Finding friendship in early English literature. This project aims to provide extensive new knowledge about the long story of friendship by reconceptualizing the ways in which this bond was lived and imagined in early medieval literature. The project expects to make an innovative contribution to our understanding of this fundamental human relationship through a case study of early English texts. Expected outcomes of this project include an unprecedented comprehensive study of friendship in an ea ....Finding friendship in early English literature. This project aims to provide extensive new knowledge about the long story of friendship by reconceptualizing the ways in which this bond was lived and imagined in early medieval literature. The project expects to make an innovative contribution to our understanding of this fundamental human relationship through a case study of early English texts. Expected outcomes of this project include an unprecedented comprehensive study of friendship in an early medieval society through its writing, and with this develop a model for the engaged humanities. The project offers significant benefit for a range of academic disciplines, and also includes important benefit beyond the academy through engagement with a critical issue in contemporary society. Read moreRead less
Singing the News: Ballads as News Media in Europe and Australia, 1550-1920. This project aims to take advantage of new digitisation projects to reveal how songs in premodern Europe and later in Australia were used for disseminating news to the public. By analysing ballads across four centuries and five languages, the project expects to show how news-songs not only informed the public but also helped to forge national identities by exploiting the emotive and communal nature of song. Expected outc ....Singing the News: Ballads as News Media in Europe and Australia, 1550-1920. This project aims to take advantage of new digitisation projects to reveal how songs in premodern Europe and later in Australia were used for disseminating news to the public. By analysing ballads across four centuries and five languages, the project expects to show how news-songs not only informed the public but also helped to forge national identities by exploiting the emotive and communal nature of song. Expected outcomes include an innovative digital platform offering licensed recordings of ballads, a public exhibition of song treasures in Australian collections, and a re-written history of the news media industry. Benefits may include new insights into how the modern notion of Australian national identity emerged through song.Read moreRead less
Australian Legacies of British Slavery: Capital, Land and Labour. This project aims to bring Australia into the global history of slavery by exploring the legacies of British slavery in South Australia and Victoria. Through developing methods for biographical research and digital mapping, it will trace the movement of capital, people and culture from slave-owning Britain to the new settler colonies, and produce a new history of the continuing impact of slavery wealth in shaping colonial immigrat ....Australian Legacies of British Slavery: Capital, Land and Labour. This project aims to bring Australia into the global history of slavery by exploring the legacies of British slavery in South Australia and Victoria. Through developing methods for biographical research and digital mapping, it will trace the movement of capital, people and culture from slave-owning Britain to the new settler colonies, and produce a new history of the continuing impact of slavery wealth in shaping colonial immigration, investment, and law. Expected outcomes of this project include enhanced capacity to build international disciplinary collaborations, new research methods, and research capacity building. Benefits include a radically new perspective on Australian history and abolition in the present, with major public outcomes.Read moreRead less
Living with Smallpox in Early Modern Britain (c.1580–1780 CE). This project aims to examine how people in the past made sense of an acute infectious disease, including its long-term effects on individuals and their communities. Using traditional techniques and digital tools, it anticipates reconstructing how the experiences of the majority – who survived – were shaped by their socio-cultural circumstances, and tracing how those experiences changed over time, particularly in relation to advances ....Living with Smallpox in Early Modern Britain (c.1580–1780 CE). This project aims to examine how people in the past made sense of an acute infectious disease, including its long-term effects on individuals and their communities. Using traditional techniques and digital tools, it anticipates reconstructing how the experiences of the majority – who survived – were shaped by their socio-cultural circumstances, and tracing how those experiences changed over time, particularly in relation to advances in medical technology and public health. Expected outcomes include insight into historical responses to pandemics, as well as enhanced knowledge of the emergence of modern techniques for regulating public health, with benefits for our understanding of similar challenges in the present day. Read moreRead less
The first English speakers in their own words. This project aims to produce the first comprehensive study of the attitudes in the earliest English literature. The project expects to generate new knowledge about the first English speakers, what issues mattered most to them and how broad the range of attitudes was. Expected outcomes of this project include new approaches to studying the past, enhanced international collaborations and a public access to the project's data through an open access dig ....The first English speakers in their own words. This project aims to produce the first comprehensive study of the attitudes in the earliest English literature. The project expects to generate new knowledge about the first English speakers, what issues mattered most to them and how broad the range of attitudes was. Expected outcomes of this project include new approaches to studying the past, enhanced international collaborations and a public access to the project's data through an open access digital resource. This should provide significant benefits in terms of our understanding of the past and how it shapes attitudes in contemporary Australia. Read moreRead less
How to Feel Safe at the End of the World. This project aims to provide the first history of how early modern families created conditions to feel safe in times of crisis, revealing how ideas of safety, security and hope for the future were conceived and put into practice. Its innovative research focus explores how histories, personal and national, inform psychosocial conditions of safety and security for families and build resilience within the next generation. Expected outcomes highlight the rol ....How to Feel Safe at the End of the World. This project aims to provide the first history of how early modern families created conditions to feel safe in times of crisis, revealing how ideas of safety, security and hope for the future were conceived and put into practice. Its innovative research focus explores how histories, personal and national, inform psychosocial conditions of safety and security for families and build resilience within the next generation. Expected outcomes highlight the role of families as agents of historical change and help parents, teachers, children and youth to manage anxiety, build hope and improve life opportunities. This historical perspective on a contemporary problem has the benefit of supporting families struggling with today's changing world.Read moreRead less