Making Sense of Noise – A Symphony for Voices

Mary-Rose McLaren

doi:10.17742/IMAGE.MM.12.2.6

Authors

Mary-Rose McLaren College of Arts and Education at Victoria University, Melbourne

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.17742/IMAGE.MM.12.2.6

Abstract

This paper uses original and found poetry to shape the soundscape of 2020 into meaning. A critical auto-ethnographic study, it uses poetic strategies of arts-based methodology to weave stories, experiences and impressions together, to create a literary fabric of the year. So doing, it creates a choral piece for the spoken voice, which explores ideas of conspiracy, community, racism, oppression and justice, drawing on the author’s experience in Australia, and connection with the wider world via the internet. Its focus on listening as meaning is formed from competing and contesting voices.

Author Biography

Mary-Rose McLaren, College of Arts and Education at Victoria University, Melbourne

Mary-Rose McLaren is an Associate Professor in the College of Arts and Education at Victoria University, Melbourne, and course chair of the Bachelor of Early Childhood Education. She teaches within the arts-based, literacy, and movement units. Her background is in History, Drama, and Education, and her research interests lie at the intersection of these, combining practice, pedagogy, and performance. She uses Drama as a pedagogical tool in all her teaching, and works with colleagues to extend the influence and impact of embodied learning across courses in Higher Education. Mary-Rose is also involved in community theatre as a writer, actor, and director with a special interest in intergenerational engagement. She has a strong interest in using applied theatre to bring about socially-just change.

References

@ABC7 (ABC7 Eyewitness News). “Rest in Peace George Floyd.” Twitter, 28 May 2020, twitter.com/abc7/status/1265681218017701888. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

Alderslade, Liz. “Royal Commission: High-Quality Food Is Vital to Wellness in Aged Care.” Aged Care Guide, DPS Publishing, 17 July 2019, www.agedcareguide.com.au/talking-aged-care/royal-commission-high-quality-food-is-vital-to-wellness-in-aged-care. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

All Gas No Brakes. “Coronavirus Lockdown Protest.” YouTube, YouTube, 26 Apr. 2020, www.youtube.com/watch?v=8kkBseVTUow. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

---. “Minneapolis Protest.” YouTube, YouTube, 8 June 2020, www.youtube.com/watch?v=kZPeD2miyF8. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

Allam, Lorena, et al.. “Aboriginal Deaths in Custody: 434 have Died Since 1991, New Data Shows.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 6 June 2020, www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/jun/06/aboriginal-deaths-in-custody-434-have-died-since-1991-new-data-shows. Accessed 26 Nov 2021.

AllureMagazine. “Girls Ages 6-18 Talk about Body Image | Allure.” YouTube, YouTube, 31 May 2018, www.youtube.com/watch?v=5mP5RveA_tk. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

Baker, Peter, and Maggie Haberman. “As Protests and Violence spill over, Trump Shrinks Back.” The New York Times, May 31 2020, updated July 15 2020, www.nytimes.com/2020/05/31/us/politics/trump-protests-george-floyd.html. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

Beall, Abigail. “The Heart-Wrenching Choice of Who Lives and Dies.” BBC Future, BBC, Apr. 28 2020, www.bbc.com/future/article/20200428-coronavirus-how-doctors-choose-who-lives-and-dies. Accessed 26 Nov 2021.

Black Lives Matter. Blacklivesmatter.com. Accessed 26 Nov 2021.

Blumer, Claire. “Would You Eat This? The Real Food Inside Aged Care Facilities in Australia.” ABC News, Sept. 17 2018, www.abc.net.au/news/2018-09-17/food-in-aged-care/10212880?nw=0. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

Bullock, Penn. “Transcript: Donald Trump’s Taped Comments about Women.” The New York Times, Oct. 8 2016, www.nytimes.com/2016/10/08/us/donald-trump-tape-transcript.html. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. “1918 flu pandemic.” cdc.gov, www.cdc.gov/flu/pandemic-resources/1918-pandemic-h1n1.html. Accessed 26 Nov 2021.

Clark, Tom. “Keating’s Redfern Speech is still Worth Fighting Over.” The Conversation, Dec. 9 2013: theconversation.com/keatings-redfern-speech-is-still-worth-fighting-over-21118. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

Clayton, Rachel. “Socially Distant Bear Hunts are Popping up all Around the World to Distract Children from Coronavirus.” ABC News, Mar. 25 2020, www.abc.net.au/news/2020-03-25/coronavirus-bear-hunts-around-the-world-including-melbourne/12085168. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

Decolonize This Place. Decolonizethisplace.org. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

Earl, Carly. “David Dungay Jr Dies in Custody and his Family are Changed Forever – Photo Essay.” The Guardian, July 13 2018, www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2018/jul/13/david-dungay-jr-dies-in-custody-and-his-family-are-changed-forever-photo-essay. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

“Facing Australia's Own History of Indigenous Deaths in Custody | the Drum.” YouTube, YouTube, 1 June 2020, www.youtube.com/watch?v=EXmREhYbiSk. Accessed 26 Nov 2021.

