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Murdoch University Digital Theses Program
You Look Normal To Me:The Social Construction of Disability in Australian National Cinema in the 1990s
| Author Information |
Thesis Files |
| Last Name |
Ellis
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| Other Names |
Kathleen
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| Title |
Doctor
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| E-mail |
Katie.Ellis@westnet.com.au
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| Division |
Arts
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| School |
Media Communication & Culture
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| Degree Program |
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
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| Thesis Document Information |
| Thesis Type |
PhD Doctorate
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| Title
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You Look Normal To Me:The Social Construction of Disability in Australian National Cinema in the 1990s
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| Date |
2004
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| Abstract
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This thesis examines the social construction of disability in Australian national
cinema throughout the 1990s. During that decade, disability was an issue that
remained in the background of many film narratives and is (still) under-theorised
in academic scholarship. Disability continues to be tangential to many social
critiques, particularly in relation to cultural diversity and national identity. When
it is foregrounded, as in Liz Ferrier’s (2001) work, its theoretical premise is
chiefly located in a damaged body, rather than examined through the lens of
cultural construction.
The growing number of culturally diverse filmmakers in the Australian film
industry during the 1990s initiated a critical focus on diversity, multiculturalism
and minority group interests. However, an examination of the social construction
of disability is conspicuously absent. I argue that a disability identity that
focuses attention away from the body and onto society should be incorporated
into notions of diversity concerning Australian national cinema.
In this thesis I investigate both thematic and stylistic representations of disability
with reference to socio-political contexts and influences. A disability identity —
as it is included or excluded from Australian national identity — is explored
through a variety of close readings of local films. I examine the methods
filmmakers employ to problematise diversity in relation to the limitations of
dominant representations of disability.
This thesis recognises the historical lack of scholarship in relation to disability as
a diversity issue in Australian national cinema of the 1990s and is an attempt to
open up this field to new modes of criticism.
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| Committee Information
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| Supervisor |
Dr. Mick Broderick
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| Email |
M.Broderick@murdoch.edu.au
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