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Representing Sydney's suburbs, 1965

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Old photo of people standing on train platform
Representing Sydney's suburbs, 1965

SUBJECTS:  Civics and Citizenship, History

YEARS:  9–10


In this clip from the mid-60s, explore how words and images can be combined to encourage particular interpretations and influence audience response.

Explore how some of the inner suburbs of Sydney have been represented in history.


Things to think about

  1. 1.What do you imagine when you hear the word 'slum'? Describe what comes to mind for you. In which parts of Australia's cities might you expect to find slums?
  2. 2.Identify ten negative terms used to describe the 'slums' of Sydney. What products do you notice being advertised in the background of this clip? Why might they have been included in shot? Describe the appearance and actions of the people who were filmed. How is this area described in the final statement?
  3. 3.Describe the the way Newtown and its surrounding suburbs are presented in the voice-over. Does this representation match the visual images? Do they match your impressions of what a slum looks like? What might account for any differences? How might local residents feel about this film? The voice-over notes that the inhabitants 'live on the fringe of the city and the fringe of survival'. How do texts such as this reinforce their marginalisation?
  4. 4.Write an alternative voice-over commentary for this film to represent the area and its people in a more positive light, such as a thriving inner-city precinct. Consider how your commentary would encourage listeners to interpret the film's images in a very different way.



Date of broadcast: 1965


Copyright

Metadata © Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Education Services Australia Ltd 2012 (except where otherwise indicated). Digital content © Australian Broadcasting Corporation (except where otherwise indicated). Video © Australian Broadcasting Corporation (except where otherwise indicated). All images copyright their respective owners. Text © Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Education Services Australia is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License (CC BY-SA 4.0).

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