Integrating the humanities into Antarctic studies. Antarctica is currently taking a key role in climate change debate. It is vital that we understand the cultural meanings we attach to the continent and the attitudes we bring to it. This project aims to create a rounded understanding of the Antarctic by integrating the humanities into what is currently a science-dominated research area.
Linguistic individuation in the plays of Shakespeare and his peers, 1576-1599. The question of how differently each speaker or writer uses language is important in everything from plagiarism to the definition of artistic genius. The project makes Shakespearean drama before 1600 a definitive test case of this wider problem of individuality in language. Australians are inheritors of the Western tradition of individual self-determination and self-expression; the project will help clarify one of the ....Linguistic individuation in the plays of Shakespeare and his peers, 1576-1599. The question of how differently each speaker or writer uses language is important in everything from plagiarism to the definition of artistic genius. The project makes Shakespearean drama before 1600 a definitive test case of this wider problem of individuality in language. Australians are inheritors of the Western tradition of individual self-determination and self-expression; the project will help clarify one of the main assumptions behind this tradition. Australia is also an inheritor of the English-language culture of which Shakespeare is a key element, and the project will enrich the understanding of this culture through new light on his beginnings.Read moreRead less
Early modern women and the poetry of complaint, 1540-1660. This project aims to discover how early modern women used the widespread, powerful and diverse mode of complaint to voice expressions of protest and loss during the English Renaissance. The project will highlight women’s roles as writers, patrons and textual producers and consumers of the mode of complaint. The project expects to uncover how the imagined voices of the disempowered shaped the literary and political cultures of early moder ....Early modern women and the poetry of complaint, 1540-1660. This project aims to discover how early modern women used the widespread, powerful and diverse mode of complaint to voice expressions of protest and loss during the English Renaissance. The project will highlight women’s roles as writers, patrons and textual producers and consumers of the mode of complaint. The project expects to uncover how the imagined voices of the disempowered shaped the literary and political cultures of early modern England. Reconceptualising a mode in Renaissance literature will benefit Australia's standing at the forefront of research in early modern studies.Read moreRead less
William Blake in the 21st century: poetry, prophecy, the history of imagination, and the futures of romanticism. William Blake, one of the most important Romantic artists, provides an exemplary instance of the creative and iconoclastic. By recovering Blake's dialogue with London's prophetic subcultures, this project offers an original account of his oeuvre, the cultural resources that enabled his originality, and the role played by creativity in modernity.
Medievalism in Australian Cultural Memory. This project will provide the first long-range analysis of Australian cultural responses to the medieval period, and the first comparative study of Australia's relationship with international medievalism. It will show how Australians have used reference to the medieval past, both favourable and hostile, to articulate our complex relation to European tradition and our aspirations to a distinctive national culture. The published research will offer an ori ....Medievalism in Australian Cultural Memory. This project will provide the first long-range analysis of Australian cultural responses to the medieval period, and the first comparative study of Australia's relationship with international medievalism. It will show how Australians have used reference to the medieval past, both favourable and hostile, to articulate our complex relation to European tradition and our aspirations to a distinctive national culture. The published research will offer an original perspective on the development of Australian cultural identity and will enhance public understanding of our British and European heritage, in the context of contemporary debates about republicanism, the monarchy, and ethnic and cultural diversity.Read moreRead less
A cultural atlas of Australia: mediated spaces in theatre, film, and literature. A cultural atlas of Australia: mediated spaces in theatre, film, and literature is an interdisciplinary research project that investigates the cultural and historical significance of location and landscape in Australian cinema, plays and novels. Outcomes include a co-authored research monograph and an interactive online map.
