That Bloodsucka Blackfella Dance!: A Study Guide for Chapters 1-3

I'll preface this post by saying that I think, without a doubt, that this might be the most obscure resource I've ever made and shared on this blog. 

The attached resources concern That Blackfella Bloodsucka Dance! by D. Bruno Starrs, a vampire text recommended by NSW English teacher Bernadette Therese (see here for a Youtube channel, and here for a Twitter account). The relevance of the text pertains to the Year 11 Extension English 1 module Texts, Culture and Value as a reiteration of Dracula's vampire myth that manages to parallel and challenge Stoker's narrative. Starrs is an academic writer of Aboriginal and European background, and he offers a contemporary Indigenous take on the vampire mythos. His irreverent novel That Blackfella Bloodsucka Dance! can be found in the usual places - Amazon, Bookdepository, etc. - and tracks the journey of complex gym junkie and would-be academic Sterling de Bortoli from the streets of Melbourne to the sweltering marketplaces of Morocco. The resources below concern the Prologue and first three chapters (this extract is all I covered with my class, hopefully leaving enough time to cover other texts in comparison to Dracula).

Resource 1

Here is a study guide. The analysis is broken into four columns: Example > Technique and Analysis > Cultural Value > Maintained or Changed?  

• Example: Quote or textual example that demonstrates the way the text reflects its context.
• Technique and Analysis: Some analysis of the example to show the way that Starrs has used language to construct his discussion of theme, cultural value, etc.
• Cultural Value: In what way does the example reflect the values of Starrs' context?
• Maintained or Changed?: How does it compare to the way Dracula deals with the same (or a comparable) contextual value?

Resource 2

Here is a comparison table. Students use their textual knowledge (plus the study guide) to write down their own observations of how That Blackfella Bloodsucka Dance! compares to Dracula. The table breaks student analysis into six themes that could be broadly linked to both texts, and would allow for the construction of six separate thesis statements based around said themes. These themes are:

• Non-White ethnic groups: I'm loath to characterise Aboriginality as one and the same as the 'foreign other' discussed in Dracula but, then again, that's kind of the point. These two texts deal with non-Anglo cultural groups in very different ways and the way these authors represent these groups can be used as a jumping off point for discussion of what mainstream Western society classifies as 'the other'.  
• The Canon: As a 'canon' text, Dracula commands a certain kind of power, and Starrs' novel deals directly with this through its direct referencing of Stoker's novel.
• Religion: This relates directly to the way That Blackfella Bloodsucka Dance! deals with Catholicism, as well as Dracula's integration of the Catholic Church into its narrative as the antithesis of vampirism.
• The Spiritual / Supernatural World: Compare Dracula's use of the supernatural through its depiction of superstition and vampiric lore, and Starrs' utilisation of the Dreaming to explore the Indigenous spirit world.
• Science: Stoker positions science as a reflection of the Victorian era's increasing trust in rationalism (note Dr Seward's use of the phonograph, and the blood transfusion technology Van Helsing uses to fight against Dracula's 'infecting' of Lucy and Mina). The theme of science is less obvious in That Blackfella Bloodsucka Dance! but still appears in figurative form as a motif that Starrs' frequently revisits to describe the world around his protagonist (note the use of terms like 'micro-organisms' to describe the Arabic plane passengers he encounters).

One more note before I go - watch out for the very last page of Chapter 3, which could prompt some challenging conversations. I've included some appropriate analysis in the study guide to help steer the conversation towards relevance.