Meanjin Vol 81, No 4

‘Australia Where’ is the coverline for the December 2022 edition of Meanjin, Jonathan Green’s last as editor. Various essays in this edition address elements of national character and direction.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 224 pages
Publication date: 01 December 2022
Publisher: Melbourne University Press

Australia is the coverline for the December 2022 edition of Meanjin, Jonathan Green's last as editor. Various essays in this edition address elements of national character and direction. Historian Mark McKenna's "Australia in Four Referendums" looks at the recent sweep of referendum history since the momentous 1967 vote: "In 1999, we effectively told our First Nations people that addressing the republic was more important, more urgent, and potentially more nation-defining than their exclusion from the constitution. It has taken twenty-three years to see how wrong that decision was, and how it reflected a deeply ingrained colonial mentality from which we are still struggling to emerge today." Darumbal/South Sea islander writer Amy McQuire writes on "The Act of Disappearing": "We do not know how many Aboriginal women have gone missing in this country... To understand the violence of silence and silencing, we must first understand what has been silenced. And to understand, we must first listen to the families of women who have disappeared, and most critically, listen to Aboriginal women. We must do so by remembering that the acts that have been perpetrated against them do not define them." Waanyi writer Alexis Wright considers how her ancient culture has responded to ongoing destruction and how to bear witness to the creation of a post-apocalyptic world. Plus: Guy Rundle on the Australian Labor Party's right turn, Paul Daley on the enduring whiteness of our founding military mythology, Scott Stephens on the choked breath of public discourse, Mark Kenny on the possibility of a progressive patriotism, Bruce Pascoe wonders when Australia can become herself, Bernