Lesson 24 A Witness(revised).pptVIP

Lesson 25 A Witness from Australia’s Stolen Generation Background of the Text I. Who Are Aborigines? Aborigines are Australias indigenous people. The name aborigine derives from the Latin, meaning original inhabitants. There are approx. 400,000 aborigines living in Australia or about 2% of Australias total population. Australian Aborigines migrated from somewhere in Asia at least 30,000 years ago. Though they comprise 500–600 distinct groups speaking about 200 different languages or dialects (at least 50 of which are now extinct). aboriginal people possess some unifying links. Among these are strong spiritual beliefs that tie them to the land; a tribal culture of storytelling and art; and, like other indigenous populations, a difficult colonial history. These groups were not political and economic entities and lacked class hierarchies and chiefs. They lived by hunting and gathering, and there was extensive intergroup trade throughout the continent. .  II. The Dreamtime Aboriginal spirituality entails a close relationship between humans and the land. Aborigines call the beginning of the world the “Dreaming,” or “Dreamtime.” In the “Dreamtime,” aboriginal “Ancestors” rose from below the earth to form various parts of nature including animal species, bodies of water, and the sky. Unlike other religions, aboriginal belief does not place the human species apart from or on a higher level than nature. Aborigines believe some of the Ancestors metamorphosed (changed completely) into nature (as in rock formations or rivers), where they remain spiritually alive. III. Storytelling, Art, and the Didgeridoo The oral tradition of storytelling informs aboriginals vibrant cultural life. Songs illustrate the Dreamtime and other tales of the land, while dances and diagrams drawn in the sand accompany oral tales. In the Northern Territory, aboriginal art includes sculpture, bark and rock paint