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AbstractHistoryArchive Description
'With a population base of some 20 million people in the early years of the twenty-first century, Australia is widely recognised as ‘punching above its weight’ in the field of international literature in English. When questions of literary merit are raised, Patrick White’s Nobel Prize for literature in 1973 is often cited together with David Malouf’s Impac award, Thomas Keneally’s and Peter Carey’s Booker prizes, Kate Grenville’s Orange prize and the Queens’s gold medal for poetry to Judith Wright, Les Murray and Peter Porter. Although some of these authors are discussed in the present book, readers will also encounter a variety of other Australian writers, living and dead, from colonial to post-colonial times, including :Louis Becke, Jack Davis, Yasmine Gooneratne, Ee Tiang Hong, Dorothy Hewitt, A D Hope, Clive James, Oodgeroo, John Boyle O’Reilly and Tim Winton. This heterogeneous group includes Indigenous Australians, immigrants, expatriates, long and short term residents and an Irish political prisoner. The main criterion for inclusion in these essays is not the canonical status of authors but their fruitful engagement with themes of alienation and belonging in a changing Australia.'
(Publication summary)
Notes
-
Dedication: For my brothers Jack and Glen.
Contents
* Contents derived from the
Perth,
Western Australia,:Network
, 2006 version. Please note that other versions/publications may contain different contents. See the Publication Details.
- Living Spaces : Some Australian Houses of Childhood, single work criticism (p. 5-13)
- Australian Myths Myth, single work criticism (p. 15-29; notes 260-262)
- Nostalgia for Community: Tim Winton's Essay and Stories, single work criticism (p. 31-44)
- Expatriate Voices, single work criticism (p. 45-53)
-
Foreword : Nearing a Horizon,
single work
criticism
(p. 55-59; notes 264)
Note: With title: Ee Tiang Hong's Nearing a Horizon
- Dorothy Hewett's Garden and City, single work criticism (p. 61-70)
-
Poet and Statesman
Poet,
single work
criticism
(p. 71-80; notes 265-266)
Note: With title: Poet and Statesman
- Clive James, Humour and Empire, single work criticism (p. 81-89)
-
'Nation' and Literary History : The Case of Australia,
single work
criticism
(p. 91-100; notes 267-269)'Modern histories of a nation's literature require a comprehensive, scholarly approach. A serious literary history of Australia should focus primarily on literary form and content - the stories and myths of Australians in a variety of literary genres. Relevant historical contexts will extend from local and regional concerns to Australians' links with Europe, North America and, increasingly, Asia. Colonial and post-colonial contexts provide important avenues of investigation and research, employing the scholarly disciplines of bibliography, biography and textual editing.' (Author's abstract)
- Glimpses of India, single work essay (p. 101-109)
- Inner Landscapes : Peter Porter's Later Poetry Interior Landscapes in Peter Porter's Later Poetry, single work criticism (p. 111-121, notes 269-270)
-
The Poet as Traveller : Edwin Thumbo
Edwin Thumboo - The Poet as Traveller,
single work
criticism
(p. 123-130; notes 270)Examines Thumboo's experiences as an 'internationalist' Singaporean travelling within Africa, Australia, Asia and the Pacific and the impact of these travels on his poetry. Particular attention is drawn to Thumboo's naming of personal friends and acquaintances in his poems and of the link between relationships and a sense of place.Note: With title: The Poet as Traveller : Edwin Thumbo
-
Home and Away: Reconciling the Local and the Global,
single work
criticism
(p. 131-135;notes 270-271)Puts the case for 'a literary and cultural recognition of the local and particular in people's lives' while acknowledging the value of modern pluralism. Expresses hope for the development of 'a kind of international regionalism which incorporates the benfits of global communications with those of primary identification with a place, region and community'.
-
The Trader's Eye : Louis Becke's South Pacific
The Trader's Eye : Louis Becke's Oceania,
single work
criticism
(p. 147-155)
Note: Revision of 1999 publication.
