AustLit

'This issue of the Journal of Australian Studies leads us towards a rich mix of contested, forgotten or untold histories across 19th- and 20th-century Australia. A range of cultural artefacts is central to these histories, from rock art to infant clothing to fences and bollards, as are material practices and labour, both free and unfree. Such a sweep of stories, agents and forces in history reminds us that our understanding of “Australia” is always assembling, and humanities scholars play a critical part in this.' (Emily Potter & Brigid Magner, Assembling Australia: Histories, Materials and Labours, Editorial introduction)

'Western Australia has continued to be seen from without as both necessary and as supplemental: its distinctive place within the national economy, history and psyche has continued to drive a specific and contested set of relations with the state that provides a useful lens upon “Australia” and Australian studies in its larger sense. The status of Australian studies has fluctuated over the last decade but continues to thrive, especially internationally. This special issue explores the potential for a Western Australian perspective to engage with a multifaceted Australian studies. Contributors seek to re-evaluate the analytical framework of Australian studies, interrogating influential assumptions about history and culture. Through narratives of deep time, Asian exchange and cosmopolitanism, truth-telling and extra-colonialism, for example, such research reorients our ideas of “Australia” by rupturing the seemingly inevitable contours of the nation and offering means to re-imagine a future shared civic space. A western orientation offers possibilities for spatially and temporally disrupting the Western linearity that has grounded the modern nation-state. Key principles of this approach must include critical interrogation—rather than celebration—of the entity called Australia, the centrality of Aboriginal perspectives and voices, and the opportunities for creativity and innovation offered by interdisciplinarity.' (Jane Lydon, Reorienting Australian Studies? Remaking Australia from the West : Introduction)

'Our first issue of 2021 brings with it the charge of a new year, a ticking over of the clock from the now infamous 2020. For many, this year is already no easier than the last, and the challenges of the pandemic continue for our global community. Despite this, there is always change in the wind. As we write this editorial, US President Trump’s last days in office signal a potential reset of the cooperative international relations required to address the other global threat somewhat overshadowed by the virus—the unfolding climate crisis—and La Niña has a hold on the weather patterns of the Australian continent, forestalling the catastrophic bushfires we saw last year, bringing with it much-needed rain across parts of the country. This collection of articles includes engagements with both climate crisis and Australian landscapes and regions, and takes us into diverse imaginative and poetic environments through a range of textual and historical explorations of Australian cultural life.' (Emily Potter, Brigid Magner : Land, Sky, Identity and Myth: Making and Unmaking Australian Imaginaries Editorial introduction)

'Our first editorial of 2020 reflected on the profound impact that bushfires would have on Australian society. The devastation of the bushfires has since been dwarfed by a pandemic and a global revolt in response to the murder of George Floyd by police in the United States. The fires and the pandemic each show that our attempts to control nature are as futile as ever, while the Black Lives Matter protests lay bare another profound failure. Each of these events has brought into stark reality the structures of inequality that govern our lives. This issue looks to questions of identity in settler societies, to the history and contemporary legacies of racism embedded within them, and to the alternatives available through multicultural identities, and through popular democracy and protest.' (Editorial introduction)

'Research that relates to Indigenous Australian history has changed considerably since Aboriginal history first emerged as a distinct field in the 1970s. Beginning as an interdisciplinary field, Aboriginal history has since been shaped by historians, archaeologists, anthropologists and linguists who have brought to light a diverse range of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ historical experiences. Such research has sought to answer eminent anthropologist W. E. H. Stanner’s call to shatter the “Great Australian Silence” that is said to have omitted Indigenous people from national narratives of Australia’s past. Since its inception, Aboriginal history has proved to be a dynamic field. Much early work focused on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ experiences of colonisation—from first encounters with Europeans, to histories of frontier conflict, governmental intervention through protection and assimilation policies, and Indigenous labour histories. The influence of anthropology and linguistics has also ensured that Aboriginal history explores Indigenous worlds, drawing on languages and ethnography to reveal insights into so-called traditional practices concerning caring for Country and land management, diplomacy and law, and ceremonial life.' (Shino Konishi, Introduction)

'This issue of the Journal of Australian Studies goes to print at a time when many Australians are questioning a future of climate disruption. The bushfires that continue to burn have sent smoke particles around the globe, choked cities and regional towns, and led to shock, grief and anger at the scale of destruction to Country. As the debate about climate change pivots to reluctant acceptance and the deep divisions over inaction fade, we will likely remember this period as a kind of shared catastrophe and harbinger of change. We humans are agents of change—individually and collectively—some constructive, others less so. Environment, gender, race: each is reinvented, distorted and manipulated, straitjacketing people and land. In this issue, we look to how gender has been subverted, reimagined and repurposed; how literature and art has given voice to alternate imaginings; and how politics remains central in apology.' (Carolyn Holbrook, James Keating, Julie Kimber , Maggie Nolan  & Tom Rogers  : Editorial introduction)

'This provocative issue of the Journal of Australian Studies offers a range of perspectives that challenge orthodox understandings of some of the key concepts underpinning the broad field of Australian studies scholarship.' (Introduction)

'This issue offers a detailed exploration of the ways in which blind spots can prevent us from seeing the different stories, experiences and representations that constitute who we are as Australians, whether we like it or not.' (Maggie Nola, James Keating, Julie Kimber and Ellen Smith : Historical Blind Spots

'This issue of Journal of Australian Studies carries a range of articles across history, literature, politics, music and cultural geography, looking at topics as diverse as sexuality, Indigenous Australia, trade and even the 2011 Brisbane flood.' (Introduction)

'The national consciousness of settler colonial societies such as Australia often blends a complex mix of local and Indigenous identities. Historically infused with a sense of inferiority—and the imperative to stamp ownership on the continent—the stories that settlers tell, and the images and propaganda they project, seek to address this feeling. Robert Frost’s poem argued that, for the United States, “the deed of gift was many deeds of war”. For Australians, by contrast, the frontier wars neither gave nor served as a foundational narrative. In their place, mythologies emerged: of Anzac, of an impoverished Indigenous population, of an industrial “golden age”, and of a free-spirited, urbane culture. We hope that you enjoy the eight articles in this issue of the Journal of Australian Studies, each of which grapples with a question of identity and clarifies and challenges these prevailing mythologies.' (Carolyn Holbrook, Julie Kimber, Maggie Nolan & Laura Rademaker : Introduction)

'This issue of the Journal of Australian Studies carries eight articles, all of which, in their own way, deal with the representation of Australian culture and politics in literature, the media, and the arts. Collectively, they explore the ways in which Australia represents itself and its relation to the land and its people, highlighting some of the tensions and contradictions within these representations.' (Editorial introduction)

'Many of the articles in this issue of Journal of Australian Studies draw upon oral history and other qualitative methodologies. This process of listening carefully to the stories people tell about their lives is one of the most important ways an interdisciplinary journal such as this contributes to sharing ideas and histories that help us make sense of our worlds. Often these approaches accompany a reimagining of traditional historical practice.' (Introduction)

Special issue on 'Feminism and the Museum'.