The use of film as an intervention in addressing gender violence: Experiences in a South African secondary school

Abstract

abstract In the South African film Yesterday, the filmmaker’s concern is to highlight the harsh social realities of violence and to offer ways of conceptualising, visualising and critiquing violence. In so doing the film offers both a political and pedagogical space for audiences to consider issues of gender violence at school and in the broader society. In this article, I outline how I used this award winning film with Grade 11 learners to address issues of gender, and especially gender-based violence. I argue that issues of gender and sexuality should not be confined to one subject such as Life Orientation but rather should be integrated across the curriculum. The study raised issues which are pertinent to South African society and will continue to be relevant until gender equality is attained. The study is unique and innovative within the isiZulu discipline in that it has employed a cinematic text rather than a conventional print text to address issues of gender and sexuality. It investigated Grade 11 learners’ responses to gender, sexuality and gender violence representations in the film through comprehension and other meaning-making activities. The activities involved questions and discussion before and after viewing the film by focusing on the interplay between the cinematic text and the lived experiences of the learners. The use of critical literacy and feminist theory enabled some of the learners to deconstruct texts. Findings show that through film analysis as a pedagogical intervention, these learners not only acquired analytical and interpretative skills but also critical thinking skills, particularly in the context of gender. The findings have pedagogical implications for isiZulu teachers in that the practice of exploring different texts and applying innovative teaching methods have great potential for engaging learners in a critical social issue such as gender inequality.