account of cultural pluralism in Britain. It can be noted that Black British communities are only the second largest ethnic community in Britain (2% of the total population) (RAAbits Englisch 2013). Britain’s largest ethnic community, which constitutes about 4% of the entire population, are British Asians, who mainly come from India (1,8%), Pakistan (1,3%) and Bangladesh (0,5%) (ibid.). In terms of religious backgrounds, this group is not homogeneous, either. British Asians with origins in India are mostly Hindu, while those with Pakistani or Bangladeshi roots are predominantly Muslim. Yet, it is common for all the different British Asian communities to live together closely and peacefully in the districts of industrial towns and cities. In contrast to most white British families, various generations tend to live together in one family home and marriage outside of one’s own ethnic community is very rare. Ae Fond Kiss is highly relevant because, while providing numerous opportunities for identification, it gives a vivid example of multiple layers of Britishness. It enables students to discover facets of British society that may be new to them and it shows in an exemplary manner what being a member of Britain’s largest ethnic community can be, look and feel like. As an authentic product of British culture, it gives learners the opportunity to “gain insights into other ways of life, which also allows them to experience differences regarding their own culturally marked behaviour” (Surkamp 2008: 16). By engaging with the film, learners may become aware of the fact that things such as temporal relations and a focus on individualism are culturally constructed and thus not easy to see because they come natural to us (cf. also Plümer 2011: 13; Monti 2009a). We need to step back and take a critical look at our own cultural upbringing and identity and Ae Fond Kiss provides an excellent basis and a first step for this to happen (cf. also HKM 2010). Related to this, Teppen (2012: 51f.) observes: To an adult and trained eye, the film may be a bit moralist and obvious in its intent to persuade its audience in an anti-prejudice and anti-racist direction. To a younger and less experienced audience, the level of didactics might be just right, to enable them to compare and find similarities between “us-and-them”, hence help to break stereotypes and see Muslims as real people with individual traits and complex identities.

Because the main characters are of a similar age and may face similar problems as students in the last years of a German secondary school (for example Casim: relationships, love, arguments with parents and siblings, identification, being torn between different paths for life; Tahara: future careers, applying to go to university, personal choices or plans envisaged by others, moving out or living with the parents), the story offers opportunities for identification on the part of the students. The fact that the film starts with scenes at a secondary school and at a nightclub and possibly also the fact that both Casim and Roisin are music lovers, of different kinds though, may provide additional familiarity and opportunities for the students to relate to the film. Furthermore, the identity conflicts that Casim and Tahara are facing might be related to those that for example Turkish youngsters living in Germany have to handle (cf. Hesse 2010: 186f.).

Developing ‘Intercultural Communicative Competence’ with Ae Fond Kiss

In contrast to many other films that portray the life of females (e.g. Brick Lane, cf. Kreft in this volume, or Bend it like Beckham), this particular example sketches the picture of a young man as the victim of an arranged marriage, an aspect of Pakistani/Muslim family affairs that we get an insight of. Yet similar to films such as Brick Lane, it has been pointed out that Ae Fond Kiss provides opportunities for students to recognise the culture clashes that many second generation immigrants in and outside of the learners’ home country are living through (cf. also Hesse 2010: 192). With respect to Byram’s model of ICC, the film allows for work on all dimensions. The film is likely to create interest and opportunities for identification among the students, thus also allowing them to talk about their own experiences (attitudes). It provides opportunities for the acquisition and discussion of factual knowledge about Britain, which students can then relate to and compare with their own country. It gives concrete opportunities for a critical reflection of their own socialisation (for example in terms of individualism vs. collectivism) (knowledge) and students can for example experience what it means to grow up, to fall in love or to find a future career from a different cultural viewpoint (skills of interpreting and relating). Students can discover facets that form part of the character’s identity that may be dissimilar to their own. Experiencing authentic English that they may encounter abroad (including a variety of different accents such as Scottish, Irish, ‘Standard’ British and Pakistani English 3, slang and Punjabi) also provides some preparation for dealing with real-time interaction in English between speakers from different backgrounds (skills of discovery and interaction). By providing a contrast between Tahara and her older sister Rukhsana, who were brought up in the same cultural background and even the same family, the film may oppose a uniform and stereotypical picture of Pakistani or Muslim youths growing up in Britain. It may encourage the taking of multiple perspectives and a differentiated view of the individuals and the culture depicted. Students might furthermore find opportunities to become more familiar with ‘otherness’ in their own surroundings, such as second or third generation Turkish immigrants in their schools and classrooms. Finally, a film’s classroom suitability can, following Hesse (2010: 185f.), be judged according to the criteria of language, curriculum topics and identification. The topic of identification has already been dealt with and concrete links to the curriculum will be discussed in the following section. The remaining criterion, language, shall be briefly addressed here. 5.1

Linguistic analysis

The film, it may be argued, provides some challenge to EFL learners since a large part of it is spoken in a broad Scottish accent. Yet at the same time it gives learners the unique opportunity to get to know and compare different British accents and various forms of code-switching (cf. Monti 2009b). Watching Ae Fond Kiss, one almost inevitably comes to recognise the differing sounds and intonations of the English varieties presented. While it may certainly be true that language learners will need some time to adjust linguistically, several factors mitigate this and aid comprehension. First and foremost, the setting and the context that is given in the film, combined with students’ prior knowledge of the topic, will support them in understanding the plot. A 3

Described as “a strongly accented English, a sort of parodic Pakistani English” by Monti (2009a: 91).

223

224

Great Britain

further help are the English subtitles that translate phrases spoken in Punjabi. Most key facts are talked about or repeated among the Pakistani families in Punjabi and are thus spelled out for the audience to read in English writing. In addition, the DVD also offers the use of English subtitles throughout the whole film. Finally, it should not be forgotten that even native speakers face difficulties understanding Scottish English, as evidenced for example in the following quote by an American critic (Kelly 2005: n.p.): “Consummate recorders of the grit-and-grime struggle of the underclasses, Loach and collaborator Paul Laverty employ rapid-fire dialogue (rendered ear-poppingly undecipherable in Scots accents) in disheveled and very real family settings.” In this way, native speakers and language learners might find themselves in a similar situation. Nevertheless, and this is what language learners might also share with native speakers, this need not prevent delight in watching the film, as the experience of an online film reviewer evidences: “They speak English in Scotland, but you need subtitles to understand them. I really enjoyed this movie” (Rotten Tomatoes, Audience Review by Cynthia S.). 5.2

Ae fond Kiss and the EFL curriculum

The relevance of choosing the film for a teaching unit with advanced learners in the German secondary school system can also be explored with reference to the German curriculum. By matter of example, the curricula of the federal states of Hesse (HKM 2010, 2016) and North Rhine-Westphalia (MSW 2014) can be considered. As will become evident, the subject of ‘ethnic communities in Great Britain’ assumes a central position in the final three years of the German school system (Oberstufe) – in basic (Grundkurs) as well as intensive courses (Leistungskurs) (cf. also RAAbits Englisch 2013). Foreign language education is to open up opportunities to students to broaden their horizons by acquainting them with other cultures and by allowing them to encounter these with empathy (HKM 2010: 2; MSW 2014: 24). A specific focus is to be laid on the pluralism of ways and conditions of life within a society as a result of migration (HKM 2010: 2). The aims of ICC teaching are described in terms of intercultural attitudes and awareness, which require students to be able to question their own ways of understanding and acting and to accept and reflect on cultural differences and peculiarities within the English-speaking world, among other things (MSW 2014: 17; HKM 2010: 2). Ae Fond Kiss can be seen as opening up such opportunities since it gives students deep and multifaceted insights into a way of life they might so far have been unfamiliar with. It furthermore portrays the perspectives of young adults who are facing similar problems than EFL learners might be. Students may recognise first-hand that the sets of values they are so well acquainted with (for example in terms of individualism and who decides on a person’s personal and professional future) are not necessarily cherished in other parts of the (Western) world (cf. HKM 2010: 2). The Hessian curriculum provides a framework of topics to be dealt with that perfectly accommodate the use of Ae Fond Kiss. For the first year of Oberstufe (E1, E2), the subject of “Growing Up” is to be dealt with (HKM 2010: 48). In a later year of Oberstufe (Q2), “Tradition and Change” and as a sub-topic within this, a treatment of the UK is obligatory for both basic and intensive courses (ibid.: 48). In particular, Ae Fond Kiss is well suited to dealing with the compulsory sub-topics of social structures and social change within the UK, e.g. “ethnic minorities, multiculturalism, British way of life” (ibid.: 59). This is mirrored in the North Rhine-Westphalian curriculum, which expects

Developing ‘Intercultural Communicative Competence’ with Ae Fond Kiss

students at the end of their secondary schooling (Q4) to possess socio-cultural knowledge and an awareness for a sensible and respectful communication between cultures for example in terms of political, social and cultural realities of the UK in the twenty-first century and its self-perception between tradition and change (MSW 2014: 31). Another aspect of foreign language teaching that Ae Fond Kiss can cater for is the use of media. Employing audio or audio-visual media to enhance teaching is made a compulsory requirement for EFL teaching in Hesse (HKM 2010: 49). The film gives students the opportunity to see and hear the English language and a variety of accents and dialects as they are used in an authentic context in different situations and registers. Comprehension can be supported by the fact that students, by viewing, can make use of contextual cues that they see. The use of English subtitles can furthermore be exploited in this context. Finally, Wilkinson (2012: 301f.) strongly advocates the integration of literature (and we can extend this to films and literature in the wider sense) into the curriculum to make clearly evident to our students “the cultural context in which language is set” (Council of Europe 2001: 1), the crucial link between language and culture and the fact that language learning without culture does simply not work. In agreement with this, RAAbits Englisch (2013) suggests that the film Ae Fond Kiss is very well suited to be used in EFL lessons in the German school system. 6

Activities If we bear in mind that the impact of the reality shown in visually supported materials is as powerful as it can be, but at the same time very subjectively selective (just as any other personal report on any event), we can successfully use these materials as valuable springboards for discussions, writing activities, or role play. Indeed, they offer possibilities for a plethora of activities [...] (Rot Gabrovec 2007: 20).

