Australian
Screen

Teacher’s notes

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This clip shows three Pintupi women in the Western Desert of Western Australia explaining to two young women the lore of marriage that determines the skin groups from which they can choose a husband, known as the skin system. The clip is narrated by one of the young women in the clip, Jessie Bartlett. The three Elders are her grandmothers. As one of the grandmothers talks she draws symbols in the desert sand to illustrate the skin system. Both young women are then shown repeating the lesson and drawing the symbols in the sand. The clip has subtitles in both Pintupi and English.

Educational value points

• Jessie Bartlett describes the skin groups that are part of a complex kinship system. An individual’s skin name is derived from their parents’ skin groups. The skin system helps maintain social cohesion in that it governs people’s positions and roles within the community. In many Indigenous Australian communities this system defines relationships and responsibilities, including the correct choice of a spouse.

• The clip captures the importance of learning about the skin system and the relevance of this knowledge to these young women who are living in a contemporary society. Bartlett explains that in the past the skin system was very strict, and people who married someone from the wrong skin group were punished by the community. She clearly articulates the importance of the lore. While punishments are no longer common the importance of this knowledge has not diminished.

• In many Indigenous Australian communities it is the responsibility of Elders such as Bartlett’s grandmothers to pass on knowledge of country, language and the lore of their community to younger generations. Sand paintings and stories are often used to instruct young people. Bartlett’s grandmothers recognised that she was ready to learn about the responsibilities of love and relationships and took her and other young women (one of whom is seen in the clip) to country in the Western Desert to pass on this knowledge.

• The women in the clip are speaking Pintupi, a Western Desert language, and the clip captures traditional language being passed on to the younger women. The process of teaching important cultural knowledge is a means of ensuring their language stays alive.