Australian literature is the written or literary work produced in the area or by the people of the

Commonwealth of Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

and its preceding colonies. During its early

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US * Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that i ...

history, Australia was a collection of British colonies; as such, its recognised literary tradition begins with and is linked to the broader tradition of

English literature English literature is literature written in the English language from United Kingdom, its crown dependencies, the Republic of Ireland, the United States, and the countries of the former British Empire. ''The Encyclopaedia Britannica'' defines E ...

. However, the narrative art of Australian writers has, since 1788, introduced the character of a new continent into literature—exploring such themes as

Aboriginality Aboriginal Australian identity, sometimes known as Aboriginality, is the Identity (social science), perception of oneself as Aboriginal Australian, or the recognition by others of that identity. This is often related to the existence of (or the b ...

, ''

mateship Mateship is an Australian cultural idiom that embodies equality, loyalty and friendship. Russel Ward, in ''The Australian Legend'' (1958), once saw the concept as central to the Australian people. ''Mateship'' derives from '' mate'', meaning '' ...

'',

egalitarianism Egalitarianism (), or equalitarianism, is a school of thought within political philosophy that builds from the concept of social equality, prioritizing it for all people. Egalitarian doctrines are generally characterized by the idea that all hu ...

democracy Democracy (From grc, δημοκρατία, dēmokratía, ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which people, the people have the authority to deliberate and decide legislation ("direct democracy"), or to choo ...

, national identity, migration, Australia's unique location and geography, the complexities of urban living, and " the beauty and the terror" of life in the

Australian bush "The bush" is a term mostly used in the English vernacular of Australia and New Zealand where it is largely synonymous with ''backwoods'' or '' hinterland'', referring to a natural undeveloped area. The fauna and flora contained within this ...

Overview

Australian writers who have obtained international renown include the Nobel-winning author

Patrick White Patrick Victor Martindale White (28 May 1912 – 30 September 1990) was a British-born Australian writer who published 12 novels, three short-story collections, and eight plays, from 1935 to 1987. White's fiction employs humour, florid prose, ...

, as well as authors

Christina Stead Christina Stead (17 July 190231 March 1983) was an Australian novelist and short-story writer acclaimed for her satirical wit and penetrating psychological characterisations. Christina Stead was a committed Marxist, although she was never a me ...

David Malouf David George Joseph Malouf AO (; born 20 March 1934) is an Australian poet, novelist, short story writer, playwright and librettist. Elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 2008, Malouf has lectured at both the University of Quee ...

, Peter Carey, Bradley Trevor Greive,

Thomas Keneally Thomas Michael Keneally, Officer of the Order of Australia, AO (born 7 October 1935) is an Australian novelist, playwright, essayist, and actor. He is best known for his non-fiction novel ''Schindler's Ark'', the story of Oskar Schindler's rescu ...

Colleen McCullough Colleen Margaretta McCullough (; married name Robinson, previously Ion-Robinson; 1 June 193729 January 2015) was an Australian author known for her novels, her most well-known being '' The Thorn Birds'' and '' The Ladies of Missalonghi''. Lif ...

Nevil Shute Nevil Shute Norway (17 January 189912 January 1960) was an English novelist and aeronautical engineer who spent his later years in Australia. He used his full name in his engineering career and Nevil Shute as his pen name, in order to protect ...

and

Morris West Morris Langlo West (26 April 19169 October 1999) was an Australian novelist and playwright, best known for his novels '' The Devil's Advocate'' (1959), '' The Shoes of the Fisherman'' (1963) and ''The Clowns of God'' (1981). His books were pub ...

. Notable contemporary expatriate authors include the feminist

Germaine Greer Germaine Greer (; born 29 January 1939) is an Australian writer and public intellectual, regarded as one of the major voices of the radical feminist movement in the latter half of the 20th century. Specializing in English and women's literatu ...

, art historian Robert Hughes and humorists

Barry Humphries John Barry Humphries (born 17 February 1934) is an Australian comedian, actor, author and satirist. He is best known for writing and playing his on-stage and television alter egos Dame Edna Everage and Sir Les Patterson. He is also a film pro ...

and

Clive James Clive James (born Vivian Leopold James; 7 October 1939 – 24 November 2019) was an Australian critic, journalist, broadcaster, writer and lyricist who lived and worked in the United Kingdom from 1962 until his death in 2019.Henry Lawson Henry Archibald Hertzberg Lawson (17 June 1867 – 2 September 1922) was an Australian writer and bush poet. Along with his contemporary Banjo Paterson, Lawson is among the best-known Australian poets and fiction writers of the colonial perio ...

Banjo Paterson Andrew Barton "Banjo" Paterson, (17 February 18645 February 1941) was an Australian bush poet, journalist and author. He wrote many ballads and poems about Australian life, focusing particularly on the rural and outback areas, including the d ...

C. J. Dennis Clarence Michael James Stanislaus Dennis (7 September 1876 – 22 June 1938), better known as C. J. Dennis, was an Australian poet and journalist known for his best-selling verse novel ''The Songs of a Sentimental Bloke'' (1915). Alongside ...

and

Dorothea Mackellar Isobel Marion Dorothea Mackellar, (1 July 1885 – 14 January 1968) was an Australian poet and fiction writer. Her poem '' My Country'' is widely known in Australia, especially its second stanza, which begins: "''I love a sunburnt countr ...

. Dennis wrote in the Australian vernacular, while Mackellar wrote the iconic patriotic poem'' My Country''. Lawson and Paterson clashed in the famous "

Bulletin Debate The "''Bulletin'' Debate" was a well-publicised dispute in ''The Bulletin'' magazine between two of Australia's best known writers and poets, Henry Lawson and Banjo Paterson. The debate took place via a series of poems about the merits of livin ...

" over the nature of life in Australia with Lawson considered to have the harder edged view of the Bush and Paterson the romantic. Lawson is widely regarded as one of Australia's greatest writers of short stories, while Paterson's poems remain amongst the most popular Australian bush poems. Significant poets of the 20th century included Dame

Mary Gilmore Dame Mary Jean Gilmore (née Cameron; 16 August 18653 December 1962) was an Australian writer and journalist known for her prolific contributions to Australian literature and the broader national discourse. She wrote both prose and poetry. G ...

Kenneth Slessor Kenneth Adolphe Slessor (27 March 190130 June 1971) was an Australian poet, journalist and official war correspondent in World War II. He was one of Australia's leading poets, notable particularly for the absorption of modernist influences int ...

A. D. Hope Alec Derwent Hope (21 July 190713 July 2000) was an Australian poet and essayist known for his satirical slant. He was also a critic, teacher and academic. He was referred to in an American journal as "the 20th century's greatest 18th-century ...

and

Judith Wright Judith Arundell Wright (31 May 191525 June 2000) was an Australian poet, environmentalist and campaigner for Aboriginal land rights. She was a recipient of the Christopher Brennan Award. Biography Judith Wright was born in Armidale, N ...

. Among the best known contemporary poets are Les Murray and

Bruce Dawe Donald Bruce Dawe (15 February 1930 – 1 April 2020) was an Australian poet and academic. Some critics consider him one of the most influential Australian poets of all time.

, whose poems are often studied in Australian high schools. Novelists of classic Australian works include

Marcus Clarke Marcus Andrew Hislop Clarke (24 April 1846 – 2 August 1881) was an English-born Australian novelist, journalist, poet, editor, librarian, and playwright. He is best known for his 1874 novel ''For the Term of His Natural Life'', about the con ...

('' For the Term of His Natural Life''),

Miles Franklin Stella Maria Sarah Miles Franklin (14 October 187919 September 1954), known as Miles Franklin, was an Australian writer and feminist who is best known for her novel '' My Brilliant Career'', published by Blackwoods of Edinburgh in 1901. While ...

('' My Brilliant Career''),

Henry Handel Richardson Ethel Florence Lindesay Richardson (3 January 187020 March 1946), known by her pen name Henry Handel Richardson, was an Australian author. Life Born in East Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, into a prosperous family that later fell on hard tim ...

(''

The Fortunes of Richard Mahony ''The Fortunes of Richard Mahony'' is a three-part novel by Australian writer Ethel Florence Lindesay Richardson under her pen name, Henry Handel Richardson. It consists of ''Australia Felix'' (1917), ''The Way Home'' (1925), and ''Ultima Thule'' ...

''),

Joseph Furphy Joseph Furphy ( Irish: Seosamh Ó Foirbhithe; 26 September 1843 – 13 September 1912) was an Australian author and poet who is widely regarded as the "Father of the Australian novel". He mostly wrote under the pseudonym Tom Collins and is best ...

(''

Such Is Life Such Is Life may refer to: Film * ''Such Is Life'' (1915 film), an American silent film starring Lon Chaney, Sr. * ''Such Is Life'' (1924 film), an American silent short film starring Baby Peggy Diana Serra Cary (born Peggy-Jean Montgomery; O ...

''), Rolf Boldrewood ('' Robbery Under Arms'') and

Ruth Park Rosina Ruth Lucia Park AM (24 August 191714 December 2010) was a New Zealand–born Australian author. Her best known works are the novels '' The Harp in the South'' (1948) and '' Playing Beatie Bow'' (1980), and the children's radio serial '' ...

('' The Harp in the South''). In terms of children's literature,

Norman Lindsay Norman Alfred William Lindsay (22 February 1879 – 21 November 1969) was an Australian artist, etcher, sculptor, writer, art critic, novelist, cartoonist and amateur boxer. One of the most prolific and popular Australian artists of his genera ...

('' The Magic Pudding''),

Mem Fox Merrion Frances "Mem" Fox, AM (born Merrion Frances Partridge; 5 March 1946) is an Australian writer of children's books and an educationalist specialising in literacy. Fox has been semi-retired since 1996, but she still gives seminars and ...

('' Possum Magic''), and May Gibbs ('' Snugglepot and Cuddlepie'') are among the Australian classics, while Melina Marchetta ('' Looking for Alibrandi'') is a modern YA classic. Eminent Australian playwrights have included Ray Lawler,

David Williamson David Keith Williamson AO (born 24 February 1942) is an Australian dramatist and playwright. He has also written screenplays and teleplays. Early life David Williamson was born in Melbourne, Victoria, on 24 February 1942, and was brought up ...

Alan Seymour Alan Seymour (6 June 192723 March 2015) was an Australian playwright and author. He is best known for the play ''The One Day of the Year'' (1958). His international reputation rests not only on this early play, but also on his many screenplays, ...

and

Nick Enright Nicholas Paul Enright AM (22 December 1950 – 30 March 2003) was an Australian dramatist, playwright and theatre director. Early life Enright was born on 22 December 1950 to a prosperous professional Catholic family in East Maitland, New So ...

. Among prominent short story writers are

Steele Rudd Steele Rudd was the pen name of Arthur Hoey Davis (14 November 1868 – 11 October 1935) an Australian author, best known for his short story collection ''On Our Selection''. In 2009, as part of the Q150 celebrations, Rudd was named one of the ...

Henry Lawson Henry Archibald Hertzberg Lawson (17 June 1867 – 2 September 1922) was an Australian writer and bush poet. Along with his contemporary Banjo Paterson, Lawson is among the best-known Australian poets and fiction writers of the colonial perio ...

Beverley Farmer Beverley Anne Farmer (also known as B. Christou) (7 February 1941 – 16 April 2018) was an Australian novelist and short story writer. Personal life Beverley Farmer was born in Melbourne. She was educated at Mac.Robertson Girls' High School an ...

Kate Grenville Catherine Elizabeth Grenville (born 1950) is an Australian author. She has published fifteen books, including fiction, non-fiction, biography, and books about the writing process. In 2001, she won the Orange Prize for ''The Idea of Perfection ...

, and

Helen Garner Helen Garner (née Ford, born 7 November 1942) is an Australian novelist, short-story writer, screenwriter and journalist. Garner's first novel, '' Monkey Grip'', published in 1977, immediately established her as an original voice on the Aust ...

. Although historically only a small proportion of Australia's population have lived outside the major cities, many of Australia's most distinctive stories and legends originate in the

outback The Outback is a remote, vast, sparsely populated area of Australia. The Outback is more remote than the bush. While often envisaged as being arid, the Outback regions extend from the northern to southern Australian coastlines and encompass a ...

, in the drovers and squatters and people of the barren, dusty plains. David Unaipon is known as the first Aboriginal author.

Oodgeroo Noonuccal Oodgeroo Noonuccal ( ; born Kathleen Jean Mary Ruska, later Kath Walker (3 November 192016 September 1993) was an Aboriginal Australian political activist, artist and educator, who campaigned for Aboriginal rights. Noonuccal was best known for ...

was the first

Aboriginal Australian Aboriginal Australians are the various Indigenous peoples of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland and many of its islands, such as Tasmania, Fraser Island, Hinchinbrook Island, the Tiwi Islands, and Groote Eylandt, but excluding the T ...

to publish a book of verse. A ground-breaking memoir about the experiences of the

Stolen Generations The Stolen Generations (also known as Stolen Children) were the children of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descent who were removed from their families by the Australian federal and state government agencies and church miss ...

can be found in Sally Morgan's '' My Place''.

Charles Bean Charles Edwin Woodrow Bean (18 November 1879 – 30 August 1968), usually identified as C. E. W. Bean, was Australia's official war correspondent, subsequently its official war historian, who wrote six volumes and edited the remaining six of ...

Geoffrey Blainey Geoffrey Norman Blainey (born 11 March 1930) is an Australian historian, academic, best selling author and commentator. He is noted for having written authoritative texts on the economic and social history of Australia, including '' The Tyranny ...

, Robert Hughes,

Manning Clark Charles Manning Hope Clark, (3 March 1915 – 23 May 1991) was an Australian historian and the author of the best-known general history of Australia, his six-volume ''A History of Australia'', published between 1962 and 1987. He has been descri ...

, Claire Wright, and

Marcia Langton Marcia Lynne Langton (born 1951) is an Australian academic. she is the Redmond Barry Distinguished Professor at the Melbourne School of Population and Global Health, University of Melbourne. Regarded as one of Australia's top intellectuals, L ...

are authors of important Australian histories.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander writers and themes

Writing by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people While his father, James Unaipon (c.1835-1907), contributed to accounts of Aboriginal mythology written by the missionary George Taplin, David Unaipon (1872–1967) provided the first accounts of Aboriginal mythology written by an Aboriginal: '' Legendary Tales of the Aborigines''. For this he is known as the first Aboriginal author.

(1920–1993) was a famous Aboriginal poet, writer and rights activist credited with publishing the first Aboriginal book of verse: ''

We Are Going ''We Are Going'' (1964) is a collection of poems by Australian writer Oodgeroo Noonuccal. It was published by Jacaranda Press in 1964. The collection includes 29 poems by the author, from a variety of original sources. This is the first colle ...

'' (1964). Sally Morgan's novel '' My Place'' was considered a breakthrough memoir in terms of bringing indigenous stories to wider notice. Leading Aboriginal activists

(

First Australians ''First Australians'' is an Australian historical documentary series produced by Blackfella Films over the course of six years, and first aired on SBS TV in October 2008. The documentary is part of a greater project that further consists of ...

, 2008) and

Noel Pearson Noel or Noël may refer to: Christmas * , French for Christmas * Noel is another name for a Christmas carol Places * Noel, Missouri, United States, a city * Noel, Nova Scotia, Canada, a community *1563 Noël, an asteroid * Mount Noel, Briti ...

('' Up from the Mission'', 2009) are active contemporary contributors to Australian literature. The voices of

Indigenous Australians Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples o ...

are being increasingly noticed and include the

playwright A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays. Etymology The word "play" is from Middle English pleye, from Old English plæġ, pleġa, plæġa ("play, exercise; sport, game; drama, applause"). The word "wright" is an archaic English ...

Jack Davis and Kevin Gilbert. Writers coming to prominence in the 21st century include

Kim Scott Kim Scott (born 18 February 1957) is an Australian novelist of Aboriginal Australian ancestry. He is a descendant of the Noongar people of Western Australia. Biography Scott was born in Perth in 1957 and is the eldest of four siblings with ...

Alexis Wright Alexis Wright (born 25 November 1950) is a Waanyi (Aboriginal Australian) writer best known for winning the Miles Franklin Award for her 2006 novel '' Carpentaria'' and the 2018 Stella Prize for her "collective memoir" of Leigh Bruce "Tracke ...

, Kate Howarth, Tara June Winch, Yvette Holt and Anita Heiss. Indigenous authors who have won Australia's high prestige

Miles Franklin Award The Miles Franklin Literary Award is an annual literary prize awarded to "a novel which is of the highest literary merit and presents Australian life in any of its phases". The award was set up according to the will of Miles Franklin (1879– ...

include

who was joint winner (with

Thea Astley Thea Beatrice May Astley (25 August 1925 – 17 August 2004) was an Australian novelist and short story writer. She was a prolific writer who was published for over 40 years from 1958. At the time of her death, she had won more Miles Frankli ...

) in 2000 for '' Benang'' and again in 2011 for '' That Deadman Dance.''

won the award in 2007 for her novel '' Carpentaria.''

Melissa Lucashenko Melissa Lucashenko is an Indigenous Australian writer of adult literary fiction and literary non-fiction, who has also written novels for teenagers. In 2013 at The Walkley Awards, she won the "Feature Writing Long (over 4000 words) Award" for ...

won the award in 2019 for her novel ''

Too Much Lip ''Too Much Lip'' (2018) is a novel by Australian author Melissa Lucashenko. It was shortlisted for the 2019 Victorian Premier's Literary Award for Indigenous Writing and the Stella Award. It was the winner of the 2019 Miles Franklin Award. Pl ...

'', which was also short-listed for the

Stella Prize The Stella Prize is an Australian annual literary award established in 2013 for writing by Australian women in all genres, worth $50,000. It was originally proposed by Australian women writers and publishers in 2011, modelled on the UK's Baileys W ...

for Australian women's writing. Letters written by notable Aboriginal leaders like

Bennelong Woollarawarre Bennelong ( 1764 – 3 January 1813), also spelt Baneelon, was a senior man of the Eora, an Aboriginal Australian people of the Port Jackson area, at the time of the first British settlement in Australia in 1788. Bennelong ser ...

and Sir

Douglas Nicholls Sir Douglas Ralph Nicholls, (9 December 1906 – 4 June 1988) was a prominent Aboriginal Australian from the Yorta Yorta people. He was a professional athlete, Churches of Christ pastor and church planter, ceremonial officer and a pioneering ...

are also retained as treasures of Australian literature, as is the historic Yirrkala bark petitions of 1963 which is the first traditional Aboriginal document recognised by the

Australian Parliament The Parliament of Australia (officially the Federal Parliament, also called the Commonwealth Parliament) is the legislative branch of the government of Australia. It consists of three elements: the monarch (represented by the governor-gen ...

AustLit AustLit: The Australian Literature Resource (also known as AustLit: Australian Literature Gateway; and AustLit: The Resource for Australian Literature), usually referred to simply as AustLit, is an internet-based, non-profit collaboration betwee ...

's BlackWords project provides a comprehensive listing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Writers and Storytellers. Writing about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples At the point of the first colonization,

had not developed a system of writing, so the first literary accounts of Aboriginal people come from the journals of early European explorers, which contain descriptions of first contact, both violent and friendly. Early accounts by Dutch explorers and by the English buccaneer

William Dampier William Dampier (baptised 5 September 1651; died March 1715) was an English explorer, pirate, privateer, navigator, and naturalist who became the first Englishman to explore parts of what is today Australia, and the first person to circumna ...

wrote of the "natives of New Holland" as being "barbarous savages", but by the time of Captain James Cook and First Fleet marine

Watkin Tench Lieutenant General Watkin Tench (6 October 1758 – 7 May 1833) was a British marine officer who is best known for publishing two books describing his experiences in the First Fleet, which established the first European settlement in Australia ...

(the era of

Jean-Jacques Rousseau Jean-Jacques Rousseau (, ; 28 June 1712 – 2 July 1778) was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer. His political philosophy influenced the progress of the Age of Enlightenment throughout Europe, as well as aspects of the French Revol ...

