It was made into a film in 2002, entitled rabbitproof fence. Words do not promise anything like actual actions do. This clip from the feature film rabbitproof fence presents an indigenous perspective on the issue of the stolen generations to a wide audience. It concerns the authors mother, and two other young mixedrace aboriginal girls, who ran away from the moore river native settlement, north of perth, in order to return to their aboriginal. Music eyelevel camera angle setting briefly comment on their effects. Australias stolen generation mapped in doris pilkingtons rabbitprooffence illustration not visible in this excerpt. Rabbitproof fence is a 2002 australian drama directed by phillip noyce film based on the book follow the rabbitproof fence by doris pilkington garimara. Rabbit proof fence is a contemporary drama about the struggle of three aboriginal girls from western australia. Equally, australian film classics book rabbitproof fence, written by 2011 nsw australian of the year larissa bernhardt, is an invaluable resource for anyone interested in.
Excerpted from follow the rabbitproof fence by doris pilkington, nugi. What does molly try to avoid when looking for a place to cross the river. When captured alongside two of her sisters actually cousins and sent to the moore river native settlement, molly devises a plan to escape the internment camp and make her way home by following the rabbitproof fence through western australia. Follow the rabbitproof fence is an australian book by doris pilkington, published in 1996. Chapter one provides historical background on the main. As larissa behrendt notes in her book on the film, this is the film that took the story of the stolen generations to the world. Noyces film is based on the book follow the rabbitproof fence by the late doris pilkington nugi garimara, which tells the story of her mother, molly. This book, written by doris pilkington, tells how her mother molly and her younger cousins gracie and daisy in the life of an aboriginal woman, no one is more important than her mother when she is. The rabbitproof fence is separated into nine chapters. Read follow the rabbitproof fence online by doris pilkington. Rabbitproof fence by doris pilkington reading guidebook. It tells the story of three young aboriginal girls. Read the extract from the book and summarise the sequence of events 150 words.
Rabbit proof fence is a movie directed by phillip noyce based on the novel by doris pilkington garimara. Doris pilkingtons mother and the protagonist of the book, molly is an intrepid fifteenyearold halfcaste, or mixedrace, aboriginal girl. Get answers to your rabbit proof fence questions like what is the main conflict in rabbit proof fence by doris pilkington. What does the title words do not pay mean in the excerpt. In rabbit proof fence, awardwining author doris pilkington traces the story of her mother, molly, one of three young girls uprooted from their community in southwestern australia and taken to the moore river native settlement.
It concerns the authors mother, and two other young mixedrace aboriginal girls, who ran away from a western australian settlement at moore river. Follow the rabbitproof fence audible audiobook amazon. The fence cut through the country from south to north. Get answers to your rabbitproof fence questions like what is the main conflict in rabbitproof fence by doris pilkington. Based on a true story, the book is a personal account of an. Rabbitproof fence is the harrowing true story of three mixedrace aboriginal children who walked a thousand miles to get back to their mothers. 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 werent being treated properly. Oct 01, 20 rabbitproof fence is the short, but completely captivating story of three girls escape from a halfcaste aboriginal centre and their epic, long walk home back to their families. This study guide consists of approximately 25 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of rabbitproof fence. Under western australias invidious removal policy of the 1930s, the girls were taken from their aboriginal families at jigalong on the edge of the little sandy desert, and transported halfway across the state to. Noyce was a filmmaker at the height of his career when he made rabbitproof fence and this goes some way to explain why the film. The woman whose 1,000mile childhood trek across the australian outback inspired the 2002 film rabbitproof fence has died in the countrys far northwest. The town lies along the northern part of australias rabbitproof fence, which runs for several thousand miles. A book was published about the incident called murder on the rabbit proof fence.
The story took place in 1931 at jigalong, in western australia. When it was released, this scene was contentious because after the bringing them home report in 1997, the use of the. The girls were not even allowed to speak their language. More rabbit proof fence quizzes learn more about rabbitproof fence story quiz. Aboriginal children of mixed race were taken by force from their mothers and raised in training schools that would prepare them for lives as factory workers or. But, for those hours, you will live and breathe the lives of these. The strange case of arthur upfield and snowy rowles. Discuss the symbolism and motifs in the rabbit proof. This chapter of my term paper parses scenes out of the novel and demonstrates their authenticity with historical documents to show that scenes like the following ones happened in reality and thus the book has its.
She tells her own story in under the wintamarra tree 2003, of her premature birth, under the tree of the book s title on balfour downs station, a pastoral lease and cattle station located about 2 kilometres northeast of newman in western australias pilbara region. In the first one a short outline of british colonisation in australia and its impacts on the aborigines will be given. Unit of work for year 9 by tony britten on follow the rabbitproof fence by doris pilkington. Doris pilkington garimara s book, follow the rabbitproof fence 1996, describes the use of the fence in the 1930s by three indigenous australian girls. When molly was 14, gracie 10 and daisy 8, the australian government took them from their home to train them as servants for the white settlers. Rabbit proof fence, the film that in the eyes of millions of children around australia tells the true story of the stolen generations, is grossly inaccurate and should be withdrawn from schools. Read the extract from the book and summarise the sequence of.
Follow the rabbitproof fence literary elements gradesaver. The rabbit proof fence is based on a true story on how aboriginal families were treated by politicians and government. This book is simply written, but extremely evocative and can easily be read in a couple of hours. Follow the rabbitproof fence is an australian book by doris pilkington. The incident is now referred to as the murchison murders. The book cant decide if its a report, novel or it includes dull excerpts written by authorities which seem only to serve as proof that what is described is based. This is an extract from a novel, follow the rabbit proof fence, which tells the story of three teenage aboriginal girls who, in 1931. The heart of the story is the extraordinary journey molly, gracie and. Settlement life was unbearable with its chains and padlocks, barred windows, hard cold beds, and horrible food. Rabbit proof fence was a touching movie that caused me to think about some of the most important relationships that exist in mortality and the strength that binds those relationships over any distance. If history teachers insist on discussing this topic, they will find the book a much more reliable resource than the film. Rabbitproof fence 2002 clip 1 on aso australianscreen. The first several chapters is leadup to the escape of three girls from a settlement school which, by law, they were forced to attend. The story is concerned with the journey of three young aboriginal girls who escape from the moore river native settlement and walk the 1600 kilometers home to jigalong.
The whole rabbitproof fence which includes all three fences extends 2,023 miles 3,256 kilometers and is therefore the longest fence in the world. Comprehension and discussion activities for the movie abbit. The film rabbitproof fence is based on this true account of doris pilkingtons mother, molly, who as a young girl led her two sisters on an extraordinary 1,600 kilometre walk home. It was and is an incredible monument to folly of man, for the rabbits soon managed to dig beneath the rabbit proof fence and spread to the sheep. Solitary confinement was doled out as regular punishment. Follow the rabbitproof fence study guide litcharts. For those who were residential school survivors, they had formed a legacy of alcohol and drug abuse problems, feelings of hopelessness. Many school teachers think it is an accurate portrayal of history. While watching the trailer and an excerpt from a documentary of the movie the rabbit proof fence, the students will complete and learn about the fence and the stolen generation. This quiz will test how much you understood the book and will help you remember the parts you dont remember.
Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. Jan 15, 2004 the woman whose 1,000mile childhood trek across the australian outback inspired the 2002 film rabbitproof fence has died in the countrys far northwest. Although rabbitproof fence depicted a successful escape made by molly and her sister from moore river settlement, the realities of removing indigenous children from their families had a traumatic experience. They knew that once they reached billanooka station, it was simply a matter of following the rabbitproof fence to their final destination, the jigalong government depot. Follow the rabbitproof fence by doris pilkington, nugi. What is the main conflict in rabbitproof fence by doris. Indigenous people have been represented in a myriad of ways. Set in 1931, two sisters, 14yearold molly and 8yearold daisy, and their 10yearold cousin gracie live in the western australian town of jigalong. Read follow the rabbitproof fence by doris pilkington for free with a 30 day. The film techniques are used to stage the survivor storiesto make their experiences more compelling similarities differences. In rabbitproof fence, awardwining author doris pilkington traces the story of her mother, molly, one of three young girls uprooted from their community in southwestern australia and taken to the moore river native settlement. Three mixedrace girls, molly aged 14, her sister gracie 11. Doris pilkington garimara 1 2 she was born in 1937 as the daughter of molly craig and a stockman. They knew that once they reached billanooka station, it was simply a matter of following the rabbit proof fence to their final destination, the jigalong government depot.