-
Early Prisoners in Australia : Henry Savery and John Boyle O'Reilly
Ego, Sight and Insight in Convict Fiction by Henry Savery and John Boyle O'Reilly,
single work
criticism
(p. 157-168; notes, 272-273)Investigates 'narratives of imprisonment and escape' focusing on the extent to which they are dominated by the personal experience of the convict writer and the degree to which they explore the broader issues of place and community.
-
Sharing National Memories: Literary Histories in the Commonwealth,
single work
criticism
(p. 169-179; notes 273-275)Taking the example of late twentieth century South African history, Bennett considers "the twin but competing demands of 'truth' and 'reconciliation'" and the outworking of corporate, cultural memory. An analysis is made of recent literary history publications from Canada, New Zealand and Australia and comments expressed on the decisions of policy-makers and literary history writers to "give priority to certain narratives over others".
- A Family Closeness? : Australia, India, Indonesia, single work criticism (p. 181-193; notes 275-276)
-
Crossing Cultures: Australia and the Asia Pacific,
single work
criticism
(p. 195-207; notes 276-278)Bennett establishes Australia's ambivalence about its own place in the world and then examines how this 'context of a colonial and post-colonial culture in Australia' has affected the perception of Asia and the Pacific. Considering Australia's relationship with Asia, as depicted in her national literature, Bennett focuses particularly on the writings of Christopher Koch, Nicholas Jose and Brian Castro. In conclusion, Bennett states that although Australia will continue to be influenced by Europe and North America, an 'enhanced interaction with Indo-Asia-Pacific countries is already generating and will generate further beneficial changes to Australian culture and society.'
-
The Unsettled 1970s : Moorhouse, Wilding, Viidikas
Home and Away : Australian Short Fictionists of the 1970s : Moorhouse, Wilding, Viidikas,
single work
criticism
(p. 209-220; notes 278-279)Bennett discusses the ways in which the Balmain writers Moorhouse, Wilding and Viidikas each in their own way expressed the changing lifestyles and expectations of their time.
- A West-Side Story, single work autobiography (p. 221-229; notes 279)
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Works about this Work
-
Water, Diaspora and Desire : Belonging in Contemporary Asian Australian Poetry
2014
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Axon : Creative Explorations , December vol. 4 no. 2 2014; 'Contemporary Asian Australian poets have recently begun to attract more attention, particularly with the publication of the anthology, edited by Adam Aitken, Kim Cheng Boey and Michelle Cahill, Contemporary Asian Australian Poets. This essay engages with three of these poets: Debbie Lim, Shen and James Stuart, and reads their poems through a diasporic lens. Contrary to scholarship that investigates belonging using the more orthodox ideas of home and land, this reading engages with fluidity and mobility through the depictions of water to better represent the diasporic experience. Further, these poems employ desire and the desiring subject to engage with the way diasporic belonging is figured as contested and contingent. Each of these elements will be explored in the poems in order to investigate the link between diasporic belonging and depictions of water.' (Publication abstract) -
Troubled Waters : Australian Spies in the Pacific : Glimpses from the Early Twentieth Century
2010
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Reading Across the Pacific : Australia-United States Intellectual Histories 2010; (p. 209-223) 'This paper traces aspects of intelligence history and culture in the Pacific in the first quarter of the 20th century from an Australian perspective. Following Federation in 1901, Australia began to develop an intelligence capability in the Pacific. This was characterized by small-scale, 'lone ranger' operations by individuals such as William Bridges in places such as German Samoa, New Caledonia and New Guinea. Although a degree of national self-interest was involved, such exercises reinforced Australia's role in the British empire. Coverage extended to Japan before and after the Russo-Japanese war. Over time, the focus on Japan became