), accounts of Aborigines were more sympathetic and romantic: "these people may truly be said to be in the pure state of nature, and may appear to some to be the most wretched upon the earth; but in reality they are far happier than ... we Europeans", wrote Cook in his journal on 23 August 1770. Noel Pearson 8Feb10

Many notable works have been written by non-indigenous Australians on Aboriginal themes. Examples include the poems of

; '' The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith'' by

, ''Ilbarana'' by Donald Stuart, and the short story by

: "The Only Speaker of his Tongue". Histories covering Indigenous themes include

(Narrative of the Expedition to Botany Bay et Complete Account of the Settlement at Port Jackson); Roderick J. Flanagan (''The Aborigines of Australia'', 1888); ''The Native Tribes of Central Australia'' by Spencer and Gillen, 1899; the diaries of Donald Thompson on the subject of the Yolngu people of

Arnhem Land Arnhem Land is a historical region of the Northern Territory of Australia, with the term still in use. It is located in the north-eastern corner of the territory and is around from the territory capital, Darwin. In 1623, Dutch East India Company ...

(c.1935-1943);

Alan Moorehead Alan McCrae Moorehead, (22 July 1910 – 29 September 1983) was a war correspondent and author of popular histories, most notably two books on the nineteenth-century exploration of the Nile, ''The White Nile'' (1960) and ''The Blue Nile'' (196 ...

(''The fatal Impact'', 1966);

(''Triumph of the Nomads'', 1975); Henry Reynolds (''

The Other Side of the Frontier ''The Other Side of the Frontier'' is a history book published in 1981 by Australian historian Henry Reynolds. It is a study of Aboriginal Australian resistance to the British settlement, or invasion, of Australia from 1788 onwards. The book ...

'', 1981); and

(First Australians, 2008). Differing interpretations of Aboriginal history are also the subject of contemporary debate in Australia, notably between the essayists

Robert Manne Robert Michael Manne (born 31 October 1947) is an Emeritus Professor of politics and Vice-Chancellor's Fellow at La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia. He is a leading Australian public intellectual. Background Robert Manne was born in Melbo ...

and

Keith Windschuttle Keith Windschuttle (born 1942) is an Australian historian and former board member of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. He was editor of '' Quadrant'' from 2007 to 2015 when he became chair of the board and editor-in-chief. He was the pub ...

Early and classic works

For centuries before the British settlement of Australia, European writers wrote fictional accounts of an imaginings of a ''Great Southern Land''. In 1642

Abel Janszoon Tasman Abel Janszoon Tasman (; 160310 October 1659) was a Dutch seafarer, explorer, and merchant, best known for his voyages of 1642 and 1644 in the service of the Dutch East India Company (VOC). He was the first known European explorer to reach New Z ...

landed in

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

and after examining notches cut at considerable distances on tree trunks, speculated that the newly discovered country must be peopled by giants. Later, the British satirist,

Jonathan Swift Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish satirist, author, essayist, political pamphleteer (first for the Whigs, then for the Tories), poet, and Anglican cleric who became Dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, ...

, set the land of the Houyhnhnms of

Gulliver's Travels ''Gulliver's Travels'', or ''Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World. In Four Parts. By Lemuel Gulliver, First a Surgeon, and then a Captain of Several Ships'' is a 1726 prose satire by the Anglo-Irish writer and clergyman Jonathan ...

to the west of Tasmania. In 1797 the British

Romantic Romantic may refer to: Genres and eras * The Romantic era, an artistic, literary, musical and intellectual movement of the 18th and 19th centuries ** Romantic music, of that era ** Romantic poetry, of that era ** Romanticism in science, of that e ...

poet

Robert Southey Robert Southey ( or ; 12 August 1774 – 21 March 1843) was an English poet of the Romantic school, and Poet Laureate from 1813 until his death. Like the other Lake Poets, William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Southey began as a ...

—then a young

Jacobin , logo = JacobinVignette03.jpg , logo_size = 180px , logo_caption = Seal of the Jacobin Club (1792–1794) , motto = "Live free or die"(french: Vivre libre ou mourir) , successor = P ...

—included a section in his collection, "Poems", a selection of poems under the heading, "Botany Bay Eclogues," in which he portrayed the plight and stories of transported convicts in

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

. Among the first true works of literature produced in Australia were the accounts of the settlement of Sydney by

, a captain of the marines on the First Fleet to arrive in 1788. In 1819, poet, explorer, journalist and politician

William Wentworth William Charles Wentworth (August 179020 March 1872) was an Australian pastoralist, explorer, newspaper editor, lawyer, politician and author, who became one of the wealthiest and most powerful figures of early colonial New South Wales. Throug ...

published the first book written by an Australian: ''A Statistical, Historical, and Political Description of the Colony of New South Wales and Its Dependent Settlements in Van Diemen's Land, With a Particular Enumeration of the Advantages Which These Colonies Offer for Emigration and Their Superiority in Many Respects Over Those Possessed by the United States of America'', in which he advocated an elected assembly for New South Wales, trial by jury and settlement of Australia by free emigrants rather than convicts The first novel to be published in Australia was a crime novel, ''Quintus Servinton: A Tale founded upon Incidents of Real Occurrence'' by

Henry Savery Henry Savery (4 August 1791 – 6 February 1842) was a convict transported to Port Arthur, Tasmania, and Australia's first novelist. It is generally agreed that his writing is more important for its historical value than its literary merit.''Q ...

published in Hobart in 1830. Early popular works tended to be the 'ripping yarn' variety, telling tales of derring-do against the new

frontier A frontier is the political and geographical area near or beyond a boundary. A frontier can also be referred to as a "front". The term came from French in the 15th century, with the meaning "borderland"—the region of a country that fronts ...

of the Australian

. Writers such as Rolf Boldrewood ('' Robbery Under Arms''),

('' For the Term of His Natural Life''),

(''

'') and

(''

'') embodied these stirring ideals in their tales and, particularly the latter, tried to accurately record the

vernacular A vernacular or vernacular language is in contrast with a "standard language". It refers to the language or dialect that is spoken by people that are inhabiting a particular country or region. The vernacular is typically the native language, n ...

language of the common Australian. These

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living wage, living writing novels and other fiction, while othe ...

s also gave valuable insights into the penal colonies which helped form the country and also the early rural settlements. In 1838 ''The Guardian: a tale'' by Anna Maria Bunn was published in Sydney. It was the first Australian novel printed and published in mainland Australia and the first Australian novel written by a woman. It is a

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

romance.

('' My Brilliant Career'') and Jeannie Gunn ('' We of the Never Never'') wrote of lives of European pioneers in the Australian bush from a female perspective.

Albert Facey Albert Barnett Facey (31 August 1894 – 11 February 1982), publishing as A.B. Facey was an Australian writer and World War I veteran, whose main work was his autobiography, '' A Fortunate Life'', now considered a classic of Australian litera ...

wrote of the experiences of the Goldfields and of Gallipoli ('' A Fortunate Life'').

wrote of the sectarian divisions of life in impoverished 1940s inner city Sydney ('' The Harp in the South''). The experience of Australian

PoWs A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of ...

in the Pacific War is recounted by

in '' A Town Like Alice'' and in the autobiography of Sir Edward Dunlop.

was an Australian war correspondent and novelist who gained international acclaim. A number of notable classic works by international writers deal with Australian subjects, among them

D. H. Lawrence David Herbert Lawrence (11 September 1885 – 2 March 1930) was an English writer, novelist, poet and essayist. His works reflect on modernity, industrialization, sexuality, emotional health, vitality, spontaneity and instinct. His best-k ...

's ''

Kangaroo Kangaroos are four marsupials from the family Macropodidae (macropods, meaning "large foot"). In common use the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, the red kangaroo, as well as the antilopine kangaroo, eastern ...

''. The journals of

Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English natural history#Before 1900, naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all speci ...

contain the famous naturalist's first impressions of Australia, gained on his tour aboard the Beagle that inspired his writing of

On the Origin of Species ''On the Origin of Species'' (or, more completely, ''On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life''),The book's full original title was ''On the Origin of Species by Me ...

. ''The Wayward Tourist: Mark Twain's Adventures in Australia'' contains the acclaimed American humourist's musings on Australia from his 1895 lecture tour. In 2012, ''

The Age ''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territo ...

'' reported that Text Publishing was releasing an Australian classics series in 2012, to address a "neglect of Australian literature" by universities and "British dominated" publishing houses—citing out of print Miles Franklin award winners such as David Ireland's ''The Glass Canoe'' and

Sumner Locke Elliott Sumner Locke Elliott (17 October 191724 June 1991) was an Australian (later American) novelist and playwright. Biography Elliott was born in Sydney to the writer Sumner Locke and the journalist Henry Logan Elliott. His mother died of eclamp ...

's ''Careful, He Might Hear You'' as key examples.

Children's literature

Ethel Turner Ethel Turner (24 January 1870 – 8 April 1958) was an English-born Australian novelist and children's literature writer. Life She was born Ethel Mary Burwell in Doncaster in England. Her father died when she was two, leaving her mother Sarah J ...

's ''

Seven Little Australians ''Seven Little Australians'' is a classic Australian children's literature novel by Ethel Turner, published in 1894. Set mainly in Sydney in the 1880s, it relates the adventures of the seven mischievous Woolcot children, their stern army father ...

'', which relates the adventures of seven mischievous children in Sydney, has been in print since 1894, longer than any other Australian children's novel. ''

The Getting of Wisdom ''The Getting of Wisdom'' is a novel by Australian novelist Henry Handel Richardson. It was first published in 1910, and has almost always been in print ever since. Plot introduction Henry Handel Richardson was the pseudonym of Ethel Florenc ...

'' (1910) by

, about an unconventional schoolgirl in Melbourne, has enjoyed a similar success and been praised by H. G. Wells and

. Other perennial favourites of Australian children's literature include Dorothy Wall's '' Blinky Bill'',

Ethel Pedley Ethel Charlotte Pedley (19 June 1859 – 6 August 1898) was an English-Australian author and musician. Early life Ethel Charlotte Pedley was born on 19 June 1859 at Acton, near London. She was the daughter of Frederick Pedley and his wife E ...

's ''

Dot and the Kangaroo ''Dot and the Kangaroo'' is an 1899 Australian children's book written by Ethel C. Pedley about a little girl named Dot who gets lost in the Australian outback and is eventually befriended by a kangaroo and several other marsupials. The book wa ...

'', May Gibbs' '' Snugglepot and Cuddlepie'',

's '' The Magic Pudding'',

's ''

The Muddleheaded Wombat The Muddle-Headed Wombat is a fictional wombat featured in the radio serials and later in the children's books of the same name written by Australian author Ruth Park. The books are considered classics of Australian children's literature. History ...