It is the purpose of the following section to present a selection of activities that intend to support the students in their acquisition of ICC, that catch their interest and that offer them at the same time the possibility to get to know themselves and each other and selected aspects of British culture better. In line with for example Burger (1995: 597f.), the main emphasis will not be on an analysis of filmic devices such as for example different camera perspectives, but on the film’s peculiar aesthetic qualities, its content and on students’ subjective responses to this. Following Surkamp (2008: 24) and others, the film will not be used for the learners to simply extract facts and information about the country of reference. Focal points will be laid on the learners’ reception of selected scenes and on using the film as a starting point for further Internet research to contextualise the topic by authentic documents (cf. Hesse 2010: 186; Surkamp 2008: 25; Byram 1997). This is not to suggest that stylistic devices should be ignored in the teaching of films, since it is true that all “methods of presentation can carry meaning” (Surkamp 2008: 19). As a general framework, a segment approach (cf. Burger 1995: 595ff.; Thaler 2014) has been chosen to teach Ae Fond Kiss. Two scenes of different lengths will be treated in some detail in the following activities, while for other segments global comprehension is assumed. Pre- and post-viewing activities that can be employed before and after watching the movie will also be presented. Worksheets and materials to accompany the activities can be found in the download section.

225

226

Great Britain

6.1

Activities to introduce the context before viewing the film

Before viewing the film, students are asked to consider their views and prior knowledge about Britain-Pakistan relations and Pakistani people (in Britain). This is complemented by factual knowledge about these areas, while different viewpoints and perspectives that look at the issue are taken into account. In particular, these concern an insight into Pakistan’s transported self image (as evidenced in the website of its governmental Tourism Development Corporation) and insights into white Britons’ views on Pakistani immigrants and British Pakistani immigrants’ self images. This procedure corresponds to the acquisition of ICC in that it allows learners to make personal responses, offers them the opportunity to increase their knowledge, gives them authentic online material that comprises different perspectives they can explore and compare (cf. Surkamp 2008: 19) and finally gives them the possibility to critically reflect upon the values and ideas they encounter. The activities are designed to encourage the learners to view the situation of Pakistani immigrants in Britain from their own and from two other perspectives (cf. Mat No. 1 & 2). In the first activity, students are asked to write down what the already know about Pakistan. To make sure that everyone’s individual perspective is included, students start out by working on their own and then compare and discuss their results in small groups. If students do not have any knowledge or do not know what to write, the teacher can give them prompts (such as: Where is Pakistan? People? Languages? Religion?) and encourage them to make intelligent guesses based on their world knowledge. If students require further support, the use of a world map and multiple choice activities seem feasible. Next, students look at one representation of how Pakistan views and presents itself on the Internet. They compare information they find on the website with the personal views they had. Small groups of students can compare their insights with each other. Since the research part is very open, it is advisable to give students a strict time limit to prevent them from getting lost in (minor) details. In terms of preparing students to use the Internet competently outside the school, teachers can also address the design of the homepage and quality criteria for online sources. The next activity complements this work with a more guided search for basic facts about Pakistan, based on different websites and specific questions that have to be answered. Depending on the students’ prior knowledge, the collection of facts about Pakistan can be extended to include further aspects and websites. First links to the film can be made here since Casim’s family is of Punjabi ethnicity. To make the activity more personally relevant to students, they can be asked to pick one additional fact or picture that they find interesting and present it to class. The final question in this activity is designed to give students a first orientation towards different value systems. The film will give concrete examples of this. A detailed discussion of these with respect to Ae Fond Kiss can be found in Teppen (2012: 36ff.). The topic of (Pakistani) immigration to Britain is introduced next. It provides a short link to the film and asks for students’ prior knowledge and assumptions on this topic, while encouraging a comparison to their home country. A focus not only on differences but also on similarities is put forward in order to support the development of empathy and to ease students’ taking another perspective. Topics that could be dealt with are: reasons for immigration to Britain, countries of origin, assumptions students have on how white Britons may view immigration and on the self perception of immigrants in Britain. If not present, basic information about Scotland/Glasgow can

Developing ‘Intercultural Communicative Competence’ with Ae Fond Kiss

be given by the teacher. 4 Students’ own views are then complemented by factual information about different perspectives on immigration in Britain. Students read a summary of research carried out at the University of Essex and scan it for information on British Pakistanis. In addition to extracting information and making students aware of different viewpoints, reading strategies are practised here with respect to dealing with online information. 5 6.2

Sequence 1 (00:51:38-00:54:50): Tahara’s letter

In the following, activities to accompany two sequences are described that aim at developing intercultural communicative competence (cf. Mat No. 3). Needless to say, in a film that is so dense with intercultural conflict and that at the same time takes great care to portray a multitude of perspectives (cf. also Teppen 2012: 49f.), many more scenes may be chosen to achieve this aim in a similar way. The first sequence that was selected deals with Tahara’s acceptance an Edinburgh University. The first questions have students imagine a situation and their personal and their parents’ reactions to it. They do not yet know that they are going to watch a similar scene from the movie and are in a next step required to put themselves in the shoes of for example a Punjabi parent and his/her reaction to the situation, based on the insights they have gained in the pre-viewing activities.6 Students then watch the respective scene. In a next step, they take notes on their personal responses and then share their reactions orally (in the format of an ‘inside circle – outside circle’, cf. Burger 1995). In this way, they will most probably get to know classmates who share similar reactions, but also those whose views may be different from their own. As a follow-up, students can be asked to comment on one reaction of their choice (their own or one from a classmate). Having considered their own perspective and been confronted with Tahara’s situation, students are asked to take up Tahara’s position and not only state what they would do in her place, but also reflect on the repercussions that the different options might have in Tahara’s world and in the context of her family and upbringing (for details, cf. also Teppen 2012: 41). Class discussions can further revolve around the question of how foreigners may view the learners’ own country (cf. Byram et al. 2002: 10): How would Tahara’s parents see our Western culture and why? What would they prefer over this and why do they think that their own orientation may be better? Teachers can also ask students to reflect upon auto- and hetero-stereotypes, such as do students think their views about the parents are the same as the parents’ views about themselves. In a film review for the Los Angeles Times, Thomas (2004: n.p.) provides stimulating food for thought on this: The most telling remark in a film full of them is Tahara’s question to her father: Why bother coming to the West if he didn’t want more opportunities for his children? Tariq doesn’t reply, but his answer is obvious. He does want a better life for his children, but 4 5

6

To show the size of Pakistani communities in different British regions, the following map may be helpful: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Pakistanis#/media/File:Ethnic_Pakistanis_ in_Britain.png 01.04.2016. The original research news on the project by the University of Essex can be found at https://www.iser.essex.ac.uk/2012/06/30/ethnic-minorities-living-in-the-uk-feel-morebritish-than-white-britons. For further information on ethnicity in Glasgow, teachers can visit http://www.glasgow.gov.uk/CHttpHandler.ashx?id=17783&p=0 01.04.2016. Teppen (2012: 40) provides details on Tariq’s reaction in the film.

227

228

Great Britain

he and his wife, Sadia [...], have unquestioningly assumed their children will want to live their lives according to strict Muslim traditions.

6.3

Sequence 2 (01:26:35-01:33:37): Tariq’s reaction

This sequence is presented to half of the students with sound only (cf. Mat No. 4). The other half of the class engage in silent viewing. In a next step, partners exchange their impressions on the sequence (adapted from Surkamp 2008: 27; cf. also Thaler 2014: 43). It should be pointed out to the students that there is no right or wrong as both impressions are true and are reality. Yet, both perspectives only form part of ‘the whole picture’, in the same way as there are different standpoints to look at one issue. Students then all watch the sequence with sound and picture and are subsequently asked to phrase their reactions in a slightly more specific way than in the first sequence (cf. also Roell 2010: 9; Burger 1995). They once again first take individual time to become aware of and verbalise their own impressions before entering into a small group exchange. Following the format “Numbered Heads” (cf. Kagan 2013: 20ff.), one member of the group is then selected to give a short oral report on the group discussion. The next activity is designed to lead students into a consideration of the way in which the film was made and possible consequences of this. Although a variety of perspectives is presented, it is likely that students will find it easier to empathise with certain characters than with others. The activity explores possible reasons for this. These can, for example, be connected with identification matters, personal background and experience or the fact that Casim and Roisin are the main characters, which makes it easier for the audience to step into a certain character’s shoes and consider the situation from his/her view (cf. also Hesse 2010: 185; Roell 2010: 9). Students should be made aware of this since stylistic devices can be used in ways to influence the audience into sympathising with certain groups. Based on students’ individual notes, a class discussion can resolve around students’ different perceptions of empathy and possible reasons for these (within and outside of the film) before students try to consider the scope of Casim’s decision from his father Tariq’s point of view. Questions guide the students in this challenging task. They have the opportunity to take individual notes or work with a partner. Further insights into Tariq’s position and the topic of family and society in Ae Fond Kiss can be found in Teppen (2012: 38f.). Based on their previous work with this sequence, students are asked to finalise their steps towards taking over Tariq’s point of view by producing a piece of writing that gives an insight into his thoughts (cf. also Surkamp 2008: 27 on asking learners to take a character’s perspective to help them develop empathy). The genre of an inner monologue was chosen because it is hoped that students will enjoy some of the freedom that the genre gives. They may thus be able to focus more easily on the content of Tariq’s thinking and feeling while at the same time experimenting and playing with the English language. Some characteristics of the genre of an interior monologue (e.g. no rigid sentence structure and punctuation, stream of consciousness) can be given to the students beforehand. 6.4

Students’ reactions after viewing the film

After students have watched the entire film, they will have received a multi-faceted insight into a variety of issues that young people (in Britain) in general and second generation immigrants in particular may be facing. Students may thus want to voice

Developing ‘Intercultural Communicative Competence’ with Ae Fond Kiss

their reactions to the whole film or address specific issues (cf. also Teppen 2012: 55; Burger 1995). The first activity gives them a chance to do so while guiding them in the formulation of their thoughts and stimulating them to include several ideas and experiences (cf. Mat No. 5). They complete a questionnaire anonymously, which is then distributed among class members. Students read the questionnaire they have received and comment on it in writing (using a colour pen and arrows, smileys etc. on the questionnaire or a separate sheet of paper). The questionnaires are handed to up to three other students who comment on the original answers and/or previous comments (adapted from Silent Discussions, cf. Grieser-Kindel et al. 2006: 154). Students may sign their comments with their name or comment anonymously, depending on the teacher’s choice. The questionnaires finally return to their original authors, who can look at what their statements have set off in their classmates. To aid the students in taking a deeper look at and identifying with some characters, they can be asked to look out for similarities between themselves and the characters (cf. Müller-Hartmann & Schocker-von Ditfurth 2014: 24f.; Roell 2010: 9; Teppen 2012). Mat No. 6 deals with this. Students can choose any of the protagonists or minor characters. If they need help, the teacher can for example suggest to look at personality traits, things they (dis)like or fight for/against, etc. However, aspects like outer appearance or other identification issues provide valuable grounds for discussion, too. By prompting students to look at the characters in this way, it is hoped that they discover glimpses of the complexity and individuality that everybody’s social identities are built upon (cf. Byram et al. 2002: 5). As a follow-up, the teacher can bring up the challenging question of who is the good guy and who is the bad guy in the film. Teppen (2012: 49f.) provides a convincing answer to this question (cf. also Thomas 2004): In Ae Fond Kiss… there are no “good guys” or “bad guys”, one is able to see the point of view of both Muslim British-Pakistanis as well as the White Western Catholics, not idolising or stereotyping either side, rather allowing each individual a voice. [...] Loach is not very popular among his compatriots [...] and this can in fact be seen as a stamp of quality in this respect: [...] Loach does not merely perpetuate the stereotypical and colonist dominant ideology. He is, in fact, empathetic with both sides; the Western and the Muslim. 7

A further activity could deal with students’ responses to the open ending of the film. Students can talk about how they liked the ending and how they think the story might go on. Guiding questions might be: Will it be “just a kiss, with no future to follow”, as vaguely suggested by Monti (2009a: 117)? Will love win or the cultural differences? Is this the only solution? Which other ones might have been possible? (based on Hesse 2010: 188). To present their results, students can be asked to describe an alternative ending or a scene in which either Casim or Roisin tell their grandchildren about the events in the film. Questions that students need to answer, among others, are: Are Casim and Roisin still together? Who is their (current) partner? Who are the grandchildren’s parents? A further topic that lends itself to classroom work with Ae Fond Kiss includes a treatment of intertextuality in the film (cf.. Hesse 2010: 190ff.), such as the use Robert Burns’ song in the film and its title (including its being renamed Just a Kiss) and the film being critiqued as a modern Romeo and Juliet story (cf. Holden 2004). 7

In this context, Surkamp (2008: 18) reminds us that we have to be aware of the fact that films do not simply reflect reality, but may also react to it.

229

230

Great Britain

To support students in changing perspective, they can finally be asked to think about transporting the story into their home country or culture. They can be asked to think about whether the story could have occurred in their home town or which things would most probably have been different. Since most students will have a (slightly) different picture of their home community, depending on their personal background, their answers to this question will presumably vary, which can in turn provide a rich background for exchanges on different views on the same issue, i.e. a shared reality (cf. Roell 2010).8 7

Summary

The present chapter has outlined the potential of the film Ae Fond Kiss with respect to the teaching of ICC to advanced learners at secondary school level. Byram’s concept of ICC has been introduced and discussed with reference to classroom practice. Different activities have been presented as a selection of the many possible opportunities that the film offers. Film reference Ae Fond Kiss. Director: Ken Loach. Screenplay: Paul Laverty. United Kingdom: Icon Movies. DVD 2004. 104 Minutes.

References Blell, Gabriele; Doff, Sabine (2014), It takes more than two for this tango: Moving beyond the self/other-binary in teaching about culture in the global EFL-classroom. Zeitschrift für Interkulturellen Fremdsprachenunterricht 19: 1, 77-96. Burger, Günter (1995), Fiktionale Filme im fortgeschrittenen Fremdsprachenunterricht. Die Neueren Sprachen 96: 4, 592-608. Byram, Michael (1997), Teaching and Assessing Intercultural Communicative Competence. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters. Byram, Michael; Gribkova, Bella & Starkey, Hugh (2002), Developing the Intercultural Dimension in Language Teaching. A Practical Introduction for Teachers. Strasbourg: Council of Europe. [Online: http://www.coe.int/t/dg4/linguistic/Source/Guide_dimintercult_ EN.pdf 01.04.2016]. Byram, Michael (2008), Intercultural Citizenship and Foreign Language Education. Paper presented at the conference European Year of Intercultural Dialogue: Discussing with languages cultures, 12.-14.12. 2008, Thessaloniki. Actes du Congrès International «Année Européenne du Dialogue Interculturel: communiquer avec les langues-cultures, 122-132. [Online: http://www.frl.auth.gr/sites/congres/Interventions/FR/byram.pdf 01.04.2016].

8

The various answers that Norwegian teenage students from Drammen Videregående Skole gave in response to this question can be viewed in the documentation of ‘Roads to Equality’, a European Comenius 1 School Development Project that comprised a partnership of different European schools (http://www.roadstoequality.org/documents/A%20Fond%20Kiss.Comenius %20projec.doc 01.04.2016).

Developing ‘Intercultural Communicative Competence’ with Ae Fond Kiss

Council of Europe (2001), Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, Teaching, Assessment. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Fisch, Jonas & Viebrock, Britta (2013), Between Visual Literacy and Film Literacy: Working with Film Posters in the EFL Classroom. In: Elsner, Daniela; Helff, Sissy & Viebrock, Britta (Eds.), Cultural Studies meets TEFL: Teaching Multiliteracies with Graphic Novels, Films & Visual Art. Münster: LIT Verlag, 121-138. Grieser-Kindel, Christine; Henseler, Roswitha & Möller, Stefan (2006), Method Guide: Schüleraktivierende Methoden für den Englischunterricht in den Klassen 5 – 10. Paderborn: Schöningh. Hesse, Mechthild (2010), ‘Disciplining Boys with Marriage Arrangements’: Bali Rai’s (Un)arranged Marriage in the EFL Classroom. In: Eisenmann, Maria; Grimm, Nancy & Volkmann, Laurenz (Eds.), Teaching the New English Cultures and Literatures. Heidelberg: Winter, 183-195. HKM Hessisches Kultusministerium (2010), Lehrplan Englisch. Gymnasialer Bildungsgang. Jahrgangsstufen 5G bis 9G und gymnasiale Oberstufe. [Online: https://verwaltung.hessen. de/irj/HKM_Internet?cid=48a34f21388de135d056cf8266b8b151 02.10.2015]. HKM Hessisches Kultusministerium (2016), Kerncurriculum gymmasiale Oberstufe Englisch. [Online: https://kultusministerium.hessen.de/sites/default/files/media/kcgo-e.pdf 01.04.2016] Holden, Stephen (2004), Defiance Cuts Two Ways in a Tempestuous Catholic-Muslim Romance Set in Scotland. The New York Times, 26 November 2004. [Online: http://www.nytimes.com/2004/11/26/movies/defiance-cuts-two-ways-in-atempestuous-catholicmuslim-romance-set.html 01.04.2016]. Jackson, Jane (Ed.) (2012), The Routledge Handbook of Language and Intercultural Communication. London: Routledge. Kagan, Spencer (2013), Kagan Cooperative Learning Structures. San Clemente, CA: Kagan Publishing. Kelly, Laura (2005), The Challenge Of Catholic, Muslim Love. South Florida Sun-Sentinel, 11 March 2005. [Online: http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2005-03-11/entertainment/ 0503090951_1_films-muslim-kiss 01.04.2016]. Lindner, Oliver (2010), India: The Jewel in the Classroom. In: Eisenmann, Maria; Grimm, Nancy & Volkmann, Laurenz (Eds.), Teaching the New English Cultures and Literatures. Heidelberg: Winter, 59-72. Mayer-Großkurth, Wolfgang (2010), Teaching Intercultural Communicative Competence. Eine Unterrichtssequenz in der Oberstufe. Forum Sprache 4, 99-118. Monti, Alessandro (2009a), Rights to Love and the Denied Self in Bollywood Films. Rivista di Studi Sudasiatici 3.1 [S.l.], 85-126. [Online: http://www.fupress.net/index.php/rss/ article/view/3171 01.04.2016]. Monti, Silvia (2009b), Codeswitching and Multicultural Identity in Screen Translation. In: Pavesi, Maria & Freddi, Maria (Eds.), Analysing Audiovisual Dialogue: Linguistic and Translational Insights. Bologna: CLUEB, 1000-1019. MSW Ministerium für Schule und Weiterbildung des Landes Nordrhein-Westfalen (2014), Kernlehrplan für die Sekundarstufe II Gymnasium/Gesamtschule in Nordrhein-Westfalen. Englisch. [Online: http://www.schulentwicklung.nrw.de/lehrplaene/upload/klp_SII/ e/KLP_GOSt_Englisch.pdf 01.04.2016]. Müller-Hartmann, Andreas & Schocker-von Ditfurth, Marita (2014), Introduction to English Language Teaching. Stuttgart: Klett. Plümer, Monika (2011), Modern India in Film: Outsourced – Mr. and Mrs. Iyer. Stuttgart: Klett.

231

232

Great Britain

RAAbits Englisch SEK I/II (2013), Ethnic Communities in Britain - Eine multikulturelle Erfolgsgeschichte? – Eine Landleskundereihe für die Oberstufe (Klasse 11/12). [Online: https://www.school-scout.de/extract/54740/1-Vorschau_als_PDF.pdf 01.04.2016]. Roell, Christine (2010), Intercultural Training with Films. English Teaching Forum 48: 2, 215. Rot Gabrovec, Veronika (2007), Introduction – Intercultural competence through literature, films and songs. In: Lázár, Ildikó; Huber-Kriegler, Martina; Lussier, Denise; Matei, Gabriela S. & Peck, Christiane (Eds.), Developing and Assessing Intercultural Communicative Competence: A Guide for Language Teachers and Teacher Educators. Strasbourg: Council of Europe, 19-22. Rotten Tomatoes, Film Reviews and News. [Online: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/ a_fond_kiss/ 01.04.2016]. Seelye, H. Ned (1993), Teaching Culture: Strategies for Intercultural Communication. Lincolnwood: National Textbook Company. Surkamp, Carola (2008), A Cultural Approach to Films in the Foreign Language Classroom: Gender Roles and Questions of Identity in The Hours. In: Donnerstag, Jürgen & Volkmann, Laurenz (Eds.), Media and American Studies in the EFL-Classroom. Heidelberg: Winter, 15-30. Teppen, Tone Østgård (2012), Conflicting identities in the film Ae Fond Kiss... Master Thesis submitted at the Norwegian university Høgskolen i Østfold. [Online: http://www.nb. no/idtjeneste/URN:NBN:no-bibsys_brage_36098 01.04.2016]. Thaler, Engelbert (2014), Teaching English with Films. Paderborn: Schöningh. Thomas, Kevin (2004), All’s fair in love, but not in ‘Kiss’. Los Angeles Times, 26 November 2004. [Online: http://articles.latimes.com/2004/nov/26/entertainment/et-fond26 01.04.2016]. Wilkinson, Jane (2012), The Intercultural Speaker and the Acquisition of Intercultural/ Global Competence. In: Jackson, Jane (Ed.), The Routledge Handbook of Language and Intercultural Communication. London: Routledge, 296-309. Wilson, Chuck (2004), Film Review in L.A. Weekly, 24 November 2004. [Online: http:// www.rottentomatoes.com/m/a_fond_kiss/ 01.04.2016].