paramount. Whereas previous activity among colonial possessions in the South Pacific had mainly involved military reconnaissance, Australian intelligence concerning Japan involved more complex, far-reaching strategic considerations. The contributions of Edmund Piesse and writer and scholar James Murdoch gave depth to Australian analyses of Japan during and after the First World War. Their advice brought them into significant conflict with Australian Prime Minister Hughes. This paper suggests that human intelligence benefits from the study of literature, culture and history. Pacific stories such as those of Louis Becke and fictional works set in Japan such as A.G.Hales's Little Blue Pigeon or James Murdoch's stories open the imagination to foreign ways of thinking and feeling. A corollary to this paper is the need for collaborative comparative studies of intelligence cultures and their histories on both sides of the Pacific.' (Author's abstract) -
Westerly Non-Fiction Review 2006-2007
2007
single work
review
— Appears in: Westerly , November vol. 52 no. 2007; (p. 160-171)
— Review of 'Flashing Eyes and Floating Hair' : A Reading of Gwen Harwood's Pseudonymous Poetry 2006 single work criticism ; The Higher Self in Christopher Brennan's 'Poems' : Esotericism, Romanticism, Symbolism 2006 single work criticism ; Prince of the Church : Patrick Francis Moran, 1830-1911 2007 single work biography ; Homing In : Essays on Australian Literature and Selfhood 2006 selected work criticism essay autobiography ; Mind the Country : Tim Winton's Fiction 2006 single work criticism ; My Father's Compass : A Memoir 2007 single work autobiography ; Darby : One Hundred Years of Life in a Changing Culture 2006 single work life story ; Prisoners of the Japanese : Literary Imagination and the Prisoner-of-War Experience 2006 single work criticism ; Translating Lives : Living with Two Languages and Cultures 2007 anthology autobiography ; The Sea Coast of Bohemia : Literary Life in Sydney's Roaring Twenties 1992 single work criticism ; The Forgotten Children : Fairbridge Farm School and Its Betrayal of Australia's Child Migrants 2007 single work autobiography ; Well Done, Those Men : Memoirs of a Vietnam Veteran 2005 single work autobiography ; David Malouf 2007 single work criticism ; A Story To Tell 2006 single work autobiography ; The Best Australian Essays 2006 2006 anthology essay ; Sunrise West 2007 single work autobiography ; A Revealed Life : Australian Writers and Their Journeys in Memoir 2007 anthology autobiography ; Another Country 2007 selected work prose ; The Melancholy Dane : (A Portrait of the Poet as a Young Man) 2006 single work autobiography -
Bruce Bennett: Homing In : Essays on Australian Literature and Selfhood
2007
single work
review
— Appears in: JASAL , vol. 6 no. 1 2007; (p. 147-148)
— Review of Homing In : Essays on Australian Literature and Selfhood 2006 selected work criticism essay autobiography -
At Home with Homing In
2006
single work
review
— Appears in: Antipodes , December vol. 20 no. 2 2006; (p. 211-212) Lemuria , Winter vol. 1 no. 1 2006; (p. 139-140)
— Review of Homing In : Essays on Australian Literature and Selfhood 2006 selected work criticism essay autobiography
-
Home and Away
2006
single work
review
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 30 December 2006; (p. 11)
— Review of Homing In : Essays on Australian Literature and Selfhood 2006 selected work criticism essay autobiography -
At Home with Homing In
2006
single work
review
— Appears in: Antipodes , December vol. 20 no. 2 2006; (p. 211-212) Lemuria , Winter vol. 1 no. 1 2006; (p. 139-140)
— Review of Homing In : Essays on Australian Literature and Selfhood 2006 selected work criticism essay autobiography -
Bruce Bennett: Homing In : Essays on Australian Literature and Selfhood
2007
single work
review
— Appears in: JASAL , vol. 6 no. 1 2007; (p. 147-148)
— Review of Homing In : Essays on Australian Literature and Selfhood 2006 selected work criticism essay autobiography -
Westerly Non-Fiction Review 2006-2007
2007
single work
review
— Appears in: Westerly , November vol. 52 no. 2007; (p. 160-171)
