If your school has chosen ‘Protest’ as your Framework of Idea, here is what you need to know about it!
VCAA describes this ideas as:
Explorations of conflict and contest, what it means to protest, the value of protest, the outcomes of protest, personal stories of protest, struggle and war.
Students could explore established figures like Martin Luther King Jr, Rosa Parks and Vida Goldstein, marginalised figures like Pemulwuy and Claudette Colvin, and figures and movements like Greta Thunberg and the BLM protests. Events like massacres in Australia and the Frontier Wars could be explored as expressions of protest – and the attendant tragedy.
There could also be explorations of the success and failure of protest – and the prescient protests that gained ground after the original protest had faded. Students could consider individual protest and group protest.
What does this mean for the student?
VCAA’s description of this idea tells us that students are expected to engage with the value, meaning and consequence of different expressions of protest, or the absence of protest. It also tells us students are expected to know about past instances of protest.
Here is a short list of what our teens could possibly write about:
- their past experience of protest
- their personal interest in protesting
- their perspective on other people’s protests
What are the mentor texts for Protest?
1. Gillespie, Mark, ‘Friday Essay: On the Sydney Mardi Gras March of 1978’
VCAA’s description of this essay:
‘Friday Essay: On the Sydney Mardi Gras March of 1978’, published on 19 February 2016, explores the ‘momentous events’ of political protest in ‘Sydney between June and August 1978’. Anthropologist and author Mark Gillespie, from the University of Sydney, explores ideas of equality and the importance of compensation for the LGBTIQ+ community for decades of ostracism, abuse and discrimination.
Gillespie’s structure shifts from contemporary 2016 to the day of the iconic 1978 Mardi Gras protest and celebration, the 1985 HIV epidemic in Sydney, and then returns to a present-day reflection. As Gillespie focuses on each aspect of defining moments in LGBTIQ+ movements, he reflects on his experiences and highlights his concerns for his future. His reflections are sharpened with direct quotes from the protests and photographic images of banners of celebration, police brutality and a police officer dancing and celebrating with the protesters.
The language of the article is both vulnerable and stoic, directly addressing the bureaucratic systems that failed the writer and the community. It connects personal reflection with facts, and honestly considers the value of an apology in light of the events of the past. Gillespie’s celebration of protest reinforces its importance and highlights that the journey is far from over.
Students could explore the use of a personal reflection, or a historical reflection, experimenting with a hybrid of factual and sentimental styles within their own writings.
2. Pankhurst, Emmeline, ‘Freedom or Death’
VCAA’s description of this speech:
Considered one of the greatest speeches of the 20th century, ‘Freedom or Death’ by activist Emmeline Pankhurst was delivered at Parsons Theatre in Hartford, Connecticut on 13 November 1913. Pankhurst, a vocal and passionate believer in a woman’s right to vote, founded the British suffragette movement and spent four decades protesting against the inequality of voting rights.
Pankhurst’s speech shimmers with intensity and energy as she speaks of the requirement for revolutionary actions – defending the use of violence – and ‘militant’ tactics in the fight for equal rights. Gender discrimination and basic human rights are also referenced. Pankhurst’s speech is an example of the potency of language, inclusive of the connotative power of single words. Throughout the speech, Pankhurst speaks as a ‘soldier’. Under threat of further imprisonment for speaking out many times prior, Pankhurst draws from the language and imagery of battle extensively.
‘Freedom or Death’ demonstrates the speaker’s strong capacity for persuasion and their clear consideration of context, purpose and audience. Pankhurst expertly utilises metaphor and repetition to highlight how deliberate language choices can convey passion, strength and commitment. ‘Freedom or Death’ is a highly powerful example of protest. In the face of continued female oppression, this call to action still resonates on many levels today.
Students could focus on figurative language and extended metaphor in their own work, using Pankhurst’s text as a model.
3. Vonnegut, Kurt, ‘Harrison Bergeron’
VCAA’s description of this short story:
‘Harrison Bergeron’, written in 1961, presents a dystopian society in which all citizens are deemed ‘finally equal’. Almost immediately, however, darkly satirical author Kurt Vonnegut explores ideas of authoritarianism and freedom while positing the pertinent question: is total equality really something worth fighting for?
The titular character is presented as the epitome of defiance in a world that attempts to control the masses through ‘handicaps’ forced on citizens to ensure equality. Vonnegut employs a traditional short story structure, opening with the date (2081) and an impossible statement of social equality. As the story unfolds, each added detail (the ‘mental handicap radio’ that emits sounds that ‘scatter … thoughts’, the ‘canvas bags’ with ‘birdshot’ individuals are forced to wear) contests the authority of the opening line and sets a challenge to the reader.
The language of the story is at once comedic and tragic; the silliness of the solutions employed to create equality juxtaposed against the suffering of George and the ballerinas, and the lack of beauty, intelligence and joy for any member of society. Harrison’s protest is both painful and futile. Students could explore the use of satire as a form of protest, experimenting with irony and wit in their own writings.
4. Wyatt, Meyne, Monologue from City of Gold
VCAA’s description of this monologue:
In this monologue, taken from the highly acclaimed 2019 play City of Gold, Indigenous actor and writer Meyne Wyatt presents an angry, urgent message from a man tired of ignorance, prejudice and perhaps most frustratingly: acquiescence from white Australian society.
Initially, Wyatt explores ideas of tokenism and casual racism within Australian society, before angrily shifting tone to the consequences of such racism: the ongoing mental and physical effects to Australia’s First Nations people. Wyatt’s play is loosely based on his life and experiences, and this performance of the monologue on Australia’s Q&A was presented during an episode that discussed Aboriginal deaths in custody.
Wyatt bookends his monologue with the motif of being forced to ‘sit down’ and ‘stay humble’ as an Indigenous man in Australia, detailing his own experiences in the entertainment industry and using the example of the sustained racism Adam Goodes endured during the 2015 AFL season. Moreover, Wyatt’s use of repetition serves as a reminder of the cyclical nature of violence and discrimination against First Nations people, making his ultimate refusal to ‘be quiet, be humble and sit down’ a powerful protest against such treatment.
Students could explore the use of monologue as a form of protest, experimenting with tone shift, lyricism and repetition in their own writings.
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