Communication/Presentation

Choosing My Topic

specific aspect of the topic

possible approaches
Suggested approaches for this historical investigation

Biographical approach	A war correspondent, photographer, artist, documentary filmmaker and his/her work. Impact of war on combatants, civilians, home fronts depicted in their work. What messages about war are conveyed by their visual and/or spoken texts? How does the correspondent, photographer, artist, documentary filmmaker see himself or herself – as an accurate recorder of history, or conveying a particular message about the conflict?
Source-based approach	Investigating specific sources from a particular war, eg photographs of the Vietnam War, film footage, letters, diary accounts from World War II. Putting the visual or written texts in context. How have the sources been shaped by censorship or propaganda?
Issues-based approach	How has changing technology affected the way war is covered and presented? How have governments manipulated the media to control messages about war? How has technology impaired government’s ability to control what information is released? Consider the changing nature of propaganda. Consider attempts to restrict journalists and where they can go. Is it possible for the photographer, reporter etc to maintain objectivity? What is the effect on the public of ‘saturation coverage’ of war?

The Biographical Approach
Damien Parer could be used as an example of a war photographer and documentary filmmaker. Others who could be used in a biographical approach include Frank Hurley, Eddie Adams, Neil Davis, James Nachtwey, Peter Arnett, Christopher Norris, Robert Capa, Ernest Hemingway.
The following steps, based on syllabus outcomes, outline how Damien Parer and his images of the New Guinea campaign during World War II could be used as a framework for designing an historical investigation.
P3.1 Ask relevant historical questions

Who was he?

Why did he go to New Guinea?

What else did he photograph?

Find details of the campaign he was reporting, eg time frame, maps, purpose and duration of campaign.

Select a range of significant examples of his photography from the New Guinea campaign of World War II.

Conduct a web search on Damien Parer. (The Australian War Memorial site would be a good starting point).

Deconstruct one of Parer’s images for its usefulness and reliability in relation to the campaign. (This should be first modelled by the teacher.)

Using the framework above, students could complete their own deconstruction of a different image of Damien Parer.

Evaluate websites on Parer for their usefulness and reliability.

Examine Parer’s comments on the conflict as presented by the photographs that have been selected for study.
P3.4 Identify and account for differing perspectives and interpretations of the past

Do any critiques of his work exist?

How was he perceived at the time and by whom?

Have these perceptions changed over time and why?

How does Parer’s representation of the war differ from those who were deemed official correspondents?

War photojournalist or accurate historian?

Does Parer reinforce images we have of our identity as Australians?

Is Parer a valid source of history or is he just a photographer?

Is Parer’s work valued as history by other historians?

How would those involved at the time regard his work now, for example, former Australian and Japanese soldiers, the Fuzzy-Wuzzy Angels, the local community?