From France to Europe: The Shift from Nationalism in French Discourse, 1900-1950. The aim of the project is to analyse a shift from France to Europe in French political rhetoric. The Revolution had inscribed Enlightenment ideals on terms like France and nation. After World War I, they no longer carried these ideals. For some citizens, Europe took them on. For others, Europe opened the possibility of inscribing new values on the polity. The project seeks to measure the extent of this shift and it ....From France to Europe: The Shift from Nationalism in French Discourse, 1900-1950. The aim of the project is to analyse a shift from France to Europe in French political rhetoric. The Revolution had inscribed Enlightenment ideals on terms like France and nation. After World War I, they no longer carried these ideals. For some citizens, Europe took them on. For others, Europe opened the possibility of inscribing new values on the polity. The project seeks to measure the extent of this shift and its contribution to the new mentality which made possible the construction of Europe. The result will be a major innovation in the way the construction of Europe is understood.Read moreRead less
RUSSIA (THE SOVIET UNION) AND AUSTRALIA IN THE 20TH AND 21ST CENTURIES. Revitalize Australian Russian studies by bringing in internationally recognized leadership and cutting-edge projects; making the University of Melbourne's Russian centre not just the southern hemisphere leader in this field but also a significant player worldwide.
The Power of Giving: Australian Women Philanthropists, 1880-2000. This collaborative project with the National Foundation for Australian Women explores the changing extent and nature of Australian women's philanthropic giving since1880. It will test the hypothesis that these activities both reflected broader constructions of gender and shaped civil society and public policy. The outcome will be enhanced understanding of changing gender relations, and elite women's identity, and a greatly expande ....The Power of Giving: Australian Women Philanthropists, 1880-2000. This collaborative project with the National Foundation for Australian Women explores the changing extent and nature of Australian women's philanthropic giving since1880. It will test the hypothesis that these activities both reflected broader constructions of gender and shaped civil society and public policy. The outcome will be enhanced understanding of changing gender relations, and elite women's identity, and a greatly expanded knowledge of the third sector. Given women's increasing wealth, such an understanding is not only of scholarly interest but is crucial for the nonprofit sector, including our industry partner, and for government interest in promoting philanthropic giving in Australia.Read moreRead less
Promoting Whiteness: Race Science and the Making of the Middle-Class Woman in Australia, 1880-1940. Many Australians remain confused about precisely how race relations operated and were defined in the early twentieth century. Since, elite women were central actors in promoting racial ideologies, this study will provide the a broad insight into precisely how racial ideologies came to permeate white Australian society and their importance for both national and individual identity. Such insights ar ....Promoting Whiteness: Race Science and the Making of the Middle-Class Woman in Australia, 1880-1940. Many Australians remain confused about precisely how race relations operated and were defined in the early twentieth century. Since, elite women were central actors in promoting racial ideologies, this study will provide the a broad insight into precisely how racial ideologies came to permeate white Australian society and their importance for both national and individual identity. Such insights are of critical importance to understanding the impact of racial thought in the past, and its continuing effects, and thus for our ability to move beyond the current acrimonious debates over race within Australia and in within our region.Read moreRead less
Reaping the patriotic whirlwind: managed nationalism and the rise of militant xenophobia in Russia. This project examines the relationship between 'managed nationalism' and upsurges of ultranationalist activism and racially-motivated violence. This research will enhance our understanding of politics, diplomacy, and alternative governance.
