Discuss the Symbolism and Motifs in the ‘Rabbit Proof Fence’. What Do They Represent and How Do They Contribute to the Story?

Since the European settlement of Australia, the Indigenous people have been represented in a myriad of ways. The Rabbits (1998), an allegorical picture book by John Marsden (writer) and Shaun Tan (illustrator) and Rabbit Proof Fence (2002), a film directed by Phillip Noyce, are just two examples of this. Techniques such as music, changing camera angles and symbolism are utilised in Rabbit Proof Fence to represent the Aboriginal people as strong-willed and spiritual and in The Rabbits, exaggeration, different colour themes and perspective are used to portray the Aborigines as technologically inferior and overwhelmed against the Europeans. In both texts, the Indigenous people are represented as

Australian people and culture are often stereotyped in the media in different forms, one of them being film. The two films being examined, ‘Red dog’ (2011) and the ‘Sapphires’ (2012), are an example of the Australian identity but from different points of view. ‘Red dog’ shows the kind and positive side which exemplifies mateship and loyalty. The film ‘Sapphires’ ,which takes place in the 1950’s through to the 1960’s, shows a negative and racist view towards the indigenous people. Both the films show different aspects of the Australian identity, not all insights of the films accurately represent contemporary Australian identity as the Australian identity has changed by the evolution of people and their lifestyle.

The Rabbits, a picture book written by John Marsden and illustrated by Shaun Tan, is an allegory for the British arriving in Australia and the subsequent colonisation. From the perspective of the indigenous population, Marsden explores the impact of white settlement on the traditional aboriginal way of life. This is achieved through the symbolism, colours and language.

The different perspectives create interest and draw us into the experiences of others. The two texts, ‘The Tracker’ composed by Rolf De Heer and ‘Bran Nue Dae’ composed by Rachel Perkins explores this notion. Both films are evident to the racial discrimination of Aborigines in Australia. ‘The Tracker’ is a 2002 art house film set in 1922. It is clear that there were no Aboriginal rights and which white settlement had the greatest control. ‘Bran Nue Dae’ is a 2009 musical/comedy/drama film set in 1969 about the beginning of Aboriginal rights.The different perspectives are from Colonial/Indigenous people. The voices were through the role of the characters, the genre, the music and the cinematography.

This metaphorically suggests that the rabbits have already begun to construct their homes, and now nobody can stop them. Their forceful invasion into the native indigenous landscape is further emphasised by the dead lizard featured in the foreground, which has been brutally squashed with seemingly no remorse. Furthermore, the buildings in the background are entirely formed by jigsaw pieces. Thus Tan presents us with a visual allegory of the rabbit society as manipulative and un-relentless nature.

Rabbit Proof Fence is a movie directed by Phillip Noyce based on the novel by Doris Pilkington Garimara. In the excerpt, ‘The Stealing of Children,’ it shows the offspring of the indigenous people being taken away from their parents as the white settlers thought they weren’t being treated properly. Events like these occurred from 1910-1970 in Australia’s history. Many aboriginal children didn’t want to be taken away and the fictional story, based on real events, of Rabbit Proof Fence has been created from the point of view of those people living at this time. The director has created many representations of Aboriginal people through the use of language features, visual elements and the audio components.

Rabbit Proof Fence has been published both as a book and as a movie. Being a reader or a viewer entirely changes our point of view on the story. As a reader, we get descriptive insight on the situations and emotions of the characters. We are then able to re-create these visually using our imagination and have endless freedom doing so. As a viewer, our creativity is somewhat restricted. We do not imagine the characters’ physical appearance, the locations or the overall situations in the same way as in a book. These elements are already given to us. Throughout this essay I will be exploring how the music and the filming creates a contrast between reading the book with elaborate descriptions.

In contemporary times the Indigenous are stereotypically represented as being violent and aggressive. Sen is creating a stereotypical image of young Indigenous boys as criminals and dominative. An extreme close up of Vaughn behind jail bars show the separation between Vaughn and society. The stereotype of Indigenous Australians as criminals is shown in a negative light and acts as a false stereotype. The jail bars act as a physical and metaphorical barrier and the use of non diegetic music sets a mood of extreme sadness. Domestic violence is also suggested in the car ride. The women with the child is seen as submissive and this violence acts as usual practise. However, Vaughn does not appear to this stereotype of all males being dominative. Sen’s use of camera angles highlights the stereotypical nature of indigenous people and

‘Rabbit Proof Fence’ was the story of a 3 young Aboriginal girls who were taken from their homes because they were ‘half castes’ and then their long walk home following the rabbit proof fence. The idea of the government taking children from their homes and placing them into the care of white people in the hope of them losing their cultural beliefs was stronger. This idea of them being changed was evident with quotes such as “This is your new home. We don't use that jabber here. You speak English” providing the idea of whites being dominant through their values.

