Visible Only Behind Bars: How Indigenous Australian Women Reframe and Reclaim their Experiences on Wentworth

Abstract

This article examines Indigenous Australian characters in Foxtel’s popular prison drama Wentworth (2013–present). I employ feminist textual analysis of six seasons to argue that the prison drama offers nuanced depictions of Indigenous Australian women. Taking Wentworth as a case study, this article contributes new understandings about how communication and televisual representation participate in the politics of seeing. It highlights offscreen decisions that contribute to Indigenous authorship and decolonization through self-representation. Analysis of three major characters (Doreen Anderson, Rita Connors, and Ruby Mitchell) demonstrates how the series acknowledges their Indigenousness without making it their sole identity marker and addresses the racism they endure. Finally, I discuss the politics of seeing to elucidate differences in the portrayal of Indigenous Australians, especially between major and minor characters, within the prison drama.