'' and

's '' Possum Magic''. These classic works employ anthropomorphism to bring alive the creatures of the

, thus Bunyip Bluegum of ''The Magic Pudding'' is a koala who leaves his tree in search of adventure, while in ''Dot and the Kangaroo'' a little girl lost in the bush is befriended by a group of

marsupials Marsupials are any members of the mammalian infraclass Marsupialia. All extant marsupials are endemic to Australasia, Wallacea and the Americas. A distinctive characteristic common to most of these species is that the young are carried in a ...

. May Gibbs crafted a story of protagonists modelled on the appearance of young eucalyptus ( gum tree) nuts and pitted these ''gumnut babies'', Snugglepot and Cuddlepie, against the antagonist Banksia men. Gibbs' influence has lasted through the generations – contemporary children's author Ursula Dubosarsky has cited ''Snugglepot and Cuddlepie'' as one of her favourite books. In the middle of the twentieth century, children's literature languished, with popular British authors dominating the Australian market. But in the 1960s

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print book ...

published several Australian children's authors, and

Angus & Robertson Angus & Robertson (A&R) is a major Australian bookseller, publisher and printer. As book publishers, A&R has contributed substantially to the promotion and development of Australian literature.Alison, Jennifer (2001). "Publishers and editors: A ...

appointed their first specialist children's editor. The best-known writers to emerge in this period were

Hesba Brinsmead Hesba Fay Brinsmead (''Hesba Fay Hungerford''; 15 March 1922 in Berambing, New South Wales – 24 November 2003 in Murwillumbah) was an Australian author of children's books and an environmentalist. Biography Upbringing Brinsmead's parent ...

Ivan Southall Ivan Francis Southall AM, DFC (8 June 192115 November 2008) was an Australian writer best known for young adult fiction. He wrote more than 30 children's books, six books for adults, and at least ten works of history, biography or other non-fi ...

Colin Thiele Colin Milton Thiele AC (; 16 November 1920 – 4 September 2006) was an Australian author and educator. He was renowned for his award-winning children's fiction, most notably the novels '' Storm Boy'', '' Blue Fin'', the '' Sun on the Stubble'' ...

Patricia Wrightson Patricia Wrightson OBE (19 June 1921 – 15 March 2010) was an Australian writer of several highly regarded and influential children's books. Employing a 'magic realism' style, her books, including the award-winning ''The Nargun and the Stars' ...

Nan Chauncy Nan Chauncy (28 May 1900 – 1 May 1970) was a British-born Australian children's writer. Early life Chauncy was born Nancen Beryl Masterman in Northwood, Middlesex (now in London), and emigrated to Tasmania, Australia, with her family in 19 ...

, Joan Phipson and Eleanor Spence, their works primarily set in the Australian landscape. In 1971, Southall won the Carnegie Medal for ''

Josh Josh is a masculine given name, frequently a diminutive ( hypocorism) of the given names Joshua or Joseph, though since the 1970s, it has increasingly become a full name on its own. It may refer to: People A–J * "Josh", an early pseudonym o ...

''. In 1986, Patricia Wrightson received the international

Hans Christian Andersen Award The Hans Christian Andersen Awards are two literary awards given by the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY), recognising one living author and one living illustrator for their "lasting contribution to children's literature". The ...

. The

Children's Book Council of Australia The Children's Book Council of Australia (CBCA) is a not for profit organisation which aims to engage the community with literature for young Australians. The CBCA presents the annual Children's Book of the Year Awards to books of literary merit ...

has presented annual awards for books of literary merit since 1946 and has other awards for outstanding contributions to Australian children's literature. Notable winners and shortlisted works have inspired several well-known Australian films from original novels, including the Silver Brumby series, a collection by

Elyne Mitchell Elyne Mitchell, OAM (née Chauvel, 30 December 1913 – 4 March 2002) was an Australian author noted for the ''Silver Brumby'' series of children's novels. Her nonfiction works draw on family history and culture. Biography Sybil Elyne Keith Ch ...

which recount the life and adventures of Thowra, a

Snowy Mountains The Snowy Mountains, known informally as "The Snowies", is an IBRA subregion in southern New South Wales, Australia, and is the tallest mountain range in mainland Australia, being part of the continent's Great Dividing Range cordillera syst ...

brumby stallion; '' Storm Boy'' (1964), by Colin Thiele, about a boy and his pelican and the relationships he has with his father, the pelican, and an outcast Aboriginal man called Fingerbone; the Sydney-based Victorian era time travel adventure '' Playing Beatie Bow'' (1980) by

; and, for older children and mature readers, Melina Marchetta's 1993 novel about a Sydney high school girl '' Looking for Alibrandi''.

Robin Klein Robin McMaugh Klein (born 28 February 1936) is an Australian author of books for children. She was born in Kempsey, New South Wales, Australia, and now resides near Melbourne. Early life Robin Klein is one of nine children. She had her first s ...

's ''

Came Back to Show You I Could Fly ''Came Back to Show You I Could Fly'' is a novel by Robin Klein. It tells the story of a friendship between a lonely 11-year-old boy and a drug-addicted, pregnant 20-year-old woman. It was given the designation of White Raven book at the 1990 Bo ...

'' is a story about the beautiful relationship between an eleven-year-old boy and an older, drug-addicted girl. Jackie French, widely described as Australia's most popular children's author, has written about 170 books, including two CBCA Children's Book of the Year Award winners. One of them, the critically acclaimed '' Hitler's Daughter'' (1999), is a "what if?" story that explores mind-provoking issues about what would have happened if

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

had had a daughter. French is also the author of the highly praised '' Diary of a Wombat'' (2003), which won awards such as the 2003

COOL Award The COOL Awards is an annual children's choice award voted on by students in Canberra, the Australian Capital Territory, Australia. Children are encouraged to read and vote for their favourite books. The votes are tallied and the awards made ...

and 2004 BILBY Award, among others. It was also named an honour book for the CBCA Children's Book of the Year Award for picture books. Paul Jennings is a prolific writer of contemporary Australian fiction for young people whose career began with collections of short stories such as '' Unreal!'' (1985) and '' Unbelievable!'' (1987); many of the stories were adapted as episodes of the award-winning television show ''

Round the Twist ''Round the Twist'' is an Australian children's comedy television series based on stories by author Paul Jennings that follows the supernatural adventures of the Twist family. The series was created and produced by Patricia Edgar, and develop ...

''. The world's richest prize in children's literature has been received by two Australians, Sonya Hartnett, who won the 2008

Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award ( sv, Litteraturpriset till Astrid Lindgrens minne) is an international children's literary award established by the Swedish government in 2002 to honour the Swedish children's author Astrid Lindgren (1907– ...

and

Shaun Tan Shaun Tan (born 1973) is an Australian artist, writer and film maker. He won an Academy Award for '' The Lost Thing'', a 2011 animated film adaptation of a 2000 picture book he wrote and illustrated. Other books he has written and illustrated inc ...

, who won in 2011. Hartnett has a long and distinguished career, publishing her first novel at 15. She is known for her dark and often controversial themes. She has won several awards, including the Kathleen Mitchell Award and the Victorian Premier's Award for ''Sleeping Dogs'', Guardian Children's Fiction Prize and the Aurealis Award, Best Young Adult Novel (Australian speculative fiction) for ''Thursday's Child'' and the CBCA Children's Book of the Year Award: Older Readers for ''Forest''. Tan won this for his career contribution to "children's and young adult literature in the broadest sense". Tan has been awarded various literary awards, including the

Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis The (German Youth Literature Award) is an annual award established in 1956 by the Federal Ministry of Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth to recognise outstanding works of children's and young adult literature. It is Germany's only ...

in 2009 for ''Tales from Outer Suburbia'' and a New York Times Best Illustrated Children's Books award in 2007 for ''The Arrival''. Alongside his numerous literary awards, Tan's adaption of his book '' The Lost Thing'' also won him an Oscar for best animated short film. Other awards Tan has won include a World Fantasy Award for Best Artist, and a

Hugo Award The Hugo Award is an annual literary award for the best science fiction or fantasy works and achievements of the previous year, given at the World Science Fiction Convention and chosen by its members. The Hugo is widely considered the premier ...

for Best Professional Artist.

Expatriate authors

A generation of leading contemporary international writers who left Australia for Britain and the United States in the 1960s have remained regular and passionate contributors of Australian themed literary works throughout their careers including:

Geoffrey Robertson Geoffrey Ronald Robertson (born 30 September 1946) is a human rights barrister, academic, author and broadcaster. He holds dual Australian and British citizenship.

and

. Several of these writers had links to the

Sydney Push The Sydney Push was an intellectual subculture in Sydney from the late 1940s to the early 1970s. Its politics were predominantly left-wing libertarianism. The Push operated in a pub culture and included university students, academics, manual ...

intellectual sub-culture in Sydney from the late 1940s to the early 1970s; and to '' Oz'', a satirical magazine originating in Sydney, and later produced in London (from 1967 to 1973). After a long media career, Clive James remained as a leading humourist and author based in Britain whose memoir series was rich in reflections on Australian society (including his 2007 book '' Cultural Amnesia''). Robert Hughes has produced a number of historical works on Australia (including ''The Art of Australia'' (1966) and ''

The Fatal Shore ''The Fatal Shore: The Epic of Australia's Founding'' by Robert Hughes is a history of the early years of British colonisation of Australia, and especially the history and social effects of Britain's convict transportation system. It also a ...

'' (1987)). Barry Humphries took his

dadaist Dada () or Dadaism was an art movement of the European avant-garde in the early 20th century, with early centres in Zürich, Switzerland, at the Cabaret Voltaire (in 1916). New York Dada began c. 1915, and after 1920 Dada flourished in Par ...

absurdist theatrical talents and pen to London in the 1960s, becoming an institution on British television and later attaining popularity in the USA. Humphries' outlandish Australian caricatures, including Dame Edna Everage,

Barry McKenzie Barry McKenzie (full name: Barrington Bradman Bing McKenzie)Rebecca Coyle and Michael Hannan, La Trobe University, 2005 is a fictional character created in 1964 by the Australian comedian Barry Humphries (but suggested by Peter Cook) for a comic ...

and Les Patterson have starred in books, stage and screen to great acclaim over five decades and his biographer Anne Pender described him in 2010 as the most significant comedian since

Charles Chaplin Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin Jr. (16 April 188925 December 1977) was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, the Tramp, and is consider ...