Faulkner, Sandra L. “Poetic Inquiry. Poetry as/in/for Social Research.” Handbook of Arts-based Research, edited by Patricia Leavy, New York, Guildford Publications, 2017.

Fernando, Gavin. “Is Melbourne’s Coronavirus Lockdown Really the Longest in the World? Here’s How Other Countries Stack Up.” SBS News, Sept. 8 2020, www.sbs.com.au/news/is-melbourne-s-coronavirus-lockdown-really-the-longest-in-the-world-here-s-how-other-countries-stack-up. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

Hodge, Lisa. “Capturing the Research Journey: A Feminist Application of Bakhtin to Examine Eating Disorders and Child Sexual Abuse.” Handbook of Research Methods in Health Social Sciences, edited by Pranee Liamputtong, Singapore, Springer Nature, 2017, DOI 10.1007/978-981-10-2779-6_131-1.

Hurst, Daniel. “Morrison Says Australia Should Not Import Black Lives Matter Protests after Deaths-in-Custody Rally.” The Guardian, June 4 2020, www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/jun/04/morrison-says-australia-should-not-import-black-lives-matter-protests-after-deaths-in-custody-rally. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

Howze, Thaddeus*. “The four Ds of surviving the Social Media Apocalypse.” LinkedIn, Feb. 8 2017, www.linkedin.com/pulse/four-ds-surviving-social-media-apocalypse-thaddeus-howze/. Accessed 26 Nov 2021.

Jester, Barbara, Timothy Uyeki, and Daniel Jernigan. “Readiness for Responding to a Severe Pandemic 100 Years After 1918.” American Journal of Epidemiology, vol. 187, no. 12, Dec. 2018, pp. 2596-2602, doi.org/10.1093/aje/kwy165.

Johns Hopkins University. “COVID-19 Dashboard.” Johns Hopkins University Coronavirus Resource Center, coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html.

Keating, Paul. “The Redfern Speech.” Redfern Park, Dec. 10 1992, probably written by Don Watson, antar.org.au/sites/default/files/paul_keating_speech_transcript.pdf. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

Kelly, Sean. “The Way Scott Morrison Talks About Indigenous Pain is a Problem.” The Sydney Morning Herald, June 8 2020, www.smh.com.au/national/the-way-scott-morrison-talks-about-indigenous-pain-is-a-problem-20200605-p54zrv.html. Accessed 26 Nov 2021.

Lennon, John. “Nowhere Man.” Rubber Soul, Parlophone, 1965, genius.com/The-beatles-nowhere-man-lyrics. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

Lucas, Clay, and Tammy Mills. “Hotel Quarantine Failure Responsible for 768 Deaths, Inquiry Hears.” The Age, Sept. 28 2020, www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/multitude-of-bad-decisions-led-to-hotel-quarantine-failure-inquiry-told-20200928-p55zv3.html. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

McCauley, Dana. “Aged Care COVID-19 Deaths Could Have Been Curtailed, Brendan Murphy says.” The Age, Sept. 29 2020, www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/aged-care-covid-19-deaths-could-have-been-curtailed-brendan-murphy-says-20200928-p56006.html. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

Murray-Atfield, Yara. “Chalk Messages and Drawings on Streets are Bringing Hope During the Coronavirus Pandemic.” ABC News, Apr. 2 2020, www.abc.net.au/news/2020-04-02/coronavirus-covid-19-chalk-messages-on-streets-around-australia/12102778. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

Patrick, Lisa D. “Found Poetry: Creating Space for Imaginative Arts-based Literacy Research Writing.” Literary Research: Theory, Method and Practice, vol. 65, 2016, pp. 384-403, DOI: 10.1177/2381336916661530.

Parris, Michael. ““Australia is a f---king Crime Scene”: Black Lives Matter Protest Draws 1000 in Newcastle.” The Canberra Times, July 6 2020, www.canberratimes.com.au/story/6819966/australia-is-a-f-ing-crime-scene-law-student-tells-blm-rally/. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

Plato. “Apology.” Plato in Twelve Volumes, section 38a, vol. 1 translated by Harold North Fowler, introduction by W.R.M. Lamb, London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1966, www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0170%3Atext%3DApol.%3Asection%3D38a .