Great Britain

All or Nothing: Mike Leigh’s Film about Deprivation and Redemption in the Advanced English Language Classroom Elisabeth Bracker & Helene Decke-Cornill

The following chapter is devoted to Mike Leigh’s All or Nothing (2002), a film that casts a light on the lives of three families at the social margins of presentday London, struggling to make ends meet, to make sense of their circumstances, and to stay connected in the face of affliction. The article is divided into five sections. The first three introduce the film’s subjects, its aesthetics and its relations to wider socio-political issues, while the other two look at the film from the perspective of classroom teaching, discuss its pedagogic potential and delineate a teaching unit based on the film. 1

What is All or Nothing about?

All or Nothing depicts a few days in the lives of three families with their adolescent offspring in a bleak South London council estate block. The Bassets – Phil and Penny with their children Rachel and Rory – take centre stage, with Phil as the main protagonist going through an existential crisis in the course of the film. Their neighbours are Maureen and her daughter Donna, a single-parent family, and Ron and his stay-at-home wife Carol with their daughter Samantha (Sam). Apart from Carol, an alcoholic, all the parents have jobs, albeit badly paid and precarious: the women as cashiers at the check-out of a huge Safeway supermarket, the men as taxi drivers. Of the young protagonists, only Rachel and Donna go out to work: Rachel is a cleaner in an old people’s home, Donna helps in a snack bar. Rory and Samantha are unemployed, as is Craig, another youth hanging out on the estate. There is never any spare money in these homes, as Penny puts it (00:23:45). Paul Fischer (2002) describes All or Nothing as a melancholy look at the day-to-day lives of a dysfunctional lower-middle class British family called the Bassets. Timothy Spall and Lesley Manville star as Phil and Penny, a common-law husband and wife who toil their gloomy days away as a cab-driver and grocery-store cashier, respectively. When the couple comes to realize the growing emptiness in their relationship, an unexpected emergency within their family brings them closer together and offers the possibility of reigniting the long-extinguished spark in their marriage.

That emergency is twofold: It is, firstly, the heart attack suffered by young Rory who is overweight like his father and sister, but – unlike them – full of resentment; and it is, secondly, Phil’s awareness that he and Penny have drifted apart and that he cannot

234

Great Britain

bear his loneliness any longer. Of the other characters, Maureen and her estranged daughter, too, experience a crisis with a healing effect: Donna’s unplanned pregnancy by the aggressive Jason brings mother and daughter together again. And Samantha, on her part, is shaken out of her numbness, first, when she realises that her mother is too drunk to call an ambulance to save Rory and she herself has to take over, and later, when Craig worships her by an act of self-mutilation. All or Nothing tells the story of Phil’s existential crisis and weaves parallel stories and episodes into this central narrative, to the effect that the emotional deprivation Phil suffers appears as a common predicament which cannot be overcome individually but only by reaching out to others. Thus, though the film is about being cut off – from social and economic participation and the labour market, and above all from the family, from loved ones, from communication, and meaningfulness – it is also a film about survival, togetherness, and the possibilities of change. Mike Leigh, its writer and director, contradicts people who find All or Nothing depressing and gloomy. In an interview with Derek Malcolm in 2002, he maintains: “I feel that this film is entirely about redemption. It’s about connecting. I don’t think it arrives at completely comfortable conclusions. […] But I do feel that the spirit of the film points towards hopeful possibilities.” 2

Film analysis

In this section, we reconstruct the film’s composition – the way it is told and the characters and topics intertwined in its narration. We do so by first describing its general structure and then by looking into two selected scenes: the opening credits scene and the dinner-time-at-the-Bassets’ sequence. 2.1

Overall structure of the film

The film consists of two major parts, each about an hour long. The first part begins with an account of a normal day in the lives of the protagonists, with its routines and worries and drabness. We see them in their various workplaces and during their breaks, follow them on their return home in the evening, watch them at dinner time, in the evening and in bed (1-6, 00:00:18-00:36:20). We then follow them through the weekend with its other routines but equal frustrations and disappointments (7-8, 00:36:21-00:52:15). We finally catch glimpses of them on the day(s) after the weekend (9, 00:52-16-01:02:40.) The second part (10-16, 01:02:41-01:59:40) focuses more on the Basset family, notably on Phil, and the culmination of the crisis that was unfolded in the first part: After a talk with passenger Cécile – the only bourgeois and wealthy character in the film – about family relations, estranged sons, and loneliness, Phil turns off his taxi radio and his mobile phone and drives out of town to the sea. At the same time, at home, Rory suffers a heart attack during a ball game in the courtyard. These two events, both heart-related in different ways, are intercut with one another in a sequence that functions as the film’s climax and turning-point (10, 01:06:06-01:13:52). The ‘falling action’ of the following sequences – Penny’s desperate attempt to get to the hospital and to reach Phil, Rory’s diagnosis, Phil’s arrival at the hospital and resigned acceptance of the situation, Penny’s resentment in the face of his passivity and lack of support (11-13, 01:06:13-01:31:00) – leads to the cathartic finale and epilogue (14-15, 01:31:10-01:59:40).

All or Nothing: Mike Leigh’s Film about Deprivation and Redemption

2.2

The opening credits scene

Fig. 1: All or Nothing. Director: Mike Leigh. Great Britain 2002. (00:00:46)

For long stretches, the film is in indeterminate, dull colours, conveying a subdued mood. This mood is already set right at the beginning, in the first scene which plays in the background of the credit sequence and ends with it, and is accompanied by soft flute and string music. The scene is taken in a single shot from a camera positioned symmetrically in the middle of the picture looking into an empty corridor narrowing far into the background, with doors on each side. The corridor is crossed in the middleand far distance by some daylight from unseen windows left and right. A heavy young woman (Rachel, but we do not know this yet) comes into view in the half-lit middle distance. We will not get any closer to her in that scene. She is dressed in sensible black shoes and stockings and wearing an apron over her clothes. She is wiping the floor in unhurried, repetitive movements. A frail old woman in a long bathrobe approaches from the far distance, cautiously holding on to a handrail. When she comes closer, Rachel warns her about the wet floor and offers her a hand. In mute refusal, the woman firmly presses her arm to her body and disappears to the right, with Rachel looking on, ready to help. Mike Leigh has given Rachel, who hardly ever speaks in the film, the first and only words in this scene. She is presented as a young woman, who, in a self-effacing way, seems aware of people and prepared to help them. This will be her role throughout the film, with only two exceptions: one, when she refuses to go for a walk with her mother Penny – she would have been Penny’s second choice anyway (see 2.3) –, and two, when she neither seems to understand nor complies with her colleague Sid’s allusive endeavours to gain her (sexual) attention. The opening of All or Nothing meets Saul Bass’s expectations of a title sequence: “to set the mood and the prime underlying core of the film’s story, to express the story in some metaphorical way” (1996, quoted by Evans 2001). It does so by raising the question of vulnerability, rejection, and (non-)connectedness that runs through the film. It also introduces the issue of routine and monotony that will be picked up when we see Penny and Maureen at their check-out tills or Maureen ironing for her neighbours or Phil and Ron taxi-driving or the boys in the courtyard idly kicking a ball.

235

236

Great Britain

2.3

Dinnertime at the Bassets’

The opening scene discussed above is part of a sequence introducing the adult characters at work and on their way home. This is followed by a sequence showing the Bassets at home during dinnertime, which consists of three main shots or scenes and serves as a portrayal of their everyday family life. In the first shot, the camera follows Phil as he walks into the kitchen of the family’s apartment, loaded with plastic bags of hamburger buns. The camera comes to a halt showing Penny, Phil and Rachel in a medium shot, standing in the kitchen together. The picture is framed by the door casing, as though the camera were a silent observer of the scenario with its oppressive narrowness. The women are placed at the counters on the right and left side, both busy cooking; Phil is in the centre of the picture. Penny asks Phil about the burger buns. His answer represents one of the many instances of loneliness and rejection that are characteristic of the film: The buns had been given to him as a tip by a drunken customer who had bought them for a barbecue at which nobody showed up. The cramped kitchen is shown in brown-greyish colours, the only light coming from a window covered by a net curtain. The three protagonists, too, are seen in muted colours, melting into their environment, becoming one with their surroundings. The costumes form an important part of that effect. In an interview with Derek Malcolm (2002), Mike Leigh explains how the costume designer Jacqueline Durran set to work: Jacqueline managed to dress this film for next to nothing. She hit the charity shops everywhere. She would go out to get one sweater and come back with 200 of them. […] She was really on top of the quite sophisticated job of squaring the colour and palate requirements with the character requirements.

In the second shot, the camera follows Phil as he turns to the living room, spotting Rory who is spread out on the big colourless couch in the middle of the packed and narrow room. His eyes are glued to a television set which the audience cannot see but from which sounds of shooting can be heard. When Phil asks Rory about his day – “What have you been up to today, then?” –, it is Penny who answers instead: “He’s been fighting today.” Rory reacts furiously with a “Fuck off, mom”, and Penny, exasperated, asks him to stop swearing at her. The conversation continues with Rory swearing, Penny asking him to stop and Phil half-heartedly trying to mediate between them. The camera focuses on the respective speaker in close-up as if to give a detailed account of their respective positions in that triangle. Phil is shown as a bewildered father, unable to take sides in the domestic struggle and leaving Penny to her own devices. Penny, for her part, seems hopelessly stuck in an ongoing and fruitless attempt to stir Rory out of his indolence and to civilise him. Rory is depicted as a stubborn, aggressive and wholly isolated teenager who is best at “doing a whole lot of nothing”, as Phil describes his son later on in the film. The shot ends with Phil and Penny silently looking at each other and Phil leaving the room, shying away from the conflict. The third and last shot shows the family at the dinner table in the kitchen/dining room (cf. Mat No. 1). It begins with a medium-shot still of all four and is accompanied by television sounds: soft music, the clattering of silverware, laughter. Again the door casing functions as the picture’s frame and contributes to the atmosphere of narrowness. Phil and Rory are placed in the foreground and Penny and Rachel in the background which again results in a symmetrical picture. However, the symmetry is broken by Rory who does not face the table like the rest of the family but leans away

All or Nothing: Mike Leigh’s Film about Deprivation and Redemption

from it towards the television set in the living-room, his plate on his lap. The silence is interrupted by Phil who asks Penny about her day. Her answer is brief because her mind is on Rory. She asks him to put his plate on the table which earns her an aggressive reaction. Ignoring the dispute, Phil tells his family about an old and fragile customer who had hired his taxi although he lives just around the corner. Twice in his report, Phil is at a loss for words, but Rachel, who has been silent so far, helps him. Penny criticises Phil for having accepted a fare for such a short drive, but Phil defends himself by referring to the old man’s dignity – a word that Rachel provides for him. After Phil has finished his story, the camera focuses on Penny who looks into the distance, then turns to Phil: “It’s a nice evening outside. I haven’t been for a walk in ages.” When Phil does not react to her implicit entreaty, she turns to Rachel who refuses to go with her. A little later, Phil suggests taking Penny out for a drink, but she refuses him. The changes between medium shots of all four together and facial close-ups of each of them convey the impression of a family trapped in a claustrophobic world in which stifling closeness and individual isolation go together. 3

