ENH2690

Gender and authority in Australian literature

(ART)

M Ackland

6 points + 2 hours per week + First semester + Clayton + Prerequisites: A first-year sequence in English, Literary Studies or Cultural Studies or permission + Prohibitions: ENH3690, WMN2690, WMN3690

Synopsis: This unit is concerned with the contribution of literature to forming and interrogating national identity, and with postwar attempts to assimilate the heritage of modernism to Australian experience. Texts range from the colonial period to the present. They focus on the distant and recent historical record as a site of contention, on racial and gender relations, on attempts to rewrite the romance and pastoral traditions and on recent developments in the Australian novel. Authors studied include Bail, Carey, Garner, Jolley, Malouf, Mudrooroo and Prichard.

Assessment: Seminar presentation (1000 words) and participation: 30% + Essay (1500 words): 30% + Class test (2000 words): 40%