Rabbit Proof Fence, directed by Phillip Noyce, highlights issues that continue to challenge modern Australia. The movie is set in 1931 in Western Australia where half-caste children were forcibly removed from their families by white Australian government authorities. This drastic action was supposedly in the best interest of half-caste children but it became clear that the government had ulterior motives. Aborigines and half-castes were considered to be inferior to white people. They were taken away from their families and trained to be servants in a white culture. Rabbit Proof Fence highlights the strength and significance of family relationships. It encourages the audience to appreciate the improvements that have been made in Aboriginal rights
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A.O. Neville, the legal guardian and chief protector of Aborigines in Western Australia, coordinates the removal of half-caste children from their families. Neville declares that, “every Aborigine born in the state comes under my control”. He asserts excessive control, making decisions for them in regard to who they can marry, if they can travel to visit family or whether they can have new shoes. Phillip Noyce uses a low angle shot of Neville at his desk to further accentuate his prevailing authority and power. Neville discusses the “unwanted third race” and the possibility of them being “bred out,” revealing the government’s view of Aboriginal people and the sinister motives for the extent of their control. While the rights of Aboriginals are now acknowledged, the government continues to impose their control on the lives of Aboriginals today as seen in recent …show more content…
Aboriginal people were denied fundamental human rights as demonstrated by the authorised abduction of half-caste children from their families. Molly, the main character in Rabbit Proof Fence was removed from her home and family together with her sister Daisy and her cousin Gracie. Constable Riggs says, “it’s the law” to Maud, Molly’s mother, when he was taking her children away and that she has “got no say in it”. Neville claims “to advance them to white status” so the children can “experience all the benefits our culture has to offer”. Instead, they are taken from their families to train as domestic servants and farm labourers in Moore River. Neville views the white culture as superior to Aboriginal culture and justifies treating them as less than human. Noyce utilises a point of view shot from Molly’s perspective on the train to Moore River. It draws the viewers’ attention to the prison-like bars on the cage in which the girls were confined. Aboriginal people are now acknowledged as equal citizens within Australian society. Nevertheless, there is still a huge chasm between the health, education and life expectancy of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians. The current government now recognises this fact and have attempted to close the
A.O. Neville, the legal guardian and chief protector of Aborigines in Western Australia, coordinates the removal of half-caste children from their families. Neville declares that, “every Aborigine born in the state comes under my control”. He asserts excessive control, making decisions for them in regard to who they can marry, if they can travel to visit family or whether they can have new shoes. Phillip Noyce uses a low angle shot of Neville at his desk to further accentuate his prevailing authority and power. Neville discusses the “unwanted third race” and the possibility of them being “bred out,” revealing the government’s view of Aboriginal people and the sinister motives for the extent of their control. While the rights of Aboriginals are now acknowledged, the government continues to impose their control on the lives of Aboriginals today as seen in recent …show more content…
Aboriginal people were denied fundamental human rights as demonstrated by the authorised abduction of half-caste children from their families. Molly, the main character in Rabbit Proof Fence was removed from her home and family together with her sister Daisy and her cousin Gracie. Constable Riggs says, “it’s the law” to Maud, Molly’s mother, when he was taking her children away and that she has “got no say in it”. Neville claims “to advance them to white status” so the children can “experience all the benefits our culture has to offer”. Instead, they are taken from their families to train as domestic servants and farm labourers in Moore River. Neville views the white culture as superior to Aboriginal culture and justifies treating them as less than human. Noyce utilises a point of view shot from Molly’s perspective on the train to Moore River. It draws the viewers’ attention to the prison-like bars on the cage in which the girls were confined. Aboriginal people are now acknowledged as equal citizens within Australian society. Nevertheless, there is still a huge chasm between the health, education and life expectancy of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians. The current government now recognises this fact and have attempted to close the