Topics related to wider social contexts

In the following, we look at three dimensions characterising the film: milieu, food, and swearing. It is important to state that, although all three are prominent, All or Nothing is by no means a film about them alone. It succeeds in not reducing any of its protagonists to their environment or eating habits or language by looking at them with an interest that does not aim to categorise them. 3.1

Milieu

The film’s main characters are neighbours living in a bleak housing estate whose apartments can be reached via balconies running along the fronts of the buildings. Housing is a crucial topic in Britain. Under Lloyd George’s 1919 Housing and Town Planning Act, housing was declared a public and social responsibility, and local authorities were granted subsidies to build houses that people with a modest income could afford to rent. These people became a target group in Margaret Thatcher’s ‘rightto-buy’ campaign. “Giving council tenants the opportunity to buy the homes they were living in – at a generous discount – was one of the defining policies of the Thatcher era,” Brian Wheeler (2015), a BBC reporter, explains. He adds that such plans had been discussed as early as in the 1930s, but were taken off the agenda in the aftermath of World War II. In that era, the Labour government increased its investment into council housing, leading to a rapid growth of new estates. In the 1950s, the Conservative government followed suit, “but the emphasis shifted at the end of the decade towards slum clearance, as millions were uprooted from cramped, run-down inner-city terraces and re-housed in purpose-built new towns or high-rise blocks.” Disillusionment came soon, when “[b]y the early 1970s, the concrete walkways and ‘streets in the sky’ that had once seemed so pristine and futuristic, were becoming grim havens of decay and lawlessness.” (Ibid.) The Labour housing ministry did not oppose the privatisation plans, but soon realised that it might “spell the end of Labour’s vision of a ‘cradle to grave’ welfare state, as working class people embraced a more materialistic, Thatcherite way of life.” Such concerns were swept aside by New Labour. Wheeler (2015) summarises the consequences:

237

238

Great Britain

The ‘right-to-buy’ phenomenon had led, as some on the left had predicted, to a massive depletion in council housing stock – made worse by the refusal of successive governments to allow local authorities to spend the windfall they received from council house sales on building new ones. The housing bubble was also fuelled by the ‘buy-tolet’ phenomenon, as speculators bought up run-down former local authority housing as a source of income. Council housing estates were fast becoming the accommodation of last resort for those left behind by society, as families on middle incomes sold up and moved out.

It is against this backdrop that All or Nothing is set. The housing estate that Mike Leigh’s location manager found was a ghost estate of 340 abandoned flats in Greenwich. It is interesting to note that the homes that are shown are not really flats but a bizarre mimicry of the terrace houses once inhabited by lower middle-class and working-class people: All three have a ground floor with kitchen and living-room and a narrow carpeted staircase leading to the bedrooms. Tenants of such housing estates have low and unreliable incomes and find it hard to make ends meet (see Phil’s begging for money, Maureen’s ironing job on the side). With their insecure jobs, they form part of what Guy Standing (2011a, b) has coined the global precariat. “The precariat consists of those who feel their lives and identities are made up of disjointed bits, in which they cannot construct a desirable narrative or build a career, combining forms of work and labour, play and leisure in a sustainable way.” (Standing 2011b) The author attributes the emergence of the precariat to economic globalisation and neo-liberalism. This new class-in-the-making consists of well-educated young freelancers, immigrants, and those who, like the older protagonists of the film, formerly would have belonged to the working class or the lower middle class. They are people in hire-and-fire circumstances. Safeway, for example, the supermarket that features as Penny’s and Maureen’s workplace in the film, was taken over by another company shortly after the film was made, and many branches were closed down. Unemployment, income cuts and social decline lurk in the background. It is especially the young people in the film who suffer from this development. They are unemployed or their jobs are even more insecure than those of their parents, with no fulfilling identity narrative in sight. They personify the term “redundant” in all its cruelty. Rory lies on the couch watching TV or kicks the ball with others like him or sits on the stairs smoking, looking for something to do, full of uncontrollable rage. Craig directs his unspent energy into his growing obsession with Samantha who is so bored that she grabs the chance of Jason’s and Donna’s row to have sex with Jason (00:58:20). 3.2

Food

Food is a leitmotif of the film and worth taking a closer look at. In the dinner sequence described above, Phil comes into the apartment loaded with plastic bags of burger buns, and the first conversation between Penny and Phil is about these buns: Penny asks Phil about the expiry date, which turns out to be four months away. She concludes that the far-away date (ironically called ‘long-life’) has to do with “chemicals”, but does not seem to worry too much about them. Instead, she plans to buy burgers to make use of them. At the same time, the Bassets’ neighbour Maureen offers her daughter chicken pie and chips for dinner. In the other neighbouring family, Ron and Sam realise that there is no food in their home. In her drunken state, Carol had not noticed that they had

All or Nothing: Mike Leigh’s Film about Deprivation and Redemption

already eaten the chicken korma she believed to be still in the refrigerator. The only option left seems to be the take-away. For a middle-class audience, accustomed to discourses of physical workout, vitamins and fresh ingredients, this complete lack of health awareness and the unquestioned consumption of junk food are remarkable. The depiction of eating habits in All or Nothing is in line with social findings in Great Britain. In an article entitled “Britain’s food habits: how well do we eat” (2011), Jon Henley, a Guardian reporter, states that “food has become, more than ever, one of the main indicators of social and class distinction.” According to Patrick Butler, another Guardian reporter, the consumption of fat, sugar and saturates – all ingredients of the meals mentioned above – is constantly soaring, whereas “fruit and vegetable consumption has dropped […] most starkly”, particularly in low-income households (2012). Food experts as well as sociologists have tried to analyse this ‘food poverty’. The widely held assumption that fresh, healthy food is more expensive than processed food has proven to be wrong. This is the result of a study conducted by Tim Lobstein (2010), researcher at the International Association for the Study of Obesity. However, healthy food is hard to get in some places because “big supermarkets offering a wide variety of quality foods at fair prices are not thick on the ground in deprived inner cities, favouring wealthier suburbs and out-of-town sites for car-owning customers” (Henley 2011). Food poverty is a major factor contributing to “public health problems that threaten to widen inequalities between rich and poor households” (Butler 2012). Accordingly, “illnesses related to poor diet – including obesity, anemia, diabetes, raised blood pressure, heart and vascular disease […] – all tend to be more prevalent in lowincome groups” (Henley 2011). From the perspective of the comfort eaters, eating can best be understood if the focus is shifted “away from the food itself”, psychologist Shira Gabriel from the State University of New York, Buffalo, maintains (quoted by Romm 2015). Gabriel explains: We tend to think about the need to belong as a fundamental human need. And by doing that, we’re equating it to other fundamental human needs, like the need for food or water […]. When it’s not fulfilled, you’re driven to fulfill it, in the same way that when you’re hungry, you’re driven towards food. So when you feel lonely or you feel rejected, you’re psychologically driven towards finding a way to belong. (Ibid.)

This can be eating but it can also be any other activity that stills that need. In All or Nothing, we see Carol drinking herself into oblivion, Rory eating and smoking, Rachel eating and reading, and we suspect that they are driven by some such need. All or Nothing reaches its climax when Rory, Phil’s and Penny’s obese teenage son, collapses due to a heart attack. A medical doctor informs Rory and his mother that it was time to give up “burgers and chips and fry-ups and crisps. And all that crap” (01:26:03) – unaware of what may drive Rory to such ‘comfort food’. The last scene of the film mirrors the burger bun scene of its beginning. We see the family walking down the corridor and Phil holding a huge bunch of bananas as a gift for Rory. The heap of chemical-loaded burger buns is symbolically superseded by a heap of fresh bananas. What the family brings above all, however, is not just healthy food, but the togetherness Rory had missed before.

239

240

Great Britain

3.3

The use of swear words

Asked by Derek Malcolm (2002) about the rating the film was given in GB – age 18, as against the FSK age-12 recommendation in Germany – Mike Leigh replied: It’s an 18 because of the use of the word cunt. If it did not have the word it would have had a lower rating, apparently. It’s disappointing that a younger audience won’t be able to see it but I can do nothing other than accept that that is a reasoning with a certain kind of logic. I realise that nobody under 18 has ever heard the word cunt.

Mike Leigh concedes that he “would draw a subtle distinction between fuck and cunt” himself (ibid.). In his film, ‘cunt’ occurs 7 times, ‘fuck’ is pronounced 118 times. The more tabooed and offensive of these two four-letter words is used by a taxi passenger with regard to the thief of his bike and by Carol with reference to Phil because he never asked Penny to marry him. In both cases, it refers to absent people. It is only Jason who uses the pars-pro-toto word in face-to-face encounters, first with Craig, but more thoroughly with Donna and Maureen. In these contexts, its contemptuous sexual connotation is stressed and it is chosen to deeply humiliate the women addressed. It matches Jason’s other verbal assaults which are founded on a competitive sexuality in which women are constructed as sexual service providers and rated according to their performance, very much in accordance with the hire-and-fire labour situation described above. In their study of the use of swear words, Vingerhoets, Bylsma and de Vlam (2013: 288) agree with other researchers that [a]cross the world, the most commonly used taboo categories for swearing involve bodily functions, body parts, sex, and religion […]. Since swear words are based on a culture’s taboo categories and these words can be judged as shocking, swearing people are often considered to be antisocial and offensive.

The team’s research does not focus on the effects of swearing but on the numerous functions swearing can have for the swearing individual. Three of them apply to All or Nothing: On an intra-individual plane, swearing serves as stress relief and/or replaces or prevents physical aggression (although both Jason and Rory, the top-swearers in the film, exert some physical aggression, too). On an inter-individual plane, it serves to “inhibit unwanted behaviors of others” (300f.). 4

Why this film in the English language classroom?

All or Nothing is probably not a film that a young audience in Germany would rush to see of their own accord. However, they could well benefit from watching it, thinking about it and discussing it. It is suitable for classroom purposes because of what it shows us, and also because of what it does not. It does not judge the protagonists it presents. It does not reduce them to the circumstances in which they live. It does not attempt to explain their psyches. It does not reveal their inner lives. Instead, it follows them with respectful curiosity and leaves ample room for sense-making, interpretation and ambiguity, and offers food for negotiation of meaning in class, while asking its audience to refrain from immediate categorisation and hasty judgment. To begin with, the film portrays a milieu that, given the social structure of the German school system, will be unfamiliar to many A-level students. None of the characters that it models has made it to that privileged rung of the educational ladder.

