Drama Coursework - The Slave Trade

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Drama Coursework-The Slave Trade

     For Our first piece of exam work we studied the slaves in the American civil war and the oppression they endured. After brainstorming information we knew about the war we were split into groups and asked to study a photograph of a family of slaves. From their facial expressions and postures we tried to determine what the people were feeling, what they were like and what it suggested about their way of life.

      The family as a whole looked serious and unhappy. Many of their shoulders were slouched which made them appear exhausted. The father stood in the middle, his arms slightly outstretched by his sides as if to protect and defend his family. His brows were furrowed suggesting he be stressed. The grandfather looked old and wise, his posture slouched. His face looked tired as if he had come to terms with the way their life was. The woman sitting has her face down which immediately indicates little confidence and sadness. The woman standing beside her has a very closed posture with her arms clutched around her middle. This makes her look frightened and uneasy. The boy at the front of the photo looks the most confident member of his family because he is kneeling in a relaxed position and is at the front. The woman holding a baby leans backwards into the photograph. She looks scared for herself and her baby because her eyebrows are pointing upwards at the bridge of her nose.

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      The group then did a tableau of the family, adopting the positions from the photograph. We thought tracked each character in turn. I was one of the young boys. I leant into and rested upon an older family member for protection ad comfort. I tilted my forehead down and my eyes up which showed the audience I was scared, unsure who to trust and wary. I also appeared somewhat stubborn as I imagined the child the photograph to be. I showed this by making my sad expression firm and closing my mouth, tight-lipped.

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