PICTURE PANIC
CLASS OF 2010
LET'S BEGIN

THE LINE - S/N activity

When you study The Line by Arch and Martin Flanagan you will need to make connections that go beyond the set text, just as you did with The Secret River. The connections you make are about exploring the set context, Encountering Conflict, and building a pool of ideas to inspire writing pieces that are underpinned by themes, ideas and literary devices used in the set text.

To begin this process you are going to source four texts (a picture, a written text, a song and a film) that you can see are about Encountering Conflict and can be linked to The Line in some way. In these explanations make clear:
- the conflict/s you can see
- the links with the set text
- the ideas for possible writing pieces

An area for improvement from our The Secret River blog posts:

Enhance your digital writing by including links to information on sites that supports your commentary. Also, where possible, incorporate a relevant visual with your post. For example, if you are writing about a novel in the Text Tremors section of the blog, import a picture of the novel’s cover.

kid vs aboriginal

here is a little kid inspecting a local aboriginal man. the kid probably has little or no understanding about who he is and why he is dressed like that. this pretty much happens in the secret river.

This image of the hawkesbury river shows how the evolution of man has diminished one of the most beautiful sights in nature. The once secluded river has been taking over by man and their structures and in a sense it has been de-beautified as it is now know longer a symbol of the beauty of nature but of the power and evolution of man.

This in many ways is similar to the secret river as before the white settlers arrived there were no houses, paddocks or docks just the land. Then as the white settlers began to arrive they built houses, paddocks for crops and docks for their boats whilst taking over and developing the land that to the aboriginals was already perfect.

This picture here showing the raising of the Soviet Union flag over the Reichstag in Nazi Germany, symbolizing the end of the World War 2, then end of 60 million deaths, billions of dollars wasted, countries destroyed, and unaccountable damage to infrastructure.

Though easily seen as a triumphant end, a victory for the Allies, but it was also a sign of darker things to come.
Europe would be divided for the next roughly 60 years, The Iron Curtain, Communism vs. Capitalism, numerous proxy wars, a possible nuclear war.

This is similar to The Secret River because to the European powers Australian would have been seen as a large, fertile, resource rich land, colonized by a bunch of primitive natives. When the British arrived they would have raised their flag and considered colonizing the land their victory.

However cultural and social conflicts would later emerge that would negate that victory.

Don't forget about your S/N task

Hope the study break is going well for all of you. Remember, I will be checking to see if you have made your 4 'The Secret River' posts asap after the break. Alert notices will go home if the task is not completed. You need to complete a post for the Picture Panic, Text Tremors, Film Flogging and Music Matters areas of the blog.

The posts will discuss articles of your choice. Your discussion should consider the article in relation to the context of Encountering Conflict and highlight any connections between The Secret River and the article. Also, include an idea for a piece of writing you think the material would inspire noting the form and audience for the piece.

So, have a go. Don't panic about doing it right or wrong, in this case it's about the discussion we can generate and the ideas that will put us in a strong position from which to tackle the exam. If you see something put up by someone else that gets you thinking leave them a comment. If you come across something that inspires you in regards to The Line put a post up about that too. Good Luck.

WARNING : Oil Addiction - causes climate change, funds violentextremism, damages health, reduces wealth!

WARNING : Oil Addiction - causes climate change, funds violent extremism, damages health, reduces wealth!
Originally uploaded by ~~ zorro ~~

Consider this in light of the human versus nature, colonist versus indigenous themes that are presented in The Secret River.

Vulnerable Targets

This image of a young Vietnamese girl and other children suffering from the effects of napalm during the Vietnam War is one that truly brings home to the viewer the horrors of war and conflict. I remember being horrified the first time I saw this picture of the Napalm Girl. Witnessing the suffering of the most vulnerable in our society jolts within most of us an instinctual abhorrence, we know that what we are encountering is wrong and needs something to be done about it.

In striking contrast to the horror of the Napalm Girl is the haunting beauty of the Afghan Girl photo portrait. She is of the Hazara tribe, a group belonging to the many Shia minorities in Afghanistan. Her image was captured as she spent time in a refugee camp, seeking protection from the Taliban. When the viewer realises the context of this photo its initial impact changes. Her situation stirs in the viewer an awareness of how cruel and unjust life can be, how fragile people are. (Khaled Hosseini's best selling novel The Kite Runner considers the position of the Hazara tribe in Afghanii society).

In The Secret River the plight of another young, female victim is given voice by Grenville. She tells of an Aboriginal girl being kept as a pet by the despicable Smasher Sullivan. He has no regard for her humanity and mistreats and defiles in her in the basest of ways. It is shocking and uncomfortable for the reader to encounter but, as for many of these types of images and stories, necessary. Throughout history such voices have often been dismissed and ignored, enabling such misery to be perpetuated. The Creating and Presenting Area of Study offers an opportunity to strengthen the voices of the persecuted in our world. A fiction piece inspired by the Aboriginal girl could be extremely effective. Another approach could be to research a figure of interest and write a biography of their life.