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Representations of homelessness A semiotic analysis of the representation of homelessness in two South African documentary films. Homelessness is a growing phenomenon in post-apartheid South Africa. Therefore many documentaries about homeless subjects are being made. This essay analyses the concept of homelessness in the context of documentaries aimed at creating an awareness of the issues surrounding the homeless experience. Semiotic analysis of White Poverty (in a New South Africa) (2013) Richard Dyer (1997) argues that white is associated with ideas of purity, safety, divinity and order. White poverty (in a New South Africa) (2013) is a documentary film about a man who helps white homeless people on a farm by giving them food from the grocery store. The homeless white people are said to have lost their homes as a result of forced removal caused by the lack of financial capacity to pay rent. The documentary depicts their struggles with fires and trees that fall during harsh weather conditions. A homeless white lady argues that black people receive assistance from the municipality yet the requests of the white homeless are rejected.

Semiotic analysis of Street Stories South Africa (2011)

The image associated with the black African is of humiliation, debasement, nameless suffering, nonbeing and social death. All the above Mbembe (2002: 241-242) mentions is characterised by denial of human dignity, torment of exile and heavy psychic damage. Street Stories South Africa (2011) perpetuates some of the above mentioned attributes. This documentary is a short depiction of a story of a young boy named Thulani. He is argued to have run away from home and he ends up in the street. During his time in the street he faces tragedy and hardships, yet he still hopes for a brighter future. The study therefore seeks to problematise the associations of the black subject with lifelessness and social death amongst other associations.

Myth of the youth gangs is depicted in Figures 1, 2 and 3. Street gangs became a known feature in South African communities from the beginning of the twentieth century. The main figure that makes gangsters distinct is their obsession with territorial space and operating in groups (de Wet 2016:4). The boys depicted in the figures 1, 2 and 3 can be argued to represent irresponsible dangerous living. This is seen in that the young boys are smoking and it can be assumed by this act of smoking that these boys are irresponsible with money they get from begging. Rebecca Lind and James Danowski (1999:110) argue that the homeless tend to be depicted in media as ungrateful victims of personal shortcomings that have lead them to be too dependent on public’s help. The depiction of tobacco in films is argued to no longer resemble wealth and something to aspire for but it is now assimilated to the notion of the ‘slacker’ which are associated to ‘Generation X’ youth.

The documentary film portray not only the glamour effect of the cigarette yet the aspect of smoking as a means to exposes emotional turmoil. The stereotypical association of the cigarette is with stress and the desire of being part of something (sense of belonging). Smoking is in this case predominantly portrayed amongst the poor population. And in such circumstances the smoker is regarded to be dysfunctional.

When looking at the construction of the black male identity in mainstream film, Kenneth Chan (1998: 35-36) argues that representations are made to appeal to ‘crossover’ white viewers. He argues that filmmakers of films containing black male identities are dependent on major studios for production facilities and help. Therefore these filmmakers’ work is influenced by the political grounds and the governing parties that determine the access of the facilities they need to make integral films (of which the integrity is often tainted). By virtue of the argument that they represent the stereotype of gangster culture, images in figures 1, 2 and 3 can be assimilated to black male identities in action films. Chan comments of black action films, he mentions that they portray the black character to be one that embodies the political social context of poverty, crime, drugs, and violence. And the characters he mentions, much like the one portrayed in figures 1, 2 and 3, are situated in inner-city spaces or the ghetto.

Chan (1998:36) argues that even though the inner-city space gives potential for filming the life experienced in the city to create awareness for the purpose of positive change, this is often not the case. He mentions that the production of films is influenced by the capitalist politics systems that render the films portrayal rather inclusive of stereotypical constructions of black identities. In the context of Street Stories South Africa (2011), the black youngsters are stereotypes of young homeless or rather street kids (often deemed a danger to society).

Chan (1998:36-37) mentions that the tendency of film in the portrayal of gangster culture, is the depiction of the myth of the ‘bad nigger’. In the case of this essay one can argue towards calling them the ‘bad street kids’. This creates the binary opposition of labelling certain black people as ‘good black’ and others as ‘bad blacks’. The notion of the black gangster is motivated by political and social structures that are embedded within ideas of capitalism. Capitalism is structured to make those who were initially rich even richer meanwhile the black underclass is subdued into the clutches of poverty and suffering. This derives from the oppression and exploitation of African and Third World Labour by Europeans and Euro-American Capitalist for the amplification of their power and control of resources.

Accordingly, the representation of the gangster stems from the reality of black people’s failure to overcome the system and attain material success (Chan 1998:37). Therefore in representing this aspect in the documentary film it can be argued that the myth of the bad street kid is reinforced in the viewers as a reality rather than a construction. Thulani is represented to be one who has been defeated by the system. The dialogue in the documentary highlights that in his attempt to make money he leaves home after being convinced by friends. He then fails in his attempts and found himself stuck in the street where he is faced with many challenges.

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Contents of this path:
1. A semiotic analysis of the representation of homelessness in two South African documentary films.
2. Aim of Study
4. Semiotic analysis of Street Stories South Africa (2011) The image associated with the black African is of humiliation, debasement, nameless suffering, nonbeing and social death. All the above Mbembe (2002: 241-242) mentions is characterised by denial of human dignity, torment of exile and heavy psychic damage. Street Stories South Africa (2011) perpetuates some of the above mentioned attributes. This documentary is a short depiction of a story of a young boy named Thulani. He is argued to have run away from home and he ends up in the street. During his time in the street he faces tragedy and hardships, yet he still hopes for a brighter future. The study therefore seeks to problematise the associations of the black subject with lifelessness and social death amongst other associations.
6. Semiotic analysis of White Poverty (in a New South Africa) (2013) Richard Dyer (1997) argues that white is associated with ideas of purity, safety, divinity and order. White poverty (in a New South Africa) (2013) is a documentary film about a man who helps white homeless people on a farm by giving them food from the grocery store. The homeless white people are said to have lost their homes as a result of forced removal caused by the lack of financial capacity to pay rent. The documentary depicts their struggles with fires and trees that fall during harsh weather conditions. A homeless white lady argues that black people receive assistance from the municipality yet the requests of the white homeless are rejected.

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