— Review of 'Flashing Eyes and Floating Hair' : A Reading of Gwen Harwood's Pseudonymous Poetry 2006 single work criticism ; The Higher Self in Christopher Brennan's 'Poems' : Esotericism, Romanticism, Symbolism 2006 single work criticism ; Prince of the Church : Patrick Francis Moran, 1830-1911 2007 single work biography ; Homing In : Essays on Australian Literature and Selfhood 2006 selected work criticism essay autobiography ; Mind the Country : Tim Winton's Fiction 2006 single work criticism ; My Father's Compass : A Memoir 2007 single work autobiography ; Darby : One Hundred Years of Life in a Changing Culture 2006 single work life story ; Prisoners of the Japanese : Literary Imagination and the Prisoner-of-War Experience 2006 single work criticism ; Translating Lives : Living with Two Languages and Cultures 2007 anthology autobiography ; The Sea Coast of Bohemia : Literary Life in Sydney's Roaring Twenties 1992 single work criticism ; The Forgotten Children : Fairbridge Farm School and Its Betrayal of Australia's Child Migrants 2007 single work autobiography ; Well Done, Those Men : Memoirs of a Vietnam Veteran 2005 single work autobiography ; David Malouf 2007 single work criticism ; A Story To Tell 2006 single work autobiography ; The Best Australian Essays 2006 2006 anthology essay ; Sunrise West 2007 single work autobiography ; A Revealed Life : Australian Writers and Their Journeys in Memoir 2007 anthology autobiography ; Another Country 2007 selected work prose ; The Melancholy Dane : (A Portrait of the Poet as a Young Man) 2006 single work autobiography -
Troubled Waters : Australian Spies in the Pacific : Glimpses from the Early Twentieth Century
2010
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Reading Across the Pacific : Australia-United States Intellectual Histories 2010; (p. 209-223) 'This paper traces aspects of intelligence history and culture in the Pacific in the first quarter of the 20th century from an Australian perspective. Following Federation in 1901, Australia began to develop an intelligence capability in the Pacific. This was characterized by small-scale, 'lone ranger' operations by individuals such as William Bridges in places such as German Samoa, New Caledonia and New Guinea. Although a degree of national self-interest was involved, such exercises reinforced Australia's role in the British empire. Coverage extended to Japan before and after the Russo-Japanese war. Over time, the focus on Japan became paramount. Whereas previous activity among colonial possessions in the South Pacific had mainly involved military reconnaissance, Australian intelligence concerning Japan involved more complex, far-reaching strategic considerations. The contributions of Edmund Piesse and writer and scholar James Murdoch gave depth to Australian analyses of Japan during and after the First World War. Their advice brought them into significant conflict with Australian Prime Minister Hughes. This paper suggests that human intelligence benefits from the study of literature, culture and history. Pacific stories such as those of Louis Becke and fictional works set in Japan such as A.G.Hales's Little Blue Pigeon or James Murdoch's stories open the imagination to foreign ways of thinking and feeling. A corollary to this paper is the need for collaborative comparative studies of intelligence cultures and their histories on both sides of the Pacific.' (Author's abstract) -
Water, Diaspora and Desire : Belonging in Contemporary Asian Australian Poetry
2014
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Axon : Creative Explorations , December vol. 4 no. 2 2014; 'Contemporary Asian Australian poets have recently begun to attract more attention, particularly with the publication of the anthology, edited by Adam Aitken, Kim Cheng Boey and Michelle Cahill, Contemporary Asian Australian Poets. This essay engages with three of these poets: Debbie Lim, Shen and James Stuart, and reads their poems through a diasporic lens. Contrary to scholarship that investigates belonging using the more orthodox ideas of home and land, this reading engages with fluidity and mobility through the depictions of water to better represent the diasporic experience. Further, these poems employ desire and the desiring subject to engage with the way diasporic belonging is figured as contested and contingent. Each of these elements will be explored in the poems in order to investigate the link between diasporic belonging and depictions of water.' (Publication abstract)
Last amended 16 Jan 2020 16:01:22
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