. His own literary works include the Dame Edna biographies ''My Gorgeous Life'' (1989) and ''Handling Edna'' (2010) and the autobiography ''My Life As Me: A Memoir'' (2002). Geoffrey Robertson KC is a leading international human rights lawyer, academic, author and broadcaster whose books include ''The Justice Game'' (1998) and ''Crimes Against Humanity'' (1999). Leading feminist Germaine Greer, author of ''

The Female Eunuch ''The Female Eunuch'' is a 1970 book by Germaine Greer that became an international bestseller and an important text in the feminist movement. Greer's thesis is that the "traditional" suburban, consumerist, nuclear family represses women ...

'', has spent much of her career in England but continues to study, critique, condemn and adore her homeland (recent work includes ''Whitefella Jump Up: The Shortest Way to Nationhood'', 2004).

Other contemporary works and authors

Martin Boyd Martin à Beckett Boyd (10 June 1893 – 3 June 1972) was an Australian writer born into the à Beckett– Boyd family, a family synonymous with the establishment, the judiciary, publishing and literature, and the visual arts since the early 19t ...

(1893–1972) was a distinguished memoirist, novelist and poet, whose works included social comedies and the serious reflections of a pacifist faced with a time of war. Among his Langton series of novels—'' The Cardboard Crown'' (1952), '' A Difficult Young Man'' (1955), ''

Outbreak of Love ''Outbreak of Love'' is a 1981 Australian miniseries about Melbourne society just before World War I. *Ed. Scott Murray, ''Australia on the Small Screen 1970-1995'', Oxford Uni Press, 1996 p. 220 * * References External links''Outbreak of Love ...

'' (1957)—earned high praise in Britain and the United States, though despite their Australian themes, were largely ignored in Australia.

(1912–1990) became the first Australian to be awarded the

Nobel Prize in Literature ) , image = Nobel Prize.png , caption = , awarded_for = Outstanding contributions in literature , presenter = Swedish Academy , holder = Annie Ernaux (2022) , location = Stockholm, Sweden , year = 1901 ...

in 1973 "for an epic and psychological narrative art which has introduced a new continent into literature". White's

first novel A debut novel is the first novel a novelist publishes. Debut novels are often the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to pu ...

, '' Happy Valley'' (1939) was inspired by the landscape and his work as a

jackaroo A jackaroo is a young man (feminine equivalent jillaroo) working on a sheep or cattle station, to gain practical experience in the skills needed to become an owner, overseer, manager, etc. The word originated in Queensland, Australia, in the ...

on the land at

Adaminaby Adaminaby is a small town near the Snowy Mountains north-west of Cooma, New South Wales, Australia, in the Snowy Monaro Regional Council. The historic town, of 301 people at the , is a trout fishing centre and winter sports destination situated ...

in the Snowy Mountains, but became an international success and won the Australian Literary Society's Gold Medal. Born to a conservative, wealthy Anglo-Australian family, he later wrote of conviction in left-wing causes and lived as a homosexual. Never destined for life on the land, he enrolled at Cambridge where he became a published poet. White developed as a novelist, but also had major theatrical success—including '' The Season at Sarsaparilla''. White followed ''

The Tree of Man ''The Tree of Man'' is the fourth published novel by the Australian novelist and 1973 Nobel Prize-winner, Patrick White. It is a domestic drama chronicling the lives of the Parker family and their changing fortunes over many decades. It is ste ...

'' with ''

Voss Voss () is a municipality and a traditional district in Vestland county, Norway. The administrative center of the municipality is the village of Vossevangen. Other villages include Bolstadøyri, Borstrondi, Evanger, Kvitheim, Mjølfjell, ...

'', which became the first winner of the

. A subsequent novel, ''

Riders in the Chariot ''Riders in the Chariot'' is the sixth novel by Australian author Patrick White. It was published in 1961 and won the Miles Franklin Award that year. It also won the 1965 Gold Medal of the Australian Literature Society. The novel is the story of ...

'' also received a Miles Franklin award—but White later refused to permit his novels to be entered for literary prizes. He turned down a knighthood, and various literary awards—but in 1973 accepted the Nobel prize. David Marr wrote of biography of White in 1991. J. M. Coetzee, who was born in South Africa and was resident there when awarded the

in 2003, now lives in Adelaide, South Australia, and is an Australian citizen.

's ''

The Thorn Birds ''The Thorn Birds'' is a 1977 novel by Australian author Colleen McCullough. Set primarily on Drogheda – a fictional sheep station in the Australian Outback named after Drogheda, Ireland, the story focuses on the Cleary family and spans 1 ...

'', 1977, is Australia's highest selling novel and one of the biggest selling novels of all time with around 30 million copies sold by 2009.

wrote '' The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith'', 1972 and ''

Schindler's Ark ''Schindler's Ark'' is a historical novel published in 1982 by the Australian novelist Thomas Keneally. The United States edition of the book was titled ''Schindler's List;'' it was later reissued in Commonwealth countries under that name as we ...

'', 1982. This latter work was the inspiration for the film ''

Schindler's List ''Schindler's List'' is a 1993 American epic historical drama film directed and produced by Steven Spielberg and written by Steven Zaillian. It is based on the 1982 novel '' Schindler's Ark'' by Australian novelist Thomas Keneally. The film ...

''. Other notable Australian novels converted to celluloid include: Paul Brickhill's '' The Great Escape'';

Pamela Lyndon Travers Pamela Lyndon Travers (; born Helen Lyndon Goff; 9 August 1899 – 23 April 1996) was an Australian-British writer who spent most of her career in England. She is best known for the ''Mary Poppins'' series of books, which feature the eponymous ...

' '' Mary Poppins'';

's '' The Shoes of the Fisherman'' and

Bryce Courtenay Arthur Bryce Courtenay, (14 August 1933 – 22 November 2012) was a South African-Australian advertising director and novelist. He is one of Australia's best-selling authors, notable for his book '' The Power of One''. Background and early ye ...

's '' The Power of One''. '' Careful, He Might Hear You'' by

won the Miles Franklin Award in 1963, and was the subject of a 1983 Australian film. Author David Ireland won the Miles Franklin Award three times, including for '' The Glass Canoe'' (1976). Peter Carey has also won the Miles Franklin Award three times ('' Jack Maggs'' 1998; '' Oscar and Lucinda'' 1989; and ''

Bliss BLISS is a system programming language developed at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) by W. A. Wulf, D. B. Russell, and A. N. Habermann around 1970. It was perhaps the best known system language until C debuted a few years later. Since then, C bec ...

'' 1981). He has twice won the

Booker Prize The Booker Prize, formerly known as the Booker Prize for Fiction (1969–2001) and the Man Booker Prize (2002–2019), is a literary prize awarded each year for the best novel written in English and published in the United Kingdom or Ireland. ...

with 1988's '' Oscar and Lucinda'' and 2001's ''

True History of the Kelly Gang ''True History of the Kelly Gang'' is a novel by Australian writer Peter Carey, based loosely on the history of the Kelly Gang. It was first published in Brisbane by the University of Queensland Press in 2000. It won the 2001 Booker Prize a ...

''. DBC Pierre's '' Vernon God Little'' won the Booker Prize in 2003. Other notable writers to have emerged since the 1970s include

Janette Turner Hospital Janette Turner Hospital (née Turner) (born 1942) is an Australian-born novelist and short story writer who has lived most of her adult life in Canada or the United States, principally Boston (Massachusetts), Kingston (Ontario) and Columbia (South ...

, Marion Halligan, Susan Johnson,

Christopher Koch Christopher John Koch AO (16 July 1932 – 23 September 2013) was an Australian novelist, known for his 1978 novel '' The Year of Living Dangerously'', which was adapted into an award-winning film. He twice won the Miles Franklin Award (for ' ...

Alex Miller Alex Miller (born 4 July 1949) is a Scottish football manager and former player. As a player, he had a 15-year career with Rangers, winning several trophies. As a manager, he won the 1991–92 Scottish League Cup with Hibernian. He subseque ...

, Shirley Hazzard,

Richard Flanagan Richard Miller Flanagan (born 1961) is an Australian writer, who has also worked as a film director and screenwriter. He won the 2014 Man Booker Prize for his novel '' The Narrow Road to the Deep North''. Flanagan was described by the ''Washin ...

Gerald Murnane Gerald Murnane (born 25 February 1939) is an Australian writer, perhaps best known for his novel ''The Plains'' (1982). ''The New York Times'', in a big feature published on 27 March 2018, called him "the greatest living English-language writer ...

Brenda Walker Brenda Walker (born 1957 in Grafton, New South Wales) is an Australian writer. She studied at the University of New England in Armidale and, after gaining a PhD in English (on the work of Samuel Beckett) at the Australian National University, s ...

Rod Jones Rod Jones may refer to: Sports American football * Rod Jones (cornerback) (born 1964), American football cornerback in the National Football League * Rod Jones (offensive lineman) (born 1974), American football tackle in the National Football Leagu ...

and

Tim Winton Timothy John Winton (born 4 August 1960) is an Australian writer. He has written novels, children's books, non-fiction books, and short stories. In 1997, he was named a Living Treasure by the National Trust of Australia, and has won the Mile ...

James Clavell James Clavell (born Charles Edmund Dumaresq Clavell; 10 October 1921 – 7 September 1994) was an Australian-born British (later naturalized American) writer, screenwriter, director, and World War II veteran and prisoner of war. Clavell is best ...

in ''

The Asian Saga The ''Asian Saga'' is a series of six novels written by James Clavell between 1962 and 1993. The novels all centre on Europeans in Asia, and together explore the impact on East and West of the meeting of these two distinct civilizations. Overv ...

'' discusses an important feature of Australian literature: its portrayal of far eastern culture, from the admittedly even further east, but nevertheless western cultural viewpoint, as

did. Clavell was also a successful

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

and along with such writers as

(see above), has expanded the topics of Australian literature far beyond that one country. Other novelists to use international themes are

and

. ''

The Secret River ''The Secret River'' is a 2005 historical novel by Kate Grenville about an early 19th-century Englishman transported to Australia for theft. The story explores what might have happened when Europeans colonised land already inhabited by Aborigi ...