All or Nothing: Mike Leigh’s Film about Deprivation and Redemption

It allows an insight into the living conditions, places, eating habits, weekend activities, relationships and concerns of people on the margins of contemporary economy. While the older generation seems to accept their social fate, some of the younger generation, threatened by being permanently made redundant, express their unhappiness and humiliation – although in a misdirected and self-destructive manner. The situation of the families described in the film can incite an interest in the impact of globalisation and privatisation on communities and on individual lives and perspectives, not only in London but also in Germany and worldwide. At the same time, the protagonists are not presented as aliens. They are depicted as complex human beings, sharing the human need to belong, to be loved, respected and accepted. This central concern with regard to the film’s characters forms a common ground for any audience. “I have to say that I don’t really personally see it as a film about London, England, Britain or English things. Obviously the milieu, the territory and the landscape is that but I am more concerned with the emotional landscape”, Mike Leigh stresses in his interview with Derek Malcolm (2002). Family life is crucial to the emotional landscape of the film. The relationship between the younger and the older generation, the theme of growing up, of remaining dependent or becoming independent, the issue of role models and their absence, the repetitions in family histories etc., these are subjects that, again, are not limited to the community described. Furthermore, the film provides fascinating material for closer studies of interaction and communication, including its nonverbal dimension. This is especially important because English language classrooms focus overmuch on the explicit level of communication and neglect the implicit level that plays a crucial part in real-life communication. Excerpts from the film script in combination with the respective film scenes offer useful cases for a close study of the intricacy of communication and the difficulty of successful interaction. Finally, with All or Nothing, the students become acquainted with a film by one of the most renowned British film directors whose work includes such masterpieces as Bleak Moments (1971), Secrets & Lies (1996), Vera Drake (2004), and, most recently, Mr Turner (2014). They can find out about his subjects and style, his approaches to filmmaking, the influences that have inspired his work and the way he has inspired filmmaking. They could try and look at the film from the assumed perspective of Leigh and his camera team and think about possible reasons for his choice of location, his casting, and the way his camera closes up on faces that are normally not considered worth looking at. 5

Classroom approaches and activities

This final section makes suggestions for an approach to the film in an advanced English language class. Step 1: watching the film The question of how to fit a feature film into the time schedule of school lessons is notorious and cannot be answered once and for all. All or Nothing has a length of two hours, and would take up several lessons if watched in class together. We suggest that the students watch the film at home on YouTube. Unlike on DVD, subtitles are not

241

242

Great Britain

included in the YouTube version. Therefore, each student should be given the complete film script (see online material) to enable them to check difficult passages and help them tackle their homework task sheet. Homework task sheet (1) Watch the film All or Nothing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZ8KtAhPExA. Consult the film script if necessary. (2) Take notes of your first impressions and keep them in your folder so that you can see whether your impressions have changed at the end of the teaching unit on All or Nothing. (3) Prepare answers to the following questions relating to All or Nothing: • Which topic would you like to talk about in class? Why? • Which scene (one only) would you most like to talk about? Why? • Which of the characters would you like to study in detail?

Step 2: plenary film debate After the students have watched the film individually, they must be given ample time for an exchange about their impressions, observations, and responses. The initial impulse should be very open, e.g. “So what was it like for you to watch All or Nothing?” The teacher’s role here is to listen, to tolerate silence so that the students do not feel pressurised, and to encourage them to explain their feelings and reactions as fully as possible to one another. They must also be given the chance to judge the film and explain their judgments: “What did you like about the film? What did you dislike?” This phase can also be used to ask questions about aspects that seem unclear or unconvincing. Once the students’ questions and comments are exhausted, the teacher can try to widen the discussion by asking further questions, e.g. “In an interview with Mike Leigh, Derek Malcolm said that the film showed strong women and weak men? Do you agree?” (By the way: Mike Leigh did not.) Other questions could be: “Taxi driving plays an important part in the film. Do you know other taxi films? What makes a taxi an attractive setting for a film?” or: “Do you feel that the film has a happy ending? Is it convincing?” or: “Would you like to meet any of the protagonists? Whom in particular?” Step 3: reconstruction of the film’s overall structure While the aim of the classroom discussion in Step 2 is to collect spontaneous impressions and judgments and let students speak freely about their responses, Step 3 needs a more structured approach. It aims at reconstructing the film’s order of sequences to gain an overview of its overall composition. This can be done in the following manner: • •

The students are asked to write down titles or key words on cardboard strips from memory, e.g. Rory’s heart attack, Phil at the seaside, The empty fridge. They are then asked to put them in a chronological order, again from memory, either with magnets on the board or on the floor – both allowing for corrections and rearrangements.

All or Nothing: Mike Leigh’s Film about Deprivation and Redemption

•

They are finally asked to check their order against the listing of sequences (see online material) and correct it where necessary.

Step 4: detailed analysis of a film scene By now, the students should have gained an overview of the structure, the main characters and the central topics and issues of the film and be prepared for a closer film-specific analysis of a selected scene. A suitable worksheet (cf. Worksheet 2) allows for a multi-layered description: 1. Camera range, perspective, movement: What do you see? What does the camera frame? Where is it placed? How does the camera eye move within the space? Etc. 2. Lighting and colours: How is the scene lit? Where are the shadows? What are the colours? Etc. 3. Sound and music: What do you hear? How do the sounds interact? Are they part of the film or extra-diegetic? Etc. 4. Montage/editing techniques: In what way are the individual shots linked, both with regard to time and place? For this Step, a jigsaw approach seems appropriate. The class is divided by four, each quarter of the students forming an expert group for one of the four categories.

While the short scene is played again and again, the students take notes for the category they are responsible for, then come together in their expert groups (group A: camera, group B: lighting and colours; etc.) and compare their observations. Next, the expert groups dissolve and the students form groups in which each of the four categories are represented by (at least) one expert. These groups are asked to integrate the experts’ findings, to analyse the overall composition of the scene, to discuss its function within the film and to evaluate it. Finally, the groups present and discuss their analyses and evaluations and compare them in class. Step 5: portraits of the young protagonists All or Nothing is not a film about adolescence. However, the six adolescent characters – Rachel and Rory, Sam, Donna, Craig and Jason – play a major role. None of them is given to talking about their thoughts and feelings, their hopes, their views of each other and their parents, their views of the world etc. Who are they? How can one make sense of their behaviour, their looks, their movements, their utterances? These questions call for the hot-seat method. The teacher prepares slips of paper according to the number of students. Each slip of paper has a name of one of the six young characters on it. Every student is asked to pick a slip of paper and join the classmates who have picked the same name, so that the class is split into six groups: ‘group Rachel’, ‘group Rory’, and so on. In the groups, the students discuss ‘their’ protagonist, speculate about his or her thoughts and feelings, dreams, former experiences, school life, interests and plans, future etc. In that way, they prepare for the hot seat phase in which one student from each group slips into the role of the respective character. He or she is placed in the middle of the class and interrogated by the other students of the course. Step 6: 15-minute presentations Some aspects of the film can serve as group work assignments or subjects of class discussion, and also as suitable topics for 15-minute presentations, for example:

243

244

Great Britain

 Jason and Rory are the top swearers in the film. Choose one of the two and study his verbal behaviour: When does he swear? Why does he do so? What effect does it have on those he swears at? What effect does his behaviour have on you?  Choose one of the following interactions – or any other of your choice – and analyse it on the basis of the respective film and script (online material) excerpt(s): • Penny, Maureen and Carol in the karaoke bar • Phil asking his children and Penny for money • Sid trying to chat up Rachel • Phil and Cécile • Sam and Craig.  Describe and discuss the role of food in the film.  Among the locations of the film, the estate with its apartments and courtyard is central. Describe it in detail and discuss it by referring to Brian Wheeler’s article (2015): A history of social housing. 1  What are the socio-economic circumstances of the families portrayed in All or Nothing?  Introduce the film director Mike Leigh, his films, topics and style and his statements about All or Nothing. The students should be encouraged to come up with topics of their own choice. Their presentations should include relevant film scenes and references to the film script (online material) if necessary. Step 7: wrap-up class discussion At the end of the unit, the students should return to the notes they took of their first impressions (see Step 1) and communicate as to whether and in what way these have been confirmed, modified or changed in the course of the unit. This phase should be concluded with a discussion of a final critical point: “All or Nothing is a film that shows the powerful impact of economic circumstances on individual lives but seems to accept these circumstances as given and focuses on the fact that people can be saved by holding on to each other. Would you consider the film a-political?” 6

Conclusion

The above chapter dealt with a film about the lives of a group of neighbourhood families troubled by unemployment, low income, and oppressive living conditions. The presentation began with a description of the film’s subject, its protagonists, their milieu and their woes. It showed them not only as deprived by their economic circumstances but as cut off from each other and in existential need of belonging and acceptance. The subsequent analysis of the film’s construction was followed by two closer readings, first, of the opening credit scene because it grasps the film’s mood and subject in a nutshell, and second, of a sequence that depicts the central character and his family in a characteristic setting and interaction. Three aspects raised by the film were then examined on a more general, intra- and extra-filmic plane: housing, eating, swearing. They were chosen because of their central role in the film and their general social 1

Http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-14380936 01.04.2016.

All or Nothing: Mike Leigh’s Film about Deprivation and Redemption

interest, but also because they are certain to relate in one way or the other to the students’ own experiences. The chapter ended with an account of the teaching potential of All or Nothing and an outline of a teaching unit in which the adolescent protagonists are given special attention. Focusing on a certain social mileu and its protagonists, the teaching unit deals with central curricular issues as ‘individual and society’ is a mandatory subject area in the final school exam (Abitur) in a number of federal states (i.e. Lower Saxony, Berlin, Hamburg). By putting a particular focus on the analysis of filmic devices, the unit also adheres to the call for the integration of systematic film analysis in the EFL classroom (i.e. Senatsverwaltung für Bildung, Jugend und Sport Berlin 2006: IV). Film reference All or Nothing. Director: Mike Leigh. Great Britain 2002. Internet: https://www.youtube. com/watch?v=RZ8KtAhPExA (Accessed 01 April 2016).