Australia in the forefront of science: Australian contributions to "Big Science". Since 1788 Australia has been at the cutting edge in science. Geoscientists, including women, have initiated ideas and their contributions far outweigh the number of people involved. One period 1957 to 1970 saw upheavals in thinking centred on continental drift. This prompted a major Australia research effort to promote what became the International Geological Correlation Programme (IGCP), which continues today. Do ....Australia in the forefront of science: Australian contributions to "Big Science". Since 1788 Australia has been at the cutting edge in science. Geoscientists, including women, have initiated ideas and their contributions far outweigh the number of people involved. One period 1957 to 1970 saw upheavals in thinking centred on continental drift. This prompted a major Australia research effort to promote what became the International Geological Correlation Programme (IGCP), which continues today. Does the recent trend for competetive priority-driven research always produce mind-boggling results in international journals or even good science or is grassroots-derived co-operative research like IGCP the way to conduct science and increase Australia's international profile? Examination of Australian contributions to IGCP will gauge scientific and economic benefits.Read moreRead less
Aftermaths of War: Violence, Trauma, Displacement, 1815-1950. This project aims to investigate the cultural, social and psychological aftermaths of wars between 1815 to 1950 from a comparative, transnational perspective. By connecting the displacement of people, the brutalization of warfare and the trauma associated with it, this study will offer a broader and more complex understanding of the experience of civilians and combatants in the wake of armed conflicts. In so doing, it will challenge t ....Aftermaths of War: Violence, Trauma, Displacement, 1815-1950. This project aims to investigate the cultural, social and psychological aftermaths of wars between 1815 to 1950 from a comparative, transnational perspective. By connecting the displacement of people, the brutalization of warfare and the trauma associated with it, this study will offer a broader and more complex understanding of the experience of civilians and combatants in the wake of armed conflicts. In so doing, it will challenge traditional periodizations which delineate between periods of war and peace, and seek to uncover the profound legacies of war not just within but beyond nation states. This will prompt a re-evaluation of our understanding of what constitutes warfare and its aftermaths.Read moreRead less
Consumption in Late Imperial China: an Early Modern Phenomenon? China's present economic growth and consumer activity are of immediate interest to Australia. This study of consumer activities in earlier centuries will shed light on changes as well as continuities in Chinese consumption in a long era of globalization. The project will contribute to the corpus of Australian scholarship on Chinese and world history, enhancing local and global understandings of China's past, and enriching ways in wh ....Consumption in Late Imperial China: an Early Modern Phenomenon? China's present economic growth and consumer activity are of immediate interest to Australia. This study of consumer activities in earlier centuries will shed light on changes as well as continuities in Chinese consumption in a long era of globalization. The project will contribute to the corpus of Australian scholarship on Chinese and world history, enhancing local and global understandings of China's past, and enriching ways in which it is imagined.Read moreRead less
Empire to Republic: Politics and Culture in China's 20th Century History. This research project focuses on state and nation building in South China during the Republican era (1912-1949), the subject of major international publications by the CI and PI over a fifteen-year research partnership. The significance of the topic lies in its historiographical departure from narratives of ?party history? to theoretically-driven research into key aspects of modern state and nation-making in a formative pe ....Empire to Republic: Politics and Culture in China's 20th Century History. This research project focuses on state and nation building in South China during the Republican era (1912-1949), the subject of major international publications by the CI and PI over a fifteen-year research partnership. The significance of the topic lies in its historiographical departure from narratives of ?party history? to theoretically-driven research into key aspects of modern state and nation-making in a formative period of China's recent history. Outcomes include research training and theses, and refereed publications, which break new ground in their systematic application of state-making literature to Republican Chinese history.Read moreRead less
Dynastic Marriage, Courtly Politics and the State in Renaissance Italy. The search for an understanding of the processes by which political ideas and cultural assumptions about masculinity and femininity change, and new genres of written expression emerge, is directly relevant to contemporary Australia. To study these themes in a period at once remote from one's own and yet, as the Italian Renaissance is, perennially fascinating to the public imagination, is to make an important contribution to ....Dynastic Marriage, Courtly Politics and the State in Renaissance Italy. The search for an understanding of the processes by which political ideas and cultural assumptions about masculinity and femininity change, and new genres of written expression emerge, is directly relevant to contemporary Australia. To study these themes in a period at once remote from one's own and yet, as the Italian Renaissance is, perennially fascinating to the public imagination, is to make an important contribution to our understanding of the historical roots of significant on-going debates.Read moreRead less