'' (2005) is an historical fiction by

imagining encounters between Aboriginal and colonial Australia which was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize. '' The Slap'' (2008) was an internationally successful novel by

Christos Tsiolkas Christos Tsiolkas is an Australian author, playwright, and screenwriter. He is especially known for '' The Slap'', which was both well-received critically and highly successful commercially. Several of his books have been adapted for film and t ...

which was adapted for television by

ABC1 ABC TV, formerly known as ABC1, is an Australian national public television network. It is owned and operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, and is the flagship ABC Television network. The headquarters of the ABC TV channel a ...

in 2011, and was described in a review by Gerard Windsor as "something of an anatomy of the rising Australian middle class".

1991–1996: Grunge lit

Grunge lit (an abbreviation for "grunge literature") is an Australian

literary genre A literary genre is a category of literature. Genres may be determined by literary technique, tone, content, or length (especially for fiction). They generally move from more abstract, encompassing classes, which are then further sub-divided ...

usually applied to fictional or semi-autobiographical writing concerned with dissatisfied and disenfranchised

young people Youth is the time of life when one is young. The word, youth, can also mean the time between childhood and adulthood ( maturity), but it can also refer to one's peak, in terms of health or the period of life known as being a young adult. Yout ...

living in suburban or inner-city surroundings. It was typically written by "new, young authors"Leishman, Kirsty, 'Australian Grunge Literature and the Conflict between Literary Generations', ''Journal of Australian Studies'', 23.63 (1999), pp. 94–102 who examined "gritty, dirty, real existences", of lower-income young people, whose lives revolve around a

nihilistic Nihilism (; ) is a philosophy, or family of views within philosophy, that rejects generally accepted or fundamental aspects of human existence, such as objective truth, knowledge, morality, values, or meaning. The term was popularized by Ivan ...

pursuit of casual sex,

recreational drug use Recreational drug use indicates the use of one or more psychoactive drugs to induce an altered state of consciousness either for pleasure or for some other casual purpose or pastime by modifying the perceptions and emotions of the user. When a ...

and

alcohol Alcohol most commonly refers to: * Alcohol (chemistry), an organic compound in which a hydroxyl group is bound to a carbon atom * Alcohol (drug), an intoxicant found in alcoholic drinks Alcohol may also refer to: Chemicals * Ethanol, one of sev ...

, which are used to escape

boredom In conventional usage, boredom, ennui, or tedium is an emotional and occasionally psychological state experienced when an individual is left without anything in particular to do, is listlessness and dissatisfaction arising from a lack of occup ...

or a general flightiness. Romantic love is seldom, as instant gratification has become the norm. It has been described as both a sub-set of dirty realism and an offshoot of

Generation X Generation X (or Gen X for short) is the Western demographic cohort following the baby boomers and preceding the millennials. Researchers and popular media use the mid-to-late 1960s as starting birth years and the late 1970s to early 1980s ...

literature.Vernay, Jean-François,
Grunge Fiction
, ''The Literary Encyclopedia'', 6 November 2008, accessed 9 September 2009 The term "grunge" is from the 1990s-era music genre of grunge. The genre was first coined in 1995 following the success of

Andrew McGahan Andrew McGahan (10 October 1966 – 1 February 2019) was an Australian novelist, best known for his first novel ''Praise'', and for his Miles Franklin Award-winning novel ''The White Earth''. His novel ''Praise'' is considered to be part of th ...

's first novel ''Praise'' which had been released in 1991 and became popular with sub-30-year-old readers, a previously under-investigated

demographic Demography () is the statistical study of populations, especially human beings. Demographic analysis examines and measures the dimensions and dynamics of populations; it can cover whole societies or groups defined by criteria such as edu ...

. Other authors considered to be "grunge lit" include Linda Jaivin, Fiona McGregor and Justine Ettler. Since its invention, the term "grunge lit" has been retrospectively applied to novels written as early as 1977, namely

's '' Monkey Grip''. Grunge lit is often raw, explicit, and vulgar, even to the point of Ettler's '' The River Ophelia'' (1995) being called pornographic. The term "grunge lit" and its use to categorize and market this diverse group of writers and authorial styles has bees the subject of debate and criticism. Linda Jaivin disagreed with putting all these authors in one category, Christios Tsiolkas called the term a "media creation", and Murray Waldren denied grunge lit even was a new genre; he said the works actually are a type of the pre-existing dirty realism genre.

1998–2010s: Post-grunge lit

Post-grunge lit is a genre of Australian fiction from the late 1990s, 2000s and 2010s. It is called "post-grunge lit" to denote that this genre appeared after the 1990s Australian literary genre known as grunge lit. Michael Robert Christie's 2009 PhD dissertation, "Unbecoming-of-Age: Australian Grunge Fiction, the Bildungsroman and the Long Labor Decade" states that there is a genre called "post Grunge it which follows the grunge lit period. Christie names three examples of Australian "post-grunge lit": Elliot Perlman's ''

Three Dollars ''Three Dollars'' is a 2005 Australian film directed by Robert Connolly and starring David Wenham, Sarah Wynter, and Frances O'Connor. It was based on a 1998 novel of the same name by Elliot Perlman. It won the 2005 Australian Film Institu ...

'' (1998),

Andrew McCann Andrew McCann is an Australian professor and fiction writer. He used the pen name "A. L. McCann" for his first book, ''The White Body of Evening'', to avoid confusion with fellow Australian writer Andrew McGahan. His second fiction book, ''Subto ...

's '' Subtopia'' (2005) and

Anthony Macris Anthony Macris (born 29 June 1962) is an Australian novelist, critic and academic. He has been shortlisted for the Prime Minister's Literary Awards, the ''Age'' Book of the Year, and been named a '' Sydney Morning Herald'' Best Young Australian N ...

' ''

Capital Capital may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** List of national capital cities * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences * Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used fo ...

''. Christie's dissertation interprets and explains these three post-grunge lit works "as responses to the embedding of

Neoliberalism Neoliberalism (also neo-liberalism) is a term used to signify the late 20th century political reappearance of 19th-century ideas associated with free-market capitalism after it fell into decline following the Second World War. A prominent ...

in Australian and global political culture". Kalinda Ashton (born 1978) has been called a post-grunge writer, in part due to influences from grunge lit author

. Ashton is the author of the novel '' The Danger Game''. Samantha Dagg's 2017 thesis on grunge lit and post-grunge lit states that Luke Carman is a post-grunge writer. Carman's first work, a collection of interlinked semi-autobiographical short stories, explores the authentic experiences of working-class Australians in the suburbs, including issues such as drug addiction and a sense of disillusionment.

Australian writing in languages other than English

Australia has migrant groups from many countries, and members of those communities (not always of the first generation) have produced Australian writing in a variety of languages. These include Italian,

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walte ...

, Chinese, Vietnamese, Lao,

Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines. ** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...

, Latvian,

Ukrainian Ukrainian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Ukraine * Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe * Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine * Som ...

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken *Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin screenwr ...

, Russian, Serbian, Yiddish and Irish. Comparatively little attention has been devoted to such writing by mainstream critics. It has been argued that, in relation to the national literary landscape, such literary communities have a quite separate existence, with their own poetry festivals, literary competitions, magazine and newspaper reviews and features, and even local publishers. Some writers, like the Greek Australian Dimitris Tsaloumas, have published bilingually. There are now signs that such writing is attracting more academic interest. Some older works in languages other than English have been translated and received critical and historical attention long after their first publication; for example, the first Chinese-language novel to be published in Australia (and possibly the West), ''

The Poison of Polygamy ''The Poison of Polygamy'' () is a novel written in Literary Chinese and first published in serial form in the ''Chinese Times'' in Melbourne, Australia, between June 1909 and December 1910. It was the first novel by a Chinese diaspora writer to ...

'' (1909–10) by

Wong Shee Ping Wong Shee Ping (c. 1875 – 1948), 黃樹屏, also known as Wong Yau Kung 黃右公/黃又公, was a Chinese writer, newspaper editor, political activist and Christian preacher. Born in the county of Kaiping in the southern Chinese province o ...

, was published in English for the first time in 2019, in a bilingual parallel edition.

Histories

History has been an important discipline in the development of Australian writing.

(1758–1833) - a British officer who arrived with the First Fleet in 1788 - later published two books on the subject of the foundations of New South Wales: ''Narrative of the Expedition to Botany Bay'' and ''Complete Account of the Settlement at Port Jackson''. Written with a spirit of humanity his accounts are considered by writers including Robert Hughes and

to be essential reading for the early history of Australia/

was the official war historian of the First World War and was influential in establishing the importance of

ANZAC The Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) was a First World War army corps of the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force. It was formed in Egypt in December 1914, and operated during the Gallipoli campaign. General William Birdwood comm ...

in Australian history and mythology, with such prose as "Anzac stood, and still stands, for reckless valor in a good cause, for enterprise, resourcefulness, fidelity, comradeship and endurance, that will never own defeat". (see works including ''The Story of ANZAC: From the Outbreak of War to the End of the First Phase of the Gallipoli Campaign 4 May 1915'', 1921). ''

Australia in the War of 1939–1945 ''Australia in the War of 1939–1945'' is a 22-volume official history series covering Australian involvement in the Second World War. The series was published by the Australian War Memorial between 1952 and 1977, most of the volumes being edi ...

'' is a 22 volume official history dedicated to Australia's Second World War efforts. the series was published by the

Australian War Memorial The Australian War Memorial is Australia's national memorial to the members of its armed forces and supporting organisations who have died or participated in wars involving the Commonwealth of Australia and some conflicts involving p ...

between 1952 and 1977. The main editor was Gavin Long. A significant milestone was the

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the st ...

's six volume ''History of Australia'', which is regarded by some as the definitive account of the nation. Clark had a talent for narrative prose and the work (published between 1969 and 1987) remains a popular and influential work. Clark's one time student

stands as another to have deeply influenced Australian historiography. His important works include '' The Tyranny of Distance'' (1966) and '' Triumph of the Nomads: A History of Ancient Australia'' (1975). Robert Hughes' much-debated history '' The Fatal Shore: The epic of Australia's founding'' (1987) is a popular and influential work on early Australian history.

is one of the principal contemporary

Indigenous Australian Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples o ...

academics and her 2008 collaboration with

Rachel Perkins Rachel Perkins (born 1970) is an Australian film and television director, producer, and screenwriter. She directed the films '' Radiance'' (1998), '' One Night the Moon'' (2001), '' Bran Nue Dae'' (2010), and ''Jasper Jones'' (2017). Perkins is ...

chronicles Australian history from an Indigenous perspective: '' First Australians. An Illustrated History''.

