| Record Number |
801289 |
| ISBN |
9781925169119 (paperback) |
| Author |
Stanners, Barbara author. |
| Title |
Phoenix senior English textual study : Billy Elliot / by Barbara Stanners. |
| Publisher/Date |
Seven Hills, New South Wales : Phoenix Education, [2018] |
| ©2018 |
| Pagination etc. |
61 pages : illustrations ; 30 cm. |
| Series |
Phoenix senior English textual study |
| Contents note |
"Written for the 2019-2023 NSW Year 12 English syllabus - Common Module: Texts and Human Experiences" --Publisher's website. |
| Summary Note |
Storytelling lies at the heart of nearly all textual representation, regardless of the mode or medium used. What is explored, revealed or challenged within such representations, often explores the universality of personal or societal human experience. Since conflict drives narrative, regardless of form, context or era; texts often depict how people struggle against different types of adversity such as injustice, prejudice or oppression. By focusing on the individual or collective human experience in response to such pressures, audiences are prompted to become actively engaged with the attitudes, motivations and perspectives of others. Personal evaluation of what is being said about human nature and how it is being represented prompts more fundamental questioning about the nature of humanity itself and existence. Knowledge and understanding can be broadened or challenged by texts that highlight the moral divide between oppressors and the oppressed, or the corrupt and the innocent. The narrative struggle in such texts is often lost but in the process, the audience has been positioned to recognise and applaud the qualities of resilience, fortitude and integrity. |
| ‘Billy Elliot’, directed by Stephen Daldry, is contextually in the midst of the industrial unrest of the 1984 ‘Miner’s Strike’, viewed by screenwriter Lee Hall as being ‘one of the defining moments in British History, a time of enormous personal and social struggle against political oppression. Daldry wanted to celebrate ‘the human spirit’ and used the ‘despair and courage of that sort of situation’ to portray ‘a community at war with its own government.’ The struggle of a Durham mining community to achieve social justice is effectively combined with a young boy’s personal struggle to achieve his artistic ambitions and become a ballet dancer. Cinema is a powerful storytelling medium because images are universally powerful and intuitively understood. The film validates both individual and communal determination and perseverance. The interwoven storylines are given emotional resonance via the film’s gritty script and masterful editing and cinematography. Human resolve and resilience in response to adversity is enhanced by the incorporation of some of the best protest music of the era including ‘Town Called Malice’ by ‘The Jam’. The film’s depiction of the Miner’s Strike retains relevance because of its enduring legacy of injustice and human suffering. |
| Subject - Name |
Daldry, Stephen -- Criticism and interpretation |
| Subject |
Billy Elliot (Motion picture : 2000) |
| English language -- Study and teaching (Secondary) |
| Higher School Certificate Examination (N.S.W.) -- Study guides |
| Motion pictures -- Study and teaching -- Australia -- New South Wales |
| Shelf Location |
HSC 791.4372 STAN |