References Butler, Patrick (2012), Britain in nutrition recession as food prices and incomes shrink. The Guardian, 18 November 2012. [Online: http://www.theguardian.com/society/2012/ nov/18/breadline-britain-nutritional-recession-austerity 01.04.2016). Evans, Noell W. (2001), Saul Bass: A Film Title Pioneer. [Online: www.digitalmediafx. com/Features/saulbassp.html 01.04.2016]. Fischer, Paul (2002), For Director Leigh, It’s All or Nothing. [Online: http://www. filmmonthly.com/Profiles/Articles/MLeigh/MLeigh.html 01.04.2016]. Henley, Jon (2011), Britain’s food habits: how well do we eat? The Guardian, 10 May 2011.[Online: http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2011/may/10/britains-foodhabits-well-eat 01.04.2016]. Lobstein, Tim et al. (2010): Preventing Childhoof Obesity: Evidence Policy and Practice. Oxford, UK: Wiley Blackwell. Malcolm, Derek (2002), Mike Leigh at the NFT. Guardian interviews at the BFI. The Guardian, 07 October 2002 [Online: http://www.theguardian.com/film/2002/oct/07/ features.mikeleigh 01.04.2016]. Romm, Cari (2015), Why Comfort Food Comforts. A new study looks at the intersection of taste, nostalgia, and loneliness. [Online: http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/ 2015/04/why-comfort-food-comforts/389613/ 01.04.2016]. Senatsverwaltung für Bildung, Jugend und Sport Berlin (2006): Rahmenlehrplan für die gymnasiale Oberstufe. Englisch. [Online: https://www.berlin.de/imperia/md/content/ sen-bildung/unterricht/lehrplaene/sek2_englisch.pdf?start&ts=1429785405&file= sek2_englisch.pdf 01.04.2016]. Standing, Guy (2011a), The Precariat: The New Dangerous Class. [Online: http://www. hse.ru/data/2013/01/28/1304836059/Standing.%20The_Precariat__The_New_Dangero us_Class__-Bloomsbury_USA(2011).pdf 01.04.2016]. Standing, Guy (2011b), Who will be a voice for the emerging precariat? The Guardian, 01 June 2011. [Online: http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2011/jun/01/voicefor-emerging-precariat 01.04.2016].

245

246

Great Britain

Vingerhoets, J.J.M.; Bylsma, Lauren M. & de Vlam, Cornelis (2013), Swearing: A Biopsychosocial Perspective. Psychological Topics 22: 2, 287-304. [Online: http://www. researchgate.net/publication/259780626_Swearing_A_Biopsychosocial_Perspective 01.04.2016]. Wheeler, Brian (2015), A history of social housing, BBC News. [Online: http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-14380936 01.04.2016]. Ziegler, Henning (ongoing online blog): The English teaching blog. [Online: http://henningziegler.de 01.04.2016].

Glossary English term

German term

American shot

Amerikanisch

axial cut

axialer Schnitt

bird’s eye view

Vogelperspektive

camera angle

Kameraperspektive

camera movement cast

cinematography clip

explanation also called 3/4 shot; from Westerns, showing the actors from head to underneath their waist cut where the camera seems to suddenly move closer to/further away from its subject a camera perspective where the camera is placed high above the scene of action the angle at which a camera is pointed at the subject

Kamerabewegung the movement of the camera during a shot Besetzung

the group of actors playing the film’s characters

Clip, Ausschnitt

a short excerpt of a film the field size showing a close view of a character’s face or an object the final sequence of a film presenting the names of all contributors to a production a genre that intends to be humorous a genre combining elements of drama and comedy the use of sound which contradicts the image (for example, a happy tune in a war scene) a shot taken from a crane to view the actors from above, allowing for a wide range of camera movements two different strands of action are linked in time by repeatedly cutting back and forth a cut separates two shots; it is a straightforward switch from one image to the next describes how much of an image appears sharp and clear; a large depth of field is also called deep focus as opposed to a shallow focus also known as extreme close-up, a field size that shows a close view on a detail of a character’s face (e.g., an eye) or a detail of an object a quality of sound; sound is part of the action and can be heard by the characters in the story a person who supervises the actual filming process and is responsible for action, lighting, camera behaviour, music, etc. one shot merges slowly into the next: as the first disappears the second becomes distinct

Kinematographie

close-up

Großaufnahme

closing credits

Nachspann

comedy

Komödie

comedy drama

Dramedy

counterpointing

Kontrapunktierung

crane shot

Krankamera

cross-cutting

Parallelmontage

cut

Schnitt

depth of field

Tiefenschärfe

detail shot

Detailaufnahme

diegetic

diegetisch

director

Regisseur

dissolve

Überblendung

the overall composition of a film

248

Glossary

a genre that is neither comedy nor tragedy; orginally, the term describes the collective enactment of a story also called canted angle, where the camera has Dutch tilt Dutch tilt been rotated relative to the horizon/vertical lines in a shot also known as montage; the process of selecting, editing Filmbearbeitung cutting, structuring and sequentially arranging film material the person in charge of cutting and editing the editor Cutter shots of a film a long shot or extreme long shot that introduces establishing shot Eröffnungsszene a scene and shows its general location also called detail shot, a field size that shows a extreme close-up Detailaufnahme close view on a detail of a character’s face (for example, an eye) or a detail an object a field size showing a panoramic view (for extreme long shot Panorama example, a landscape or a city), often used as an establishing shot hier: Frontala camera perspective where the camera is eye-level aufnahme positioned on the same height as the character starting with a black screen, the image fade-in Aufblendung gradually appears and becomes brighter fade-out Abblendung the opposite of fade-in Einstellungsgröße the field sizes determines how much of a setting field size Bildausschnitt can actually be seen in the film transparent camera lens cover used to produce filter Filter specific effects (e.g., different colouring) a scene or sequence that is inserted into the flashback Rückblende present time and deals with the past flashforward Vorausblende scenes or shots referring to future time field size portraying the characters and only full shot Halbtotale some details of their immediate surroundings hand-held camera Handkamera the camera is not fixed, produces shaky images head and a field size displaying a figure’s face, shoulders Nahaufnahme shoulder close-up and chest a camera perspective where the camera is high angle Obersicht placed at an angle above the scene of action an informal term to denote films set in or historical period Historiendrama reminiscent of a period in the past; could apply drama to different genres a cut between consecutive scenes that creates an jump cut Jump Cut impression of discontinuity the field size showing the characters and larger long shot Totale parts of their surroundings drama

Drama

249

Glossary

low angle

Untersicht

match cut

Match Cut

medium close-up

Halbnaheinstellung

medium long shot Halbtotale mise-en-scène

Inszenierung

montage

Filmbearbeitung

non-diegetic

nicht-diegetisch

opening

Vorspann

overhead

Aufsicht

over-theshoulder-shot

Overshoulder

pan

horizontaler Schwenk

parallel action

Parallelmontage

paraphrase

pre-production

Paraphrase Darstellungsperspektive point-of-viewshot Polarisierung Postproduktion Nachbearbeitung Vorproduktion

producer

Produzent

reaction shot

Reaction Shot

re-adaptation

Neubearbeitung

remake

Neuverfilmung Remake

representation

Darstellung

point of view point-of-view shot polarisation post-production

a camera perspective where the subject is filmed from below, which makes it appear bigger and, possibly, more powerful two shots are linked by visual, oral or metaphorical parallelism, not necessarily by a parallelism of action the field size between medium long shot and close-up the field size that shows the upper halves of the characters’ bodies concerns the setting, the contents and presentation of a single shot also known as editing; the process of selecting, cutting, structuring and sequentially arranging film material a quality of sound; sound is not part of the action and cannot be heard by the characters a list of people involved in the making of a film also called top view; a character, object, or scene is shown from above a shot taken from behind a figure, using its head/shoulders to frame the image being looked at camera movement from left to right or right to left (like somebody turning her/his head) cf. cross-cutting; two different strands of action are developed simultaneously and linked in time by repeatedly cutting back and forth the use of sound to reinforce/explain an image the position from which the camera is filming a camera position where the scene is shown from the point of view of a character the use of sound to disambiguate an image the process of cutting, editing, processing, and fine-tuning the filmed material the process of planning/preparing the filming the person responsible for financing and marketing issues a close-up or medium close up showing a character’s reaction to what he/she has just seen a remake that is not only linked to earlier film versions but also to the original text (or story) a film that uses an earlier version of the film as the main source material the way something is depicted, which can be analysed for its underlying assumptions

250

Glossary

reverse-angle shot

Gegenschuss

romantic drama

Melodramatischer Liebesfilm

scene

Szene

screenplay

Drehbuch

segment

Segment

sequence

Sequenz

shot

Filmeinstellung, Aufnahme

sound

Ton

storyboard

Aufnahmeplan

sports drama

Sportdrama

straight-on-angle

hier: Frontalaufnahme

subtitle

Untertitel

tilt

vertikaler Schwenk

top view

Aufsicht

tracking shot

Kamerafahrt

trailer

Trailer

voice over

Begleitkommentar

zoom

Zoom

zooming in

heranzoomen

zooming out

herauszoomen

a shot from the opposite side a subgenre of romance films usually revolving around an obstacle preventing romantic love between two people a complete unit of film narration, the series of shots taking place in a single location and dealing with a single action the script of a film usually including descripttions of camera movements as well as dialogues a larger unit in a film composed of a number of shots; unifying elements are place, time, theme. a unit of film consisting of one or more scenes that form a natural unit (because of time, actors involved in the shots, setting, theme etc.) the basic unit of a film which can be identified as an uninterrupted sequence of action shown continuously; two shots are separated by a cut dialogues, music; either on-screen or off-screen a drama film that centres around a sports event

a sketch of what is going to be filmed cf. eye-level; the subject is filmed neither from above nor from below; the camera is at eyelevel with the subject; often used to convey the idea of realism, authenticity and objectivity a transcript of dialogues in a film presented at the bottom of the screen the movement of the camera upwards or downwards (like somebody nodding) also called overhead; a character, object, or scene is shown from above the camera moves parallel to the subject; term is derived from the early film practise of putting the camera on a track a short clip for advertising a film the voice of the narrator speaking while other sounds including voices of the characters continue the change of the focal length during a shot ranging from wide angle to telephoto the movement towards the subject with the context of the scene gradually disappearing the movement away from the subject, gradually revealing the context of the scene