Rage Against the Machine. “Wake Up.” Rage Against the Machine, Epic Records, 1992, genius.com/Rage-against-the-machine-wake-up-lyrics. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

Riga, Rachel. “'Without Warning or Negotiation': Protesters Arrested at Rally over Indigenous Death in Custody.” ABC News, ABC News, 11 Sept. 2020, www.abc.net.au/news/2020-09-11/protests-indigenous-death-in-custody-brisbane-watch-house/12654860. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

Rudin, Mike. “Why is Billionaire George Soros a Bogeyman for the Hard Right?” BBC News, Sept. 6 2019, www.bbc.com/news/stories-49584157. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

Sacramento Bee. “See Black Lives Matter Protestors Clash with Trump supporters at defund police rally.” YouTube, Sept. 7, 2020, www.youtube.com/watch?v=OS0mMZ-oekw. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

Singh, Maanvi. “George Floyd told Officers ‘I can’t breathe’ more than 20 times Transcripts Show.” The Guardian, July 10 2020, www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/jul/08/george-floyd-police-killing-transcript-i-cant-breathe. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

---. “Unprecedented: The US West’s Wildfire Catastrophe Explained.” The Guardian, Sept. 12 2020, www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/sep/12/california-oregon-washington-fires-explained-climate-change. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

Smith, Nicola. “Pandemic Behind Explosion of Poverty Across Asia and Pacific.” The Age, Sept. 30 2020, www.theage.com.au/world/asia/pandemic-behind-explosion-of-poverty-across-asia-and-pacific-20200930-p560jh.html. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

Sommers, Suzette. facebook page, www.facebook.com/suzette.sommer.9?__tn__=%2CdCH-R-R&eid=ARCcltatEGFrgYPQVbFcyARWK56-TlGK1QMPW_-rjR0ZYKgtOkfE2y3R1PxuIdwMca6SmXU4drYAzLte&hc_ref=ARQ7w8DQBL11BbHYarwWWg7woz-Kh1y_xvCNy51GJYlIXlc9SyrmGsO40-0IS9EAE70&fref=nf. Accessed 15 Oct 2020.

Stafford, Indigo. “The Red Summer of 1919 and How Race Riots Broke Out During a Global Flu Pandemic.” Edinburghlive, June 8, 2020, Accessed 28 Nov 2021. www.edinburghlive.co.uk/news/edinburgh-news/red-summer-1919-how-race-18383339.

Schwartz, Stephen L. “Dancing Through Life.” Wicked, 2003, www.allmusicals.com/lyrics/wicked/dancingthroughlife.htm. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

“The Australian Bushfires—Why They Are Unprecedented.” Australian Academy of Science, 3 Feb. 2020, www.science.org.au/news-and-events/news-and-media-releases/australian-bushfires-why-they-are-unprecedented#:~:text=In%20a%20statement%20on%20the,unprecedented%20anywhere%20in%20the%20world'. Accessed 26 Nov 2021.

The Guardian. “Deaths Inside. Indigenous Australian Deaths in Custody 2020.” The Guardian, Aug. 28 2018, www.theguardian.com/australia-news/ng-interactive/2018/aug/28/deaths-inside-indigenous-australian-deaths-in-custody. Accessed 26 Nov 2021.

The Hill. “President Trump holds a Make America Great Again Rally in Middletown, PA | FULL, 9/26/2020.” YouTube, Sept. 26, 2020, www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFR-inbzIaI. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

The Project. “The Facts About Aboriginal Deaths in Police Custody | Black Lives Matter | The Project.” YouTube, June 2 2020, www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mi-rDPh6I88. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

The Project. “Indigenous Speeches from History | Black Lives Matter | The Project.” YouTube, June 2 2020, www.youtube.com/watch?v=hc4bVGVhv9Y. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

The University of Newcastle, Australia. “Black Lives Matter Statement.” Aug. 21 2020, www.newcastle.edu.au/newsroom/featured/black-lives-matter-position-statement. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

“Thousands Attend Black Lives Matter Rally in Melbourne.” Yahoo! Finance, Yahoo!, ca.finance.yahoo.com/video/australia-not-innocent-thousands-attend-110122138.html. Accessed 26 Nov 2021.

Victorian State Government. “Staying Apart Keeps Us Together Video.” July 29 2021, www.vic.gov.au/media/14574. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

Wehner, Peter. “Why Trump Supporters Can’t Admit Who He really Is.” The Atlantic, Sept. 4 2020, www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/09/predicate-fear/616009/. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

Wood, Graeme. “How Do You Kneel on a Neck for Nine Minutes?” The Atlantic, May 31 2020, www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/05/george-floyd-kneeling/612409/. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

Yeats, William Butler. “The Second Coming.” The Collected Poems of W. B. Yeats, 1989, www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/43290/the-second-coming. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.

Zaks, Jack. “Vet Makes Urgent Plea for Pet Grooming to Be Allowed Under Stage 4 Lockdown.” Radio 3AW (Melbourne), Aug. 19 2020, www.3aw.com.au/vet-make-urgent-plea-for-pet-grooming-to-be-allowed-under-stage-4-lockdown/#:~:text=A%20vet%20has%20made%20an,to%20groom%20them%20at%20home. Accessed 28 Nov 2021.