AustLit

'At the turn of the last century, Australian literary and artistic hopefuls looked to London to further their careers, make good in the centre of the British Empire. Did they not have the example of Melba, the girl from the colonies who had become a diva, the most famous Australian in the world? A whole host of talents took the steamships north, actors, journalists, singers and famously Henry Lawson, for whom the trip proved a personal and artistic disaster.' (Author's introduction, p. 127)

This chapter explores the transnational influence of consumer capitalism on the culture of romantic love in Australia during the twentieth century, particularly as it has been manifested through advertising. I want to utilise Benedict Anderson’s well-known argument about how print capitalism created the ‘imagined community’ of the nation to argue that if the circulation of texts throughout society can foster feelings of nationalism,[470] they can also create or affect emotional experiences of romantic love.'  (Introduction)