The unknown nation : Australia after empire / James Curran, Stuart Ward.

Author
Curran, James [Browse]
Format
Book
Language
English
Published/​Created
Carlton, Vic. : Melbourne University Publishing, 2010.
Description
326. pages ; 24 cm

Availability

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Location Call Number Status Location Service Notes
Firestone Library - Stacks DU110 .C87 2010 Browse related items Request

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    Subject(s)
    Summary note
    Australians, it is often said, have long displayed a healthy skepticism towards the symbols and sentiments of nationalism. While exhibiting an almost fanatical pride in the exploits of their sporting heroes, Australians have otherwise remained indifferent to the more formal trappings of their nationhood. Recent events, however, seem to indicate that Australia is at a new departure. The once-derided flag now adorns all kinds of public places, people and civic landmarks; the once-disputed national anthem is spontaneously bellowed at sporting and other popular events; politicians and journalists now invoke 'the nation' with a conviction that once eluded their predecessors; and Australia's national holidays are today observed with a reverence that only decades ago might have seemed 'un-Australian'. This book offers an original and compelling insight into why Australians have come to exhibit their nationhood in these curious new ways. It argues that the critical period for understanding this phenomenon is the twilight of the British Empire in the 1960s and early 1970s. The book is based on the vast reservoir of documentary material in the National Archives of Australia (most of it previously unseen), as well as the rich public record of national rhetoric, rites and rituals since the late 1960s.
    Bibliographic references
    Includes bibliographical references (p. [268]-316) and index.
    Contents
    • Introduction: 'A Commendable Emptiness'
    • 'A Salutary Shock': Abandoned Britons
    • The 'Great Age of Confusion': Ideas
    • 'Falling between Two Stools': Solutions
    • 'Australia Looks Around': Foreigners
    • 'God Save Australia's Fair Matilda': Songs
    • ' A Really Galah Occasion': Celebrations
    • 'Endlessley Coming of Age': Continuities
    • Conclusion: 'At Some Point between 1945 and Now.'
    ISBN
    • 9780522856453 ((pbk.))
    • 0522856454 ((pbk.))
    LCCN
    2010399084
    OCLC
    495139277
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