Global Village Related Texts
Scaffold for Analysis
As well as studying the prescribed text, you must also study and analyse texts
of your own choosing. Collect at least TWO texts of your own choosing that
are relevant to your class’s focus.
LOOK FOR TEXTS THAT HAVE DEPTH (see below). Ideally the texts should
be from different media.
You will be assessed on your understanding of these texts in upcoming
assessment tasks, and the HSC examination.
Make notes on all of the following aspects of your texts.
BRIEF précis of the text: (characters, setting, essential plot details –
with special attention to THE GLOBAL VILLAGE).
ONE paragraph maximum.
Context:
 Composer of the text (brief background)
 Year of publication
 Purpose of the text (inform? Persuade? Entertain? A combination of
these?)
 Does the text reflect any specific events or attitudes at the time it was
composed? (internet research may be helpful).
 What would you say are the composer’s assumptions or values, from
your reading/viewing of the text? Do these values reflect or conflict with
the mainstream social values of the time?
 Who would you assess the target audience to be, based on the
sophistication of the text? (eg. General adult audience? Young
adult/teenage? Specifically highly‐educated?) Explain and give specific
examples.
 What are the main themes of the text? What does the text say about
people and societies? Do the text’s values reflect the mainstream
social values of the time or place of composition? Is the composer
trying to challenge the values of his/her time?
 What are your personal reactions to the ideas and events in the text?
How has the text stimulated your thinking about yourself, your
community, your country and your world?
 How successful is the text? Strengths? Weaknesses? What have
others said or written about this text? (research some critical comments
– the internet may be helpful.) Do you agree with their viewpoints?
Explain.
Composition:
 How does the composer position the audience to respond to ideas,
events, characters and changes in the text? What techniques are
used? Use quotes and provide specific examples.
You should identify at least four techniques and provide explanation.
Include details, examples and quotes if relevant eg
Fiction text: plot, characters, language use, narrative perspective (1st, 2nd or
3rd person)…
Poetry/ song lyrics: rhyme scheme (or free verse), structure, metaphors,
sound techniques (alliteration, assonance)…
Film: camera techniques, music, characters, plot, mise en scene…
How does the text compare or contrast to your prescribed text (The castle) for
this unit? Does it present similar or different attitudes to the concept of “the
global village”? Explain.
A mind‐map may be a useful study tool for this aspect.
Some Ideas for Related Texts.
YOU ARE ENCOURAGED TO MAKE AN EARLY START AND CONFER WITH
YOUR TEACHER AS TO THE SUITABILITY OF A TEXT.
Songs
One Love – Bob Marley (Playing for Change)
Earth Song – Michael Jackson
Sea is Rising – Bliss and Eso
Bullet and the Target – Bliss and Eso
Make a Change – Michael Jackson
Black or White – Michael Jackson
White America – Eminem
One Tribe – Black Eyed Peas
Nice Guys – Kev Jumbe
Red Hot Chili Peppers, Californication – lyrics attack the spread of US culture
via Hollywood.
Movies
Pocahontas
Avatar
Weir, Peter, The Truman show (1999) – why does a global TV audience
obsess over the life of an individual in an artificial village, totally isolated from
the real world?
Lion King
Slumdog Millionaire
Crocodile Dundee
The Dish
Koch, Christopher, Highways to a war. A man from a small Australian country
town reports on war in SE Asia.
Caro, Niki, Whale rider. Maori culture caught between centuries old tradition
and the possibilities offered by the global village.
Forsyth, Bill, Local hero (1983). A remote Scottish coastal village is about to
have a major petroleum facility owned by an American transnational company
on its doorstep.
TV Shows
Oprah
Hamish Macbeth
Ballykissangel
Father Ted
The Vicar of Dibley
Monarch of the Glen
The Lakes
The League of Gentlemen (which is actually a very dark black comedy which
satirises some aspects of the above series)
Blue heelers
Nowlan, Cherie (director) and Doyle, John (writer), Marking time (ABC
miniseries, 2003). An 18 year old boy in an Australian country town falls in
love with an Afghani refugee, and must confront a more complex world than
he could have foreseen.
Websites/Social Networks
Facebook
Adbusters
World Vision
Any transnational corporation’s websites
Documentaries
John Pilger’s DVD of documentaries, The new rulers of the world takes a
dissenting view of the social and humanitarian effects of globalisation on third
world countries. http://www.johnpilger.com/page.asp?partid=146
Pilger has published a book under the same title.
Al Gore’s ‘An Inconvenient truth’ is a documentary which emphasis the need
for communities to see themselves as part of a global village if the planet is to
escape environmental collapse.
Conolly, Robert, The bank (2001). The impact of international finance on
Australian individuals.
Thomson, Katherine, Navigating (playscript, Currency, 1998). The impact of
the globalised economy on the lives of people in a small Australian country
town.
Other Media
Newspaper Articles
Fashion magazines