American Literary Celebrity and Contemporary Identity. In post-war America, the writers James Baldwin, Truman Capote, Gore Vidal and Tennessee Williams were all assumed to be homosexual in the days before this became relatively "safe," yet they all attained celebrity status. This project aims to examine the effect that the presence of these literary celebrities had on the formation of contemporary gay identity. In doing so, the project aims to demonstrate the inadequacy of the analytic categorie ....American Literary Celebrity and Contemporary Identity. In post-war America, the writers James Baldwin, Truman Capote, Gore Vidal and Tennessee Williams were all assumed to be homosexual in the days before this became relatively "safe," yet they all attained celebrity status. This project aims to examine the effect that the presence of these literary celebrities had on the formation of contemporary gay identity. In doing so, the project aims to demonstrate the inadequacy of the analytic categories of the open secret and the closet, conventionally used in sexuality studies to explain gay identity in the post-war years before gay liberation. The project endeavours to contribute to our understanding of two vital and interrelated aspects of contemporary society: celebrity culture and gay identity.Read moreRead less
The 'paper war': Missionary Textuality and Early Nineteenth-Century Australian Colonial Culture. Early nineteenth-century Australian texts reverberate with the anxieties and controversies surrounding colonisation. The morality of colonisation and indigenous-settler relationships were hotly debated in a proliferation of books, pamphlets, letters, and editorials, and in this religious personnel, including missionaries, played a pivotal role. Yet no critical analysis of colonial missionary writing ....The 'paper war': Missionary Textuality and Early Nineteenth-Century Australian Colonial Culture. Early nineteenth-century Australian texts reverberate with the anxieties and controversies surrounding colonisation. The morality of colonisation and indigenous-settler relationships were hotly debated in a proliferation of books, pamphlets, letters, and editorials, and in this religious personnel, including missionaries, played a pivotal role. Yet no critical analysis of colonial missionary writing exists. This project conducts archival research into texts produced by a linked network of religious/missionary figures, focusing on the Lake Macquarie mission run by Lancelot Threlkeld, and analyses these through theories of colonial discourse and textuality. Research outcomes include original, innovative contributions to Australian literary/cultural studies and international colonial/postcolonial studies.Read moreRead less
Insights from the Invisible Drama: Shakespeare, Lost Plays and Theatre History, c.1585-1613. Early modern English theatre has been understood almost exclusively in terms of plays that were printed or survived in manuscript. Traditional theatre history narratives have ignored the evidence pertaining to over 700 plays written and performed in Shakespeare’s London but which are now lost or survive only in fragments. This project will consult unpublished archival evidence and under-analysed historic ....Insights from the Invisible Drama: Shakespeare, Lost Plays and Theatre History, c.1585-1613. Early modern English theatre has been understood almost exclusively in terms of plays that were printed or survived in manuscript. Traditional theatre history narratives have ignored the evidence pertaining to over 700 plays written and performed in Shakespeare’s London but which are now lost or survive only in fragments. This project will consult unpublished archival evidence and under-analysed historical records to produce new knowledge about plays, playwrights, companies, venues, and repertory practices in England during Shakespeare’s professional career (c.1585 to 1613). By addressing this gap, this project will generate new understandings of Shakespeare’s theatrical marketplace.Read moreRead less
Travelling Home: A Study of Walkabout, Australia's Geographic Magazine (1934-74). Walkabout was one of mid-twentieth century's most popular magazines with a focus on inland Australia, as well as the Pacific region. It graced suburban lounge rooms, doctors' and dentists' surgeries, railway waiting rooms, ministerial offices, and school libraries. Walkabout's mixture of entertainment and education ensured its influence across a spectrum of readers: across age, class, and educational boundaries. Th ....Travelling Home: A Study of Walkabout, Australia's Geographic Magazine (1934-74). Walkabout was one of mid-twentieth century's most popular magazines with a focus on inland Australia, as well as the Pacific region. It graced suburban lounge rooms, doctors' and dentists' surgeries, railway waiting rooms, ministerial offices, and school libraries. Walkabout's mixture of entertainment and education ensured its influence across a spectrum of readers: across age, class, and educational boundaries. This project explores the role of Walkabout in the development of a modern national identity. Walkabout deliberately cultivated one of Australia's key modern economic foundations-the travel industry-and did so whilst also influencing knowledge formation and circulation. Read moreRead less