The film Rabbit-Proof Fence by Philip Noyce takes place in 1931 in a small town named Jigalong in Western Australia. Along the town is a rabbit-proof fence that runs for miles through the Australian Outback. The film focuses on three aboriginal girls, 14-year-old Molly, her younger 8-year-old sister Daisy, and their 10-year-old cousin Gracie. The officers removed the girls from their family and forced them to assimilate into white society. The chief A. O. Neville legally removed the aboriginal girls from their family because they were half-castes which means they are half one white parent and one Aboriginal parent. In this case, the girls had an aboriginal mother and a white father who was a worker near their area, but the father in not take part in the girl’s life. The Chief wanted to take away all the half-castes from the Aboriginal homes so they could eventually breed the aboriginals out of existence as well as give the half-caste a better life in their modern society. These camps held lots of indigenous children and trained the children to become laborers and servants for the white families. Soon after arriving at the Moore River camp, the three girls escaped after the first night and made a 1,500-mile journey home. Molly, Gracie, and Daisy left as soon as it began to rain so their tracks could be covered. Although at the camp, the workers soon noticed the girls had escaped and sent the Aboriginal tracker to go find them and return them back to Moore River camp. The girls later found the rabbit-proof fence and followed it north to find Jigalong. On their way back to home, they met an aboriginal man who told the girls that Gracie’s mother was in Wiluna and she could take a train to meet her. Soon after Gracie parted ways, the tracker captured Gracie and they returned back to Moore River. Daisy and Molly continued to follow the fence and finally arrived home to meet their mother. Although, the family had to leave to go hide in the desert in order for the family to stay together. After the movie ends, there is a short clip of the real Molly and Daisy in 2002. The captions said that Gracie did not survive her way back to Moore River Camp and she was never seen again. Molly also stated that the government took

Follow the Rabbit Proof Fence, Remembering Babylon, and Puddn’head Wilson all contain numerous references to borders of various kinds, both literal and figurative. Focusing on two of the above texts, answer the following question: what do these borders represent?

The opening sequence of the Rabbit Proof Fence introduces you to the Aboriginal people. The scene begins with white writing on a black background which informs us of the situation in Australia in 1931 and the effects it has had in Australia. This is followed by an aerial shot of Australia?s desert which is hot, vast, desolate and has no

The combination of Rose as well as Troy is a more appropriate symbol for the fence; it is the combination of the two characters that creates a stronger representation of a fence. Rose is the driving force that forces Troy build the fence, so in reality it is Rose’s strength that carries the power that Troy needs to create a protective barrier around their home, life, and weaknesses from the outside forces of the world. Rose feels the need for a protective barrier, a fence, which can be built around her home for the protection of her family and her household. Her idea involved keeping the things and people who are important to her inside rather than keeping things and people outside. Troy is the opposite and wants to keep everything out. Interestingly, both Rose and Troy want the fence to protect their lives it is just a matter of perception. The title "Fences" symbolizes the figurative fences that the characters are wrapping around themselves either to keep people from departure or to prevent them from entering.

Fences is a short history written by the African-American author August Wilson in 1985, that follows a tragic flow and explores significant social issues like racism, family conflicts, mental illness and gender inequality that took place in the post- World War II era, and still affecting us today. To support his ideas, the author takes us into the life of its characters in order to examine their societal and self-imposed limitations; also, the effective use of symbols, setting and themes create a broad perspective of this societal issues analyzing its origin, developing and culmination, in order to let the readers make their own conclusions.

When planning the escape, Molly knew that the fence ran from the north to the south. Therefore, she was sure it would lead them back home. In this context, the Rabbit fence symbolizes a map that would show them the way home. Throughout the movie the girls’ use the fence as a guide for their journey home. The existence of the fence is of great importance to the girls’ escape mission.