Seeking the Centre: The Australian Desert in Literature, Art and FilmThe desert has a hypnotic presence in Australian culture, simultaneously alluring and repellent. The 'Centre' is distant and unknown to most Australians, yet has become a symbol of the country. This exciting book, highly illustrated in full colour, reveals the singular impact that the desert, both geographical and metaphorical, has had on Australian culture. At the heart of the book is the profound relationship that Aboriginal Australians have with the desert, and the complex ways in which they have been seen by white people in this context. |
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Contents
List of illustrations | |
Some facts about Australian deserts xiv | |
the Aboriginal relationship with the desert 11 | |
European myths of the desert 23 | |
imperatives for discovery 36 | |
or what the explorers wrote into the landscape 58 | |
the art of exploration 85 | |
dead explorers and national identity 111 | |
tales of travel and reefs of gold 143 | |
from topography to imagery 161 | |
psychodrama in fiction and film 184 | |
figures of the subconscious 209 | |
retelling the exploration stories 226 | |
evolution and ecology of the desert 249 | |
the desert in the Age of Aquarius 261 | |
The art of cultural encounter 281 | |
Common terms and phrases
Aboriginal appears artists associated attempt Australian desert become believed birds Burke called Central Central Australia centre century Chapter collection colours continent Creek culture dead death depicted described desire detail Dreaming earth European expedition experience explorers eyes Eyre fear figures geographical Giles gold ground hand heart heroes Hill human illustration images immensity important included inland sea interest John Journal journey Lake land landscape later Leichhardt less living lost material meaning Narrative nature never Nolan notion novel objects observer offered paintings particular party physical plain poem present produced quoted race Ranges record remains represented response River rock sand scene seemed seen sense society South space spiritual story Sturt suggests Sydney symbolic tion tracks traditional travellers trees vast Western writers
References to this book
Bibliographic information
| Title | Seeking the Centre: The Australian Desert in Literature, Art and Film |
| Author | Roslynn Doris Haynes |
| Edition | illustrated |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press, 1998 |
| ISBN | 0521571111, 9780521571111 |
| Length | 347 pages |
| Export Citation | BiBTeX EndNote RefMan |