The "Blackfella Way" : ideology and practice in an urban Aboriginal community

Abstract

This is a study of urban Aboriginal ideology, conducted in Adelaide, South Australia. It addresses the issue of Aboriginal identity and argues that in order to understand the Aboriginal sense of self it is necessary to examine the tension between history, ideas, dispositions and social practice in the context of the objective conditions of daily life. The thesis is that there exists among Aborigines in Adelaide an ideational system they refer to as the "Blackfella Way". An overview of the structure and content of the Blackfella Way in terms of its two distinct and complementary dimensions, essence and style, is presented. It is argued that this system is an historical, cognitive and social construction which synthesizes the tone, texture, style, and mood of life and provides a conceptual and practical framework through which individuals formulate, think about &mi act in the world. The process whereby the ideational system is translated into ideology and the structural position of Aborigines in Adelaide reproducer :s also examined. Consideration is given to the ways in which social and ideological formations mediate the influence of external events and forces and shape human practice are explored. It is argued that through the process of symbolic violence, the limitations of the objective conditions become internalized and appropriated. Objective conditions thus inform and frame the ideological system which Aboriginal actors produce, reproduce and which ultimately reproduces the existing imbalance of power.