Billy Elliot

LEARNING INTENTIONS

To understand the context for the prescribed text - Billy Elliot.

To understand the film.

In this module, students will explore the prescribed text Billy Elliot, which will deepen their understanding of how texts represent individual and collective human experiences.

Students will focus on the context of 1980’s Britain and how this is depicted through the emotions and experiences of the characters in Billy Elliot.

Key questions based on the rubric

What ideas about human experiences are in the text and how has the composer used techniques to communicate these ideas?

How does Billy Elliot represent individual human experiences?
How does Billy Elliot represent collective human experiences?
How does Billy Elliot represent human qualities?
How does Billy Elliot represent human emotions?
How does Billy Elliot give insight into anomalies and paradoxes of human experience?
How does Billy Elliot give insight into inconsistencies of human experience?
How does Billy Elliot express and reflect particular lives and cultures?
How does the world of Billy Elliot connect to issues in the wider world?
How has the composer of Billy Elliot used language to represent individual and collective human experiences?
How has the composer of Billy Elliot used characters (human experiences) to provoke responders to see the world differently and ignite new ideas?
How has the composer of Billy Elliot used characters (human experiences) to provoke responders to challenge assumptions?
How has the composer of Billy Elliot used characters (human experiences) to express universal themes?
How has the composer of Billy Elliot used form, structure, stylistic and grammatical features (form and techniques) to shape messages about human experiences?

Context

The film is set during the 1984-85 coal miner’s strike in Britain. The 80’s are widely recognised as a controversial and important period of British (and global) history. Britain was experiencing a dramatic shift in political, social and economic policy towards the ‘neoliberal’ framework engineered by Margaret Thatcher and her US contemporary, Ronald Reagan. Crises such as the Falklands war – a brief but intense conflict between Britain and Argentina over British islands – allowed the British government to use a ‘crisis mandate’ to impose strict and fundamental changes to the economic fabric of society. Corporations and private interests were given greater freedoms, often at the expense of workers and the middle class.

As a result of these reforms – seen by the political elite as ‘necessary’ for growth, but seen by the working classes as a cruel depravation of social safety nets – divisions between classes grew. The miner’s strike came about as a response to fears that Conservative Party policies would decimate the already-dwindling mining industry. Members of the NUM – the National Union of Miners – conducted massive and widespread strikes, often resulting in violent clashes with police. These clashes are frequently demonstrated in the film, and they symbolise a broader conflict between democratic or populist wills and technocratic or authoritative forces.

Other forms of authority were being challenged at the time as well, including the authority of social norms and roles. Feminist movements were focusing on the role that gender plays in society, and how certain gendered norms – such as what men and women should wear, do or pursue – were restrictive to many people. LGBTIQ communities, though heavily discriminated against at the time, were gaining more visibility and were forming organised resistance. This resistance to traditional notions of gender or sexuality is not just seen in Billy – it is expressed through his best friend Michael as well.

Miner's Strike

View the following YouTube clip for a brief overview of the 1984 miners’ strike in Britain. Miners 1984

Research

Research the context of the film and in groups of two or three, create a short presentation that outlines the historical/geographical/political and social context of the film.

Viewing the film

Billy ElliotA talented young boy becomes torn between his unexpected love of dance and the disintegration of his family. Stars: Jamie Bell, Julie Walters, Jean Heywood

Questions on the film

The setting of the film is the working class setting of Durham, England. The specific condition of the film is a major strike by miners in the early eighties. Many details of the film suggest the working class world that Billy moves in. List as many details of the working class life you can remember.
What are the specific obstacles Billy faces in wanting to learn to dance? List them.
Why are Billy’s father and brother so set against his wanting to dance? Give all the reasons mentioned in the film.
Despite Billy’s pleas, his father refuses to allow him to dance. What changes his mind? How is this moment of decision represented in the film?
Why does Billy’s father confront the ballet teacher?
The pivotal scene for Billy’s father is when he crosses the picket line to work so that he can have money for his son’s dancing. Why is the scene so emotionally charged for both the father and his elder son?
What is the significance of Billy’s friendship with Michael?
How does the film use Billy’s dancing to trace his emotional development? Think of specific instances, for example, when Billy practices pirouettes in front of his bathroom cabinet. Identify at least three moments from the film where Billy is dancing (or trying to dance) to use as trace moments. List them.
The film skips over several years to show Billy in the ballet company performing at Covent Garden. Why does the director include the final scene of Billy’s professional dance?
What is your favourite scene in the film? Explain why.

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