Writing and identity

A complicated, multi-faceted relationship to Australia is displayed in much Australian writing, often through writing about landscape.

Barbara Baynton Barbara Janet Baynton (née Lawrence; 4 June 1857 – 28 May 1929) was an Australian writer known primarily for her short stories about life in the bush. She published the collection ''Bush Studies'' (1902) and the novel ''Human Toll'' (1907), a ...

's short stories from the late 19th century/early 20th century convey people living in the bush, a landscape that is alive but also threatening and alienating.

Kenneth Cook Kenneth Bernard Cook (5 May 1929 – 18 April 1987) was an Australian journalist, television documentary maker, and novelist best known for his works ''Wake in Fright'', which is still in print five decades after its first publication, and the hu ...

's ''Wake in Fright'' (1961) portrayed the outback as a nightmare with a blazing sun, from which there is no escape.

's novels reflected the life and times of rural and regional Australians in the 20th century, showing aspects of Australian life unknown to many city dwellers. In Australian literature, the term ''

'' has often been employed to denote an intensely loyal relationship of shared experience, mutual respect and unconditional assistance existing between friends (''mates'') in Australia. This relationship of (often male) loyalty has remained a central subject of Australian literature from colonial times to the present day. In 1847, Alexander Harris wrote of habits of mutual helpfulness between mates arising in the "otherwise solitary bush" in which men would often "stand by one another through thick and thin; in fact it is a universal feeling that a man ought to be able to trust his own mate in anything".

, a son of the Goldfields wrote extensively of an egalitarian mateship, in such works as ''A Sketch of Mateship'' and ''Shearers'', in which he wrote: :They tramp in mateship side by side - :The Protestant and Roman :They call no biped lord or sir :And touch their hat to no man. Miles Franklin, 1901 (31523140262)

What it means to be Australian is another issue that Australian literature explores.

struggled to find a place for herself as a female writer in Australia, fictionalising this experience in '' My Brilliant Career'' (1901). Marie Bjelke Petersen's popular romance novels, published between 1917 and 1937, offered a fresh upbeat interpretation of the Australian bush. The central character in

's '' The Twyborn Affair'' tries to conform to expectations of pre–World War II Australian masculinity but cannot, and instead, post-war, tries out another identity—and gender—overseas. Peter Carey has toyed with the idea of a national Australian identity as a series of 'beautiful lies', and this is a recurrent theme in his novels.

's ''Praise'' (1992),

's '' Loaded'' (1995), Justine Ettler's ''The River Ophelia'' (1995) and

Brendan Cowell Brendan Cowell is an Australian actor, playwright, and director. Early life and education Cowell was born in Sydney and grew up in the beachside suburb of Cronulla. He credits his mother and high school drama teacher with encouraging him to ...

's ''How It Feels'' (2010) introduced a grunge lit, a type of 'gritty realism' take on questions of Australian identity in the 1990s, though an important precursor to such work came some years earlier with

's '' Monkey Grip'' (1977), about a single mother living on and off with a male heroin addict in Melbourne share housing. Australian literature has had several scandals surrounding the identity of writers. In the 1930s, a misunderstanding with a printer caused Maude Hepplestone's bush poetry collection "Songs of the Kookaburra" to be mistakenly lauded internationally as a modernist masterpiece. The 1944

Ern Malley The Ern Malley hoax, also called the Ern Malley affair, is Australia's most famous literary hoax. Its name derives from Ernest Lalor "Ern" Malley, a fictitious poet whose biography and body of work were created in one day in 1943 by conservati ...

affair led to an obscenity trial and is often blamed for the lack of

modernist poetry Modernist poetry refers to poetry written between 1890 and 1950 in the tradition of modernist literature, but the dates of the term depend upon a number of factors, including the nation of origin, the particular school in question, and the biases ...

in Australia. To mark the 60th anniversary of the Ern Malley affair, another Australian writer,

Leon Carmen Leon Carmen (born 1949) is an Australian author who is best known for the hoax that resulted from his authorship of the novel ''My Own Sweet Time''—which he wrote under the pseudonym "Wanda Koolmatrie". Background Carmen grew up in Torrens Par ...

, set out to make a point about the prejudice of Australian publishers against white Australians. Unable to find publication as a white Australian he was an instant success using the false Aboriginal identity of "Wanda Koolmatrie" with ''My Own Sweet Time''. In the 1980s Streten Bozik also managed to become published by assuming the Aboriginal identity of B. Wongar. In the 1990s, Helen Darville used the pen-name "Helen Demidenko" and won major literary prizes for her ''Hand that Signed the Paper'' before being discovered, sparking a controversy over the content of her novel, a fictionalised and highly tendentious account of the Nazi occupation of the Ukraine.

Mudrooroo Colin Thomas Johnson (21 August 1938 – 20 January 2019), better known by his nom de plume Mudrooroo, was a novelist, poet, essayist and playwright. He has been described as one of the most enigmatic literary figures of Australia and his many ...

—previously known as Colin Johnson—was acclaimed as an Aboriginal writer until his Aboriginality came under question (his mother was Irish/English and his father was Irish/African-American, however he has strong connections with Aboriginal tribes); he now avoids adopting a specific ethnic identity and his works deconstruct such notions.

Poetry

Poetry Poetry (derived from the Greek '' poiesis'', "making"), also called verse, is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language − such as phonaesthetics, sound symbolism, and metre − to evoke meanings ...

played an important part in early Australian literature. The first poet to be published in Australia was

Michael Massey Robinson Michael Massey Robinson (1744Also reported as 1747 and 1754. SeRobinson at austlitfor details – 22 December 1826) was a poet and author of the first published verse in Australia. Biography Legal troubles Robinson was an educated man and ...

(1744-1826), convict and public servant, whose odes appeared in ''The Sydney Gazette''. Charles Harpur and Henry Kendall were the first poets of any consequence.

, son of a Norwegian sailor born in 1867, was widely recognised as Australia's poet of the people and, in 1922, became the first Australian writer to be honoured with a state funeral. Two poets who are amongst the great Australian poets are

Christopher Brennan Christopher John Brennan (1 November 1870 – 5 October 1932) was an Australian poet, scholar and literary critic. Biography Brennan was born in Haymarket, an inner suburb of Sydney, to Christopher Brennan (d. 1919), a brewer, and his wife ...

and

Adam Lindsay Gordon Adam Lindsay Gordon (19 October 1833 – 24 June 1870) was a British-Australian poet, horseman, police officer and politician. He was the first Australian poet to gain considerable recognition overseas, and according to his contemporary, write ...

; Gordon was once referred to as the "

national poet A national poet or national bard is a poet held by tradition and popular acclaim to represent the identity, beliefs and principles of a particular national culture. The national poet as culture hero is a long-standing symbol, ...

of Australia" and is the only Australian with a monument in

Poets' Corner Poets' Corner is the name traditionally given to a section of the South Transept of Westminster Abbey in the City of Westminster, London because of the high number of poets, playwrights, and writers buried and commemorated there. The first poe ...

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an historic, mainly Gothic church in the City of Westminster, London, England, just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the United ...

in England. Both Gordon's and Brennan's (but particularly Brennan's) works conformed to traditional styles of poetry, with many classical allusions, and therefore fell within the domain of high culture. However, at the same time Australia was blessed with a competing, vibrant tradition of

folk song Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has ...

s and

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or '' ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...

and

were two of the chief exponents of these popular ballads, and 'Banjo' himself was responsible for creating what is probably the most famous Australian verse, "

Waltzing Matilda "Waltzing Matilda" is a song developed in the Australian style of poetry and folk music called a bush ballad. It has been described as the country's "unofficial national anthem". The title was Australian slang for travelling on foot (waltzing) ...

". At one point, Lawson and Paterson contributed a series of verses to ''

The Bulletin Bulletin or The Bulletin may refer to: Periodicals (newspapers, magazines, journals) * Bulletin (online newspaper), a Swedish online newspaper * ''The Bulletin'' (Australian periodical), an Australian magazine (1880–2008) ** Bulletin Debate, ...

'' magazine in which they engaged in a literary debate about the nature of life in Australia. Lawson said Paterson was a romantic and Paterson said Lawson was full of doom and gloom. Lawson is widely regarded as one of Australia's greatest writers of short stories, while Paterson's poems " The Man From Snowy River" and "

Clancy of the Overflow "Clancy of the Overflow" is a poem by Banjo Paterson, first published in ''The Bulletin'', an Australian news magazine, on 21 December 1889. The poem is typical of Paterson, offering a romantic view of rural life, and is one of his best-known w ...

" remain amongst the most popular Australian bush poems. Romanticised views of the outback and the rugged characters that inhabited it played an important part in shaping the Australian nation's

psyche Psyche (''Psyché'' in French) is the Greek term for "soul" (ψυχή). Psyche may also refer to: Psychology * Psyche (psychology), the totality of the human mind, conscious and unconscious * ''Psyche'', an 1846 book about the unconscious by Car ...

, just as the cowboys of the

American Old West The American frontier, also known as the Old West or the Wild West, encompasses the geography, history, folklore, and culture associated with the forward wave of American expansion in mainland North America that began with European colonial ...

and the

gaucho A gaucho () or gaúcho () is a skilled horseman, reputed to be brave and unruly. The figure of the gaucho is a folk symbol of Argentina, Uruguay, Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil, and the south of Chilean Patagonia. Gauchos became greatly admired and ...

s of the Argentine

pampa The Pampas (from the qu, pampa, meaning "plain") are fertile South American low grasslands that cover more than and include the Argentine provinces of Buenos Aires, La Pampa, Santa Fe, Entre Ríos, and Córdoba; all of Uruguay; and Brazil ...

became part of the self-image of those nations. Banjo Patterson

Other poets who reflected a sense of Australian identity include C J Dennis and

Dorothea McKellar Isobel Marion Dorothea Mackellar, (1 July 1885 – 14 January 1968) was an Australian poet and fiction writer. Her poem '' My Country'' is widely known in Australia, especially its second stanza, which begins: "''I love a sunburnt countr ...

