Australian Literature

Overview:

Australian literature encompasses written and literary works produced in Australia or by its people. It emerged as a collection of British colonial literature, but has evolved into a distinct genre with themes rooted in the Australian experience, such as Aboriginality, mateship, egalitarianism, national identity, migration, and the country's unique geography.

Notable Authors:

  • Nobel Prize winner: Patrick White
  • Christina Stead, David Malouf, Peter Carey, Bradley Trevor Greive, Thomas Keneally, Colleen McCullough, Nevil Shute, Morris West
  • Contemporary expatriates: Germaine Greer, art historian Robert Hughes, humorists Barry Humphries and Clive James
  • Classic Australian works: Marcus Clarke (For the Term of His Natural Life), Miles Franklin (My Brilliant Career)
  • Children's literature: Norman Lindsay (The Magic Pudding), Mem Fox (Possum Magic), May Gibbs (Snugglepot and Cuddlepie), Melina Marchetta (Looking for Alibrandi)

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Writers:

  • David Unaipon (first Aboriginal author)
  • Oodgeroo Noonuccal (first published Aboriginal poet)
  • Sally Morgan (pioneering memoir about Stolen Generations)
  • Kim Scott, Alexis Wright, Tara June Winch, Yvette Holt, Anita Heiss
  • Marcia Langton and Noel Pearson (active contemporary contributors)

Early and Classic Works:

  • Accounts of European explorers (e.g., William Dampier, James Cook)
  • Fiction exploring the "Great Southern Land" (e.g., Jonathan Swift, Robert Southey)
  • Chronicles of settlement by Watkin Tench, William Wentworth, and Henry Savery

Expatriate Authors:

  • Clive James, Robert Hughes, Barry Humphries, Geoffrey Robertson, and Germaine Greer left Australia for Britain and the US, continuing to produce works influenced by Australian themes.

Other Contemporary Works:

  • Kate Grenville, Helen Garner, Christos Tsiolkas, Richard Flanagan, Gerald Murnane, Rod Jones
  • Grunge lit (1991-1996): gritty and explicit literature exploring the experiences of disenfranchised youth, influenced by authors such as Andrew McGahan, Linda Jaivin, and Justine Ettler.
  • Post-grunge lit (1998-2010s): literature that emerged after grunge lit, with a focus on the effects of neoliberalism in Australian society.

Writing and Identity:

  • Australian literature often explores complex relationships with the landscape and the question of national identity.
  • Themes include: egalitarianism, mateship, the outback, and the tension between urban and rural life.

Poetry:

  • Early poets: Michael Massey Robinson, William Charles Wentworth, Henry Kendall
  • Notable poets: Christopher Brennan, Adam Lindsay Gordon, Henry Lawson, Banjo Paterson, C. J. Dennis, Dorothea McKellar, Kenneth Slessor, Judith Wright, Les Murray, Bruce Dawe

Plays:

  • The Recruiting Officer (first play performed in Australia in 1789)
  • Our Country's Good (highlights the origins of Australian theater)
  • On Our Selection (depicts pioneer farming life)
  • Summer of the Seventeenth Doll (portrays quintessentially Australian characters)
  • Contemporary playwrights: David Williamson, Alan Seymour, Nick Enright, Justin Fleming

Science Fiction and Fantasy:

  • Nevil Shute's On the Beach (1957) is a notable early success.
  • Contemporary authors: Ben Peek

Other Genres:

  • Crime: Kerry Greenwood, Shane Maloney, Peter Temple
  • Non-fiction: Helen Garner's accounts of court cases
  • Literary journals: Meanjin, Overland, Westerly
  • Awards: Miles Franklin Award, Patrick White Award, Commonwealth Writers' Prize