The 2002 film, rabbitproof fence, directed by phil noyce, is advertised as a true story. Although the rabbitproof fence exists to this day, in the 1950s the government introduced myxomatosis a disease that affects rabbits to australia in a successful attempt to devastate the continents rabbit population. This job failure has him concerned about his daughters and his own futures, and as a result he is experiencing depression. The most astonishing words in rabbitproof fence come right at the end, printed on the screen as a historical footnote. Based on a true story, the book is a personal account of an indigenous australian familys experiences as members of the stolen generation the forced removal of mixedrace children from their families during the early 20th century. The film gets the names of the major characters and locations right, but not much else.
Rabbit proof fence in the context of australian identity. Australias stolen generation mapped in doris pilkingtons. Dec 28, 2019 equally, australian film classics book rabbitproof fence, written by 2011 nsw australian of the year larissa bernhardt, is an invaluable resource for anyone interested in delving beneath the. It follows the journey of three young girls, molly, gracie and daisy who were taken from their mothers and moved to the moore river orphanage settlement to be integrated into the white culture, forgetting about their. They called it the rabbit proof fence, and it stretched fully 1500 kilometers from the burning hot northwest to the cool and rainy south of the great continent. Oral presentation students are to imagine they are pitching their book cover design to publishers at the university of queensland press.
The policies depicted in the movie were enforced by the australian government, we are told, until 1970. The true story of one of the greatest escapes of all time by doris pilkington. It was and is an incredible monument to folly of man, for the rabbits soon managed to dig beneath the rabbit proof fence and spread to the. Doris pilkington garimara tells the story of her mother in follow the rabbitproof fence. Follow the rabbit proof fence is a novel by doris pilkington garimara. Instead, their main source was the book written by mollys daughter, doris pilkington, called follow the rabbitproof fence 1996, which they adapted with creative licence. It was a typical response by the white people to a problem of their own making. Since that time, the rabbitproof fence has seen far less rabbit traffic than it once did.
Molly character analysis in follow the rabbitproof fence. Rabbitproof fence is the short, but completely captivating story of three girls escape from a halfcaste aboriginal centre and their epic, long walk home back to their families. Later in the study guide there are activities for students who are comparing the film with the book. Historical background the movie rabbitproof fence noyce, 2002 based on the book follow the rabbit proof fence garimara, 1996, establishes the true story of the authors mother, the protagonist molly. I was very appalled by the fact that children were being abducted from there homes by a government in such recent history. Discuss the symbolism and motifs in the rabbit proof fence. Assimilationist policy dictated that these girls be taken from their kin and their homes in order to be made white. The book rabbitproof fence is subtitled with the words the true story of one of the greatest escapes of all times. Doris pilkington garimara 1 2 she was born in 1937 as the daughter of molly craig and a stockman her mother left her at moore river native settlement at the age of three or four doris didnt see her mother again until. Noyces film is based on the book follow the rabbitproof. Nov 01, 2002 rabbitproof fence is the short, but completely captivating story of three girls escape from a halfcaste aboriginal centre and their epic, long walk home back to their families. To me, follow the rabbitproof fence is a book about connection to country and family.
Rabbitproof fence tells the true story of three aboriginal australian girls. Based on a true story, the film is set in 1931, in the outback of australia where molly craig 14, her younger sister daisy craig 8, and their cousin gracie 10 try to return to their homeland after they have been forcefully taken to a relocation camp by the government. The rabbit proof fence esl worksheet by treasure0911. Of all the journeys made since white people set foot. I picked this book to read as it covers the subject of aboriginal history that was a. The film is an adaptation of the 1996 book follow the rabbit proof fence by doris garimara. Comprehension and discussion activities for the movie. When it was released, this scene was contentious because after the bringing them home report in 1997, the use of the term stolen to describe such removal was disputed. The rabbit proof fence is separated into nine chapters.
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