. Dennis wrote in the Australian vernacular ("

The Songs of a Sentimental Bloke ''The Songs of a Sentimental Bloke'' is a verse novel by Australian poet and journalist C. J. Dennis. Portions of the work appeared in '' The Bulletin'' between 1909 and 1915, the year the verse novel was completed and published by Angus & Robert ...

"), while McKellar wrote the iconic patriotic poem " My Country". Prominent Australian poets of the 20th century include Dame

Gwen Harwood Gwen Harwood (née Gwendoline Nessie Foster, 8 June 19205 December 1995) was an Australian poet and librettist. Harwood is regarded as one of Australia's finest poets, publishing over 420 works, including 386 poems and 13 librettos. She won n ...

, Les Murray,

Bruce Dawe Donald Bruce Dawe (15 February 1930 – 1 April 2020) was an Australian poet and academic. Some critics consider him one of the most influential Australian poets of all time.

and more recently Robert Gray, John Forbes, John Tranter, John Kinsella and

Judith Beveridge Judith Beveridge (born 1956) is a contemporary Australian poet, editor and academic. She is a recipient of the Christopher Brennan Award. Biography Judith Beveridge was born in London, England, arriving in Australia with her parents in 1960. S ...

Contemporary Australian poetry is mostly published by small, independent book publishers. However, other kinds of publication, including new media and online journals, spoken word and live events, and public poetry projects are gaining an increasingly vibrant and popular presence. 1992–1999 saw poetry and art collaborations in Sydney and Newcastle buses and ferries, including Artransit from

Meuse Press ''Meuse Press'' is an Australian Press, publishing a range of "poetry outreach" projects in a number of media ranging from a literary magazine to poetry published on the surface of a river. It was founded by Bill Farrow and Les Wicks. It is mostly ...

. Some of the more interesting and innovative contributions to Australian poetry have emerged from artist-run galleries in recent years, such as Textbase which had its beginnings as part of the 1st Floor gallery in Fitzroy. In addition, Red Room Company is a major exponent of innovative projects.

Bankstown Poetry Slam The Bankstown Poetry Slam is the largest regular poetry slam in Australia. History The Bankstown Poetry Slam (BPS) was founded in 2013 by Sara Mansour and Ahmad Al Rady, and held in the southwest Sydney suburb of Bankstown. Since its inception, the ...

has become a notable venue for spoken-word poetry and for community intersection with poetry as an art form to be shared. With its roots in Western Sydney it has a strong following from first and second generation Australians, often giving a platform to voices that are more marginalised in mainstream Australian society. Lesmurray

The Australian Poetry Library contains a wide range of Australian poetry as well as critical and contextual material relating to them, such as interviews, photographs and audio/visual recordings. it contains over 42,000 poems, from more than 170 Australian poets. Begun in 2004 by leading Australian poet John Tranter, it is a joint initiative of the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public university, public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one o ...

and the Copyright Agency Limited (CAL) with funding by the

Australian Research Council The Australian Research Council (ARC) is the primary non-medical research funding agency of the Australian Government, distributing more than in grants each year. The Council was established by the ''Australian Research Council Act 2001'', ...

Plays

European traditions came to Australia with the First Fleet in 1788, with the first production being performed in 1789 by convicts : ''

The Recruiting Officer ''The Recruiting Officer'' is a 1706 play by the Irish writer George Farquhar, which follows the social and sexual exploits of two British Army#Ranks and insignia, officers, the womanising Plume and the cowardly Brazen, in the town of Shrewsbu ...

'' by

George Farquhar George Farquhar (1677The explanation for the dual birth year appears in Louis A. Strauss, ed., A Discourse Upon Comedy, The Recruiting Officer, and The Beaux’ Stratagem by George Farquhar' (Boston: D.C. Heath & Co., 1914), p. v. Strauss notes ...

.The Recruiting Officer & Our Country's Good – Stantonbury Campus Theatre Company, 2000
/ref> Two centuries later, the extraordinary circumstances of the foundations of Australian theatre were recounted in ''

Our Country's Good ''Our Country's Good'' is a 1988 play written by British playwright Timberlake Wertenbaker, adapted from the Thomas Keneally novel ''The Playmaker''. The story concerns a group of Royal Marines and convicts in a penal colony in New South Wales, ...

'' by

Timberlake Wertenbaker Timberlake Wertenbaker is a British-based playwright, screenplay writer, and translator who has written plays for the Royal Court, the Royal Shakespeare Company and others. She has been described in ''The Washington Post'' as "the doyenne of p ...

: the participants were prisoners watched by sadistic guards and the leading lady was under threat of the death penalty. The play is based on

's novel ''

The Playmaker ''The Playmaker'' is a novel based in Australia written by the Australian author Thomas Keneally. In 1789 in Sydney Cove, the remotest penal colony of the British Empire, a group of convicts and one of their captors unite to stage a play. Gover ...

''. After

Australian Federation The Federation of Australia was the process by which the six separate British self-governing colonies of Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia (which also governed what is now the Northern Territory), and Western ...

in 1901, plays evidenced a new sense of national identity. ''On Our Selection'' (1912) by

, told of the adventures of a pioneer farming family and became immensely popular. In 1955, ''Summer of the Seventeenth Doll'' by Ray Lawler portrayed resolutely Australian characters and went on to international acclaim. A new wave of Australian theatre debuted in the 1970s with the works of writers including

, Barry Oakley and Jack Hibberd. The Belvoir St Theatre presented works by

and

. Williamson is Australia's best known playwright, with major works including: ''The Club (play), The Club, Emerald City (play), Emerald City'', and ''Brilliant Lies''. In ''The One Day of the Year'',

studied the paradoxical nature of the ANZAC Day commemoration by Australians of the defeat of the Battle of Gallipoli. ''Ngapartji Ngapartji'', by Scott Rankin and Trevor Jamieson, recounts the story of the effects on the Pitjantjatjara people of nuclear testing in the Western Desert during the Cold War. It is an example of the contemporary fusion of traditions of drama in Australia with Pitjantjatjara actors being supported by a multicultural cast of Greek, Afghan, Japanese and New Zealand heritage. Eminent contemporary Australian playwrights include

, Stephen Sewell (writer), Stephen Sewell, the late

and Justin Fleming. The Australian government supports a website (australianplays.or
The Home of Australian Playscripts , AustralianPlays.org
that aims to combine playwright biographies and script information. Scripts are also available there.

Science fiction and fantasy

Australia, unlike Europe, does not have a long history in the genre of science fiction. Nevil Shute's ''On the Beach (novel), On the Beach'', published in 1957, and On the Beach (1959 film), filmed in 1959, was perhaps the first notable international success. Though not born in Australia, Shute spent his latter years there, and the book was set in Australia. It might have been worse had the imports of American pulp magazines not been restricted during WWII, forcing local writers into the field. Various compilation magazines began appearing in the 1960s and the field has continued to expand into some significance. Today Australia has a thriving SF/Fantasy genre with names recognised around the world. In 2013 a trilogy by Sydney-born Ben Peek was sold at auction to a UK publisher for a six-figure deal .

Crime

The crime fiction genre is currently thriving in Australia, most notably through books written by Kerry Greenwood, Shane Maloney, Peter Temple, Barry Maitland, Arthur Upfield and Peter Corris, among others. High-profile, highly publicised court cases and murders have seen a significant amount of non-fiction crime literature, perhaps the most recognisable writer in this field being

. Garner's published accounts of three court cases: ''The First Stone'', about a sexual harassment scandal at the University of Melbourne, ''Joe Cinque's Consolation'', about a Death of Joe Cinque, young man murdered by his girlfriend in Canberra, and ''This House of Grief'', about Victorian child-killer Robert Farquharson. Each of Garner's works incorporates the style reminiscent of a fictional narrative novel, a stylistic device known as the non-fiction novel. Chloe Hooper published ''The Tall Man: Death and Life on Palm Island'' in 2008 as a response to the death of an Aboriginal man, Cameron Doomadgee, in police custody in Palm Island, Queensland.

Literary journals

The first periodical that could be called a literary journal in Australia was ''The Australian Magazine'' (June 1821 - May 1822).Lurline Stuart (1979), ''Nineteenth century Australian periodicals: an annotated bibliography'', Sydney, Hale & Iremonger, p.2 & 35. It featured poetry, a two-part story and articles on theology and general topics. Most of the others that followed in the 19th century were based in either Sydney or Melbourne. Few lasted long due to difficulties that included a lack of capital, the small local market and competition from literary journals from Britain. Most recent Australian literary journals have originated from universities, and specifically English or Communications departments. They include: * ''Meanjin'' * ''Overland (magazine), Overland'' * ''HEAT (magazine), HEAT'' * ''Southerly (journal), Southerly'' * ''Westerly (Australian literary magazine), Westerly'' Other journals include: * ''Quadrant (magazine), Quadrant'' * ''Australian Book Review'' * ''Island Magazine, Island'' * ''Voiceworks (magazine), Voiceworks'' * ''Wet Ink'' (now closed) * ''The Lifted Brow'' * ''Red Leaves / 紅葉'' * ''Kill Your Darlings (magazine), Kill Your Darlings'' A number of newspapers also carry literary review supplements: * ''Australian Literary Review''

Awards

Current literary awards in Australia include: * Anne Elder Award * The Australian/Vogel Literary Award *

* Ditmar Award Science Fiction (includes Fantasy & Horror) * Kenneth Slessor Prize for Poetry * Mary Gilmore Prize for a first book of poetry *

* New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards * Patrick White Award * Peter Blazey Fellowship * Prime Minister's Literary Awards * Queensland Premier's Literary Awards *

* Victorian Premier's Literary Award * Western Australian Premier's Book Awards Australian authors are also eligible for a number of other literary awards, such as the: *

* Commonwealth Writers' Prize * Women's Prize for Fiction

References

External links

* Th
Library of Australiana
page a
Project Gutenberg of Australia

Bibliography of Australian Literature to 1954
a
Freeread

"AustLit: The Australian Literature Resource" (2000-)

List of Australian Writers in English
{{Authority control Australian literature, English-language literature

Overview

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander writers and themes

Early and classic works

Children's literature

Expatriate authors

Other contemporary works and authors

1991–1996: Grunge lit

1998–2010s: Post-grunge lit

Australian writing in languages other than English

Histories

Writing and identity

Poetry

Plays

Science fiction and fantasy

Crime

Literary journals

Awards

See also

References

External links