John Howard, in 1996, during his Sir Robert Menzies Lecture claimed, The Black- Armband view of our past reflects a belief that most Australian history since 1788 has been little more than a disgraceful story of imperialism, exploitation, racism, sexism and other forms of discrimination'. (Howard, 1996, Sir Robert Menzies Lecture) I find this an adequate description of the implied reader of Gary Crew's No Such Country. Inspired by the Black-Armband view, Crew has written a novel that challenges dominant conceptions of Australian history by confronting the generally optimistic view known as the Three Cheers view. The implied reader is positioned as indigenous and female. The white, Australian male is positioned by the text as an outsider, who is pleased to go along with the patriarchal structures. The European males in the novel, particularly the Father and Angel, are symbolised as the white imperialists, who came and took the land, raping the country. Crew's novel clearly......
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Approximate Pages: 2 (260 words per double-spaced page) |