Dramatising family violence: the domestic politics of shame and blame

Abstract

This paper examines an education programme devised by the New Zealand educational theatre company, Everyday Theatre, which offers a fictional representation of family abuse. The paper raises political questions about the dramatic representation of the family as a social system, and examines how the boundaries between private feelings and social values are mediated by professional practitioners who work at the interface between State and family in an educational theatre programme. Drawing on the work of cultural theorist Elspeth Probyn, this paper examines the relationship between guilt and shame in considering the emotional impact of the disclosure of abuse. It also investigates the relationship between shame and the social idealisation of the family, and considers how the theatrical representation of shame can act as a catalyst for personal and social change.

Keywords:

• family system theory
• cultural politics of blame
• domestic abuse

Notes

1. For those who are interested in the programme's effectiveness, it may be illuminating to read this contribution alongside O'Connor's article about the impact assessment of the same programme, published in edition 11.2 (2006) of this journal.

2. Following the conviction of Victoria Climbie's guardians, a public inquiry into her death, led by Lord Laming, forced a revision of government policy. It led to the implementation of Every Child Matters (Department for Education and Skills, 2004), a report that aims to strengthen child welfare provision.