PDF (Whole Thesis) - USQ ePrints - University of Southern ...
PDF (Whole Thesis) - USQ ePrints - University of Southern ... PDF (Whole Thesis) - USQ ePrints - University of Southern ...
This image, like many of the narratives during this era, represents Indigenous Australians as belonging to another world (from that of the school students). In almost all images, Indigenous Australians are dressed in traditional clothes with face paint and traditional weapons, or in a traditional lifestyle environment. It is not disputed that this is how Indigenous Australia looked, especially in the era of early exploration, however what is clearly being communicated to students is that this is the only way Indigenous Australians are to be seen. The only exception to visual representations of Indigenous Australians in traditional clothes, poses and cultural artefacts are when contemporary representations of Indigenous people in the Northern Territory are included in Social studies for Queensland schools grade 7 (Department of Education, 1960/1963, p. 83). Other than this anomaly, the message that is clearly communicated to students is that Indigenous Australians belong to the past or to an exotic present, far removed from the daily lives of the students and from mainstream society in general. In addition to being represented as belonging to an ‘othered’ world, Indigenous Australians are often included as fringe or peripheral content to the wider narrative of exploration, with their inclusion legitimised only in relationship to interactions with the explorers. An example of this can be found in Social Studies for Queensland schools grade 5 (Department of Education, 1959/1962/1966). The perspective taken here is that although the textbook makes an attempt to say that not all Indigenous Australians are violent, through the phrase “Sometimes the natives were friendly...” (Department of Education, 1959/1962/1966, p. 68), the use of the word sometimes indicates that this was not the usual or common experience, and that instead, Indigenous Australians are most often perpetrators of violence against unsuspecting explorers. This is emphasized particularly in Source 6.6 and Source 6.7: and; Source 6.6. “A night attack” extract from Studies for Queensland schools grade 5 (Department of Education, 1959/ 1962/1966, p. 67) 208
Source 6.7. “Sometimes the natives were friendly” extract from Studies for Queensland schools grade 5 (Department of Education, 1959/ 1962/1966, p. 68). Demonstrating Indigenous Australians categorised as an homogenous group is exemplified in the following paragraph from Australia: Colony to nation (Dunlop & Pike, 1963). Here, the experiences of four explorers from four separate explorations are pieced together in order to make a point about the Indigenous population being the cause for difficulties of exploring the inland regions of Australia. There was also the menace of hostile aborigines. Giles’ party was attacked nine times while crossing the western deserts and, if Stuart’s party had not been attacked by a large band of warriors at Attack Creek, they might have crossed the continent on their first attempt in 1860. ‘It would be destruction to all my party for me to go on,’ Stuart wrote. The luckless Kennedy was fatally speared by blacks in the jungles of Cape York Peninsula, and Eyre’s companion Baxter met with a similar fate in the desert. (Dunlop & Pike, 1963, p. 113) In this paragraph, titled Difficulties of Exploring the Inland within Chapter 10: Explorers of the Inland, blame is explicitly attributed to Indigenous Australians for causing the explorers to face certain insurmountable problems in their exploration of inland Australia. Terms such as “menace of hostile aborigines”, “large band of warriors” and “speared by blacks” (Dunlop & Pike, 1963, p. 113) are all credited with causing exploration failures. Characteristics attributed to the Indigenous people’s interactions with explorers are ones of violence and hostility. At no time, in this paragraph or entire section, are the perspectives of Indigenous Australians provided to the reader so that a more comprehensive understanding can be gained as to why the various Indigenous populations may not have welcomed the explorers when entering land which they traditionally used as the custodians. In addition to blame being attributed to violent Indigenous Australians, two sets of explorers, Kennedy in Far North Queensland; and Eyre and Baxter in the South Australian desert are specifically mentioned in the narrative. Two of the explorers, Kennedy and Baxter were 209
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- Page 228 and 229: Source 6.10. “Natives” extract
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- Page 236 and 237: Source 6.15. Batman Treaty and Gove
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Source 6.7. “Sometimes the natives were friendly” extract from Studies for<br />
Queensland schools grade 5 (Department <strong>of</strong> Education, 1959/ 1962/1966, p. 68).<br />
Demonstrating Indigenous Australians categorised as an homogenous group is exemplified in<br />
the following paragraph from Australia: Colony to nation (Dunlop & Pike, 1963). Here, the<br />
experiences <strong>of</strong> four explorers from four separate explorations are pieced together in order to<br />
make a point about the Indigenous population being the cause for difficulties <strong>of</strong> exploring the<br />
inland regions <strong>of</strong> Australia.<br />
There was also the menace <strong>of</strong> hostile aborigines. Giles’ party was attacked nine times<br />
while crossing the western deserts and, if Stuart’s party had not been attacked by a<br />
large band <strong>of</strong> warriors at Attack Creek, they might have crossed the continent on<br />
their first attempt in 1860. ‘It would be destruction to all my party for me to go on,’<br />
Stuart wrote. The luckless Kennedy was fatally speared by blacks in the jungles <strong>of</strong><br />
Cape York Peninsula, and Eyre’s companion Baxter met with a similar fate in the<br />
desert. (Dunlop & Pike, 1963, p. 113)<br />
In this paragraph, titled Difficulties <strong>of</strong> Exploring the Inland within Chapter 10: Explorers <strong>of</strong><br />
the Inland, blame is explicitly attributed to Indigenous Australians for causing the explorers<br />
to face certain insurmountable problems in their exploration <strong>of</strong> inland Australia. Terms such<br />
as “menace <strong>of</strong> hostile aborigines”, “large band <strong>of</strong> warriors” and “speared by blacks” (Dunlop<br />
& Pike, 1963, p. 113) are all credited with causing exploration failures. Characteristics<br />
attributed to the Indigenous people’s interactions with explorers are ones <strong>of</strong> violence and<br />
hostility. At no time, in this paragraph or entire section, are the perspectives <strong>of</strong> Indigenous<br />
Australians provided to the reader so that a more comprehensive understanding can be gained<br />
as to why the various Indigenous populations may not have welcomed the explorers when<br />
entering land which they traditionally used as the custodians.<br />
In addition to blame being attributed to violent Indigenous Australians, two sets <strong>of</strong> explorers,<br />
Kennedy in Far North Queensland; and Eyre and Baxter in the South Australian desert are<br />
specifically mentioned in the narrative. Two <strong>of</strong> the explorers, Kennedy and Baxter were<br />
209
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