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7.4.2 Discourses of Indigenous Australians as savages/primitive.
Viewing Indigenous Australians as savage or primitive is highlighted in Source 7.11 in an
extract from Spanning Time about Dampier, a Dutch explorer from the 1600s.
Source 7.11. Extract about William Dampier from Spanning Time (Power et al.,
1985, p. 179)
By not mediating the summary of a primary source quote in Source 7.11, students are not
provided with an understanding of Dampier’s statement within its historical context. Nor is
this perspective problematised or critiqued. Instead, students are provided exposure to this
statement as though it is ‘true’ and unproblematic. The disconnected use of this primary
source quote is also included in Primary Social Studies sourcebook year 5 (Department of
Education, 1988a). Despite the significant role this sourcebook plays in acknowledging and
promoting Indigenous Australian histories, primary source documents are still used,
unmediated, in a way that reinforces discourses that view Indigenous Australians as ‘savage’
or ‘primitive’. See, for example, Source 7.12, two extracts from a Teacher information sheet
in Primary Social Studies sourcebook year 5.
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