The Authors Grit Alter received her PhD from the University of Münster, Germany, in 2015. She currently holds a post-doc position at the University of Innsbruck, Austria, where she teaches at the School of Education/Department of Foreign Language Teacher Education and works on her habilitation project. Her research interests include literature for young readers in foreign language education, concepts of cultural learning, films in ELT, textbook analysis and means of differentiation. Gabriele Blell, Dr. phil., is professor for Teaching and Learning English as a Foreign Language at Leibniz University Hannover, Germany, with Literary and Cultural Didactics (Literatur- und Kulturdidaktik) as her key areas. Her main research interests are: teaching and learning English with film, multiliteracies (audio, visual & audiovisual); reader-response research; cross-linked learning (English and Spanish); diversity and inclusion; Media (Web 2.0). Elisabeth Bracker, Dr. phil., currently works as a research assistant at the University of Hamburg, Germany, where she was also employed from 2009 to 2013. From 2014 to 2015 she was a teacher trainee (Referendarin) of English and German at a grammar school in Berlin. Her fields of interest include literature and film in the English language classroom as well as qualitative methods in educational research. Henriette Dausend, Dr. phil., is junior professor for English in the Center for Teacher Education at Chemnitz University, Germany. She finished her Master of Education (English and PE) at the University of Vechta in 2009. After research and lecturing jobs in Vechta, Frankfurt/Main, Edinburgh and Istanbul, she obtained her PhD for a thesis on early foreign language learning in German primary schools from the Goethe University of Frankfurt, Germany, in 2013. Her major interest are cross-curricular teaching in primary school, the implementation of children’s family languages into foreign language teaching, the use of tablets for teaching and learning languages, and in popular culture (street art and film) in teaching. Helene Decke-Cornill, Dr. phil. habil., served as a professor of English language teaching at the University of Hamburg, Germany, before she retired in 2014. Her fields of interest include literature and film in language education, Gender Studies, diversity in language classes as well as classroom research. Katharina Delius studied English and Latin as well as German as a Foreign Language at Georg-August-University Goettingen, Germany, and the University of Nottingham, UK, and completed her MEd in 2012. Before starting her practical teacher training (2013-2014), she worked as a research assistant. Having temporarily taught at a grammar School in Munich, she is now a research assistant at the chair of Teaching English as a Foreign Language at the University of Potsdam as well as at the GeorgAugust-University Goettingen, particularly interested in the following research areas: empirical classroom research, generic learning, drama-based methods and theatre visits as well as film in English language teaching.

252

The Authors

Britta Freitag-Hild, Dr. phil., is professor of Teaching English as a Foreign Language at the University of Potsdam, Germany. She studied English, German and Music in Gießen, Germany. After her employment as a research assistant at the university of Gießen she worked at a grammar school for several years before continuing her academic career. Her research interests include: teaching Black and Asian British Literature to learners of English, inter- and transcultural competence, genre-based approaches, postcolonial literature as well as film. Maike Grau studied Applied Linguistics and Foreign Language Teaching in Giessen, Germany, Keele, UK, and Madrid, Spain. She earned her PhD at the University of Giessen and a PGCE in Devon, UK. She currently teaches at the University of Education’s English Department in Freiburg, Germany. In her research she is interested in the interface between English as a global language and English taught in school, including the use of films and other media. Nancy Grimm, Dr.phil., is assistant professor of Teching English as a Foreing Language (TEFL) at the University of Jena, Germany. Her research interests include inter-/ transcultural learning, teaching with literature and films, media and digital literacy, as well as Blended and Mobile Learning. Lina Hartmann studies German, English and Philosophy in the Master of Education study program at Leibniz University Hannover, Germany. After several stays in the United States she now pursues her interest in German as a foreign language. For two years she has been teaching German as a foreign language to young adults from countries such as Syria or Iraq and continues to do so alongside her studies. Annika Kreft, MA, is a research assistant at the Department of English and American Studies at Goethe University Frankfurt/Main, Germany. Her research interests include educational standards and competence-based learning, transcultural learning, reading in a foreign languge and the use of fiction and film in foreign language teaching. Currently, she is working on her PhD project, an empirical video-based examination of the potential of fictions of migration for transcultural learning in English foreign language classrooms (middle and high school level). Jan-Erik Leonhardt worked as research assistant at Goethe University Frankfurt/Main, Germany, in 2015, specialising in productive teaching methodology and implementing new media. Currently, he is a teacher trainee (Referendar) of English and German at a grammar school near Frankfurt. Viviane Lohe studied English and German in Frankfurt, Germany, and Birmingham, UK, to become a teacher for secondary schools. Currently, she is a research assistant at Goethe University Frankfurt/Main, where she is finishing her PhD thesis on the development of Language Awareness in primary school children through Multilingual Virtual Talking Books. Her other research interests include the standardisation of TEFL, teaching English to young learners, multiliteracies, and multilingualism in the context of EFL. In university teaching, she focuses on using media in the EFL classroom, designing competence-based lessons as well as task-based and project-based learning and teaching.

The Authors

Matthias Munsch, Dr. phil., is a senior grammar school teacher of English, German and the subject Happiness. Currently, he serves as a senior lecturer at Goethe University Frankfurt/Main supervising future English teachers’ first practical experiences in the field of foreign language teaching. His research interests cover project-oriented teaching and learning, intercultural learning, film, literature and media in foreign language education, learner autonomy as well as meaningfulness. Teresa Schwehm, holds a diploma (MA) in Political Sciences from Free University of Berlin, Germany. Having worked in the field of development cooperation for some years, she decided to become a teacher in 2014. She is currently taking her final exams in English at Goethe University Frankfurt. Her study interests in the field of foreign language teaching are transcultural learning through films and partnership projects with schools in the Global South. Britta Viebrock, Dr. phil., is professor of TEFL Theory and Methodology at Geothe University Frankfurt/Main, Germany. Her research interests include Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL), digital und multimodal literacies, film in English language teaching, teacher professionalism, qualitative research methodology as well as research ethics. She has published several books and articles on selected aspects of the topics mentioned. Katharina Wiese, MEd., is a graduate of German and English Studies at Leibniz University Hannover, Germany. Influenced by her experience as a teaching assistant in the United States and as a teacher of integration classes for immigrants in Germany, she has developed an interest in intercultural learning and teaching German as a foreign language. Eva Wilden, Dr. phil., is professor of EFL education at the University of Vechta, Germany. Aside from being a foreign language researcher she has also worked as a teacher for English as a Foreign Language, History and CLIL History in various secondary schools in England and Germany. Her research and teaching interests include: primary and secondary foreign language education; media and film in foreign language teaching; culture, identity and language learning; professional development; content and language integrated learning; quantitative and qualitative methodology. Marja Zibelius is a full-time lecturer at the Department of English/Teaching English as a Foreign Language at the University of Siegen, Germany. She received her PhD from Justus-Liebig-University Gießen, Germany, and Macquarie University Sydney, Australia. Marja Zibelius has worked extensively as a teacher trainer, materials designer, course administrator and foreign language teacher of English, Business English and German as a Foreign Language at various universities, technical colleges and language schools in Germany and abroad. Her research interests include: computer-assisted language learning, telecollaboration, cooperative learning, taskbased language learning and film.

253

Nancy Grimm, Michael Meyer, Laurenz Volkmann

Teaching English bachelor-wissen 2015, XII, 341 Seiten €[D] 24,99 ISBN 978-3-8233-6831-1

Teaching English covers all of the major issues and current trends in language learning and teaching, such as the trends toward empiricism, constructivism, differentiation, learner- and output-orientation, intercultural learning, and the use of multimedia. This book bridges the gap between the suggestions of theoretical approaches to foreign language teaching and the practical needs of both the educators (regardless of the institutions they are teaching and the experiences they have gathered) as well as the students. It will help readers profit from the materials and reflected practices for use in their own classrooms. And lastly, the book offers optimal preparation for exams in university courses and in teacher-training seminars. JETZT BESTELLEN!

Narr Francke Attempto Verlag GmbH+Co. KG \ Dischingerweg 5 \ 72070 Tübingen \ Germany Tel. +49 (07071) 97 97-0 \ Fax +49 (07071) 97 97-11 \ [email protected] \ www.narr.de

Sabine Dofff (Hg.)

Heterogenität im Fremdsprachenunterricht Impulse –- Rahmenbedingungen – Kernfragen – Perspektiven narr studienbücher 2016, 220 Seiten €[D] 24,99 ISBN 978-3-8233-6909-7

JETZT BESTELLEN!

JETZT BESTELLEN!

Die in einem Klassenzimmer versammelten Schülerinnen und Schüler bringen zunehmend unterschiedliche Lern- und Leistungsvoraussetzungen mit. Die steigende sprachliche, kulturelle und individuelle Heterogenität der Lernenden muss bei der Gestaltung von Schule und Fachunterricht berücksichtigt werden. Dieses Studienbuch illustriert am Beispiel des Fachs Englisch (mit Übertragungsmöglichkeiten auf andere Schulfremdsprachen), wie dies im Hinblick auf fachdidaktische Kernfragen gelingen kann. Dabei werden Kontexte und Rahmenbedingungen berücksichtigt sowie Impulse aus den Erziehungswissenschaften und internationale Perspektiven einbezogen.

Narr Francke Attempto Verlag GmbH+Co. KG • Dischingerweg 5 • D-72070 Tübingen Tel. +49 (07071) 9797-0 • Fax +49 (07071) 97 97-11 • [email protected] • www.narr.de

Daniela Elsner, Viviane Lohe (eds.)

Gender and Language Learning Research and Practice narr studienbücher 2016, 240 Seiten €[D] 24,99 ISBN 978-3-8233-6988-2

JETZT BESTELLEN!

JETZT BESTELLEN!

Although Gender Studies have found their way into most domains of academic research and teaching, they are not directly in the spotlight of foreign language teaching pedagogy and research. However, teachers are confronted with gender issues in the language classroom everyday. By the use of language alone, they construct or deconstruct gender roles; with the choice of topics they shape gender identities in the classroom; and their ways of approaching pupils clearly mirrors their gender sensitivity. The book „Gender and Language Learning“ aims at raising awareness towards gender issues in different areas of foreign language teaching and learning. The primary objective of the book is to spark university stu-dents’, trainee teachers’ and in-service teachers’ analysis and refl ection of gender relations in the foreign language learning and teaching section.

Narr Francke Attempto Verlag GmbH+Co. KG • Dischingerweg 5 • D-72070 Tübingen Tel. +49 (07071) 9797-0 • Fax +49 (07071) 97 97-11 • [email protected] • www.narr.de

ISBN 978-3-8233-6952-3

Viebrock (ed.) Feature Films in English Language Teaching

Feature Films in English Language Teaching deals with the use of motion pictures in the advanced EFL (English as a foreign language) classroom. It provides a general introduction to film literacy and explains the rationale, methods, and objectives of working with feature films. In addition, the book contains in-depth considerations on sixteen selected films, which are grouped regionally (Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, USA, Great Britain). Each chapter describes the topical focus of the film and its central theme and provides background information on social, historical, political, and geographical issues. A profound analysis of selected scenes lays the foundation for considerations on the teaching potential of the film. In a download section, the chapters are complemented with ready-to-use teaching materials on film-specific aspects (narrative, dramatic and cinematographic dimensions), which are organised as pre-/while-/post-viewing activities. A glossary on technical terms for film analysis completes the volume.

Britta Viebrock (ed.)

Feature Films in English Language Teaching