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AbstractHistoryArchive Description
'In 1883 young British naturalist William Caldwell arrives in Australia with a mission: to determine for the scientific record whether platypuses really are egg-laying mammals. But first he must travel overland to the Burnett River in Queensland, where he intends to set up camp. On his journey he is by turns hindered and assisted by a cast of characters, including a drunken bullocky and an inscrutable, poetical bushman. Once there, William commences his investigations and encounters the local Aboriginal people, enlisting their help and ultimately learning their tragic history. He also meets a young blind woman with many closely held secrets of her own.
'Love and the Platypus is a delightful, captivating novel that examines the obsessive nature of scientific enquiry and its environmental consequences, and the wonders of nature and of romantic love.' (Publisher's blurb)
Notes
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Epigraph: Extract from The Southlanders (1860) by M. Fox beginning: There is a land in distant seas/ Full of all Contrarities.
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Works about this Work
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The Matter of Fact : Science and Identity in Contemporary Australian Literature
2019
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Australian Humanities Review , November no. 65 2019;'To pursue ‘knowledge per se’, to unlock ‘the secrets of the organism’ and to act as an explorer ‘not of untrodden lands, perhaps, but of the mysteries of nature’—these are the reasons why the naturalist William Caldwell travels to Australia in Nicholas Drayson’s 2007 novel Love and the Platypus (9, 59, 144). Caldwell’s research is ‘purely platypusical’ (98): he aims to determine whether the platypus really does lay eggs. The ‘spirit of discovery—that was why he was here, was it not?’ (3) The spirit of discovery and the obsessive nature of his scientific enquiry appear to characterise Drayson’s protagonist as a scientist. However, as I hope to show in this paper, the definition of the literary scientist-protagonist—or its stereotype, in the words of Roslynn Haynes—is open for debate when it comes to the practice of science in fiction. To prove my point, I investigate how the practice of science in contemporary Australian fiction intertwines with identity narratives. As shown in the following, these narratives revolve around the reasons and ambitions of fictional protagonists to engage with science.' (Introduction)
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Eight Great Australian Fictional Scientists Worth Reading about
2019
single work
— Appears in: The Conversation , 12 February 2019;'Australian scientists have led many crucial scientific breakthroughs – from the manufacturing and processing of penicillin, to the first in-vitro fertilisation pregnancy. Yet there is still a need for science to be more widely appreciated in our broader culture.' (Introduction)
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Finding Fiction in Facts
2010
single work
column
— Appears in: Sunday Canberra Times , 3 January 2010; (p. 19) -
[Untitled]
2008
single work
review
— Appears in: Viewpoint : On Books For Young Adults , Winter vol. 16 no. 2 2008; (p. 20)
— Review of Love and the Platypus 2007 single work novel -
Untitled
2007
single work
review
— Appears in: The Adelaide Review , 3 - 16 August no. 322 2007; (p. 24)
— Review of Love and the Platypus 2007 single work novel
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Untitled
2007
single work
review
— Appears in: Bookseller + Publisher Magazine , March vol. 86 no. 7 2007; (p. 39)
— Review of Love and the Platypus 2007 single work novel -
Method and a Little Madness
2007
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 6-8 April 2007; (p. 34)
— Review of Love and the Platypus 2007 single work novel -
Books Fiction
2007
single work
review
— Appears in: The Courier-Mail , 14 - 15 April 2007; (p. 22)
— Review of Love and the Platypus 2007 single work novel -
What the Platypus Did First
2007
single work
review
— Appears in: The Age , 21 April 2007; (p. 23)
— Review of Love and the Platypus 2007 single work novel -
Love Discovered in Platonic Pursuit of the Platypus
2007
single work
review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 28-29 April 2007; (p. 13)
— Review of Love and the Platypus 2007 single work novel -
Platypus Musing
2007
single work
column
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 7 April 2007; (p. 11-12) -
Finding Fiction in Facts
2010
single work
column
— Appears in: Sunday Canberra Times , 3 January 2010; (p. 19) -
Eight Great Australian Fictional Scientists Worth Reading about
2019
single work
— Appears in: The Conversation , 12 February 2019;'Australian scientists have led many crucial scientific breakthroughs – from the manufacturing and processing of penicillin, to the first in-vitro fertilisation pregnancy. Yet there is still a need for science to be more widely appreciated in our broader culture.' (Introduction)
-
The Matter of Fact : Science and Identity in Contemporary Australian Literature
2019
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Australian Humanities Review , November no. 65 2019;'To pursue ‘knowledge per se’, to unlock ‘the secrets of the organism’ and to act as an explorer ‘not of untrodden lands, perhaps, but of the mysteries of nature’—these are the reasons why the naturalist William Caldwell travels to Australia in Nicholas Drayson’s 2007 novel Love and the Platypus (9, 59, 144). Caldwell’s research is ‘purely platypusical’ (98): he aims to determine whether the platypus really does lay eggs. The ‘spirit of discovery—that was why he was here, was it not?’ (3) The spirit of discovery and the obsessive nature of his scientific enquiry appear to characterise Drayson’s protagonist as a scientist. However, as I hope to show in this paper, the definition of the literary scientist-protagonist—or its stereotype, in the words of Roslynn Haynes—is open for debate when it comes to the practice of science in fiction. To prove my point, I investigate how the practice of science in contemporary Australian fiction intertwines with identity narratives. As shown in the following, these narratives revolve around the reasons and ambitions of fictional protagonists to engage with science.' (Introduction)
Awards
- 2009 longlisted International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award
- 2008 shortlisted Australian Capital Territory Book of the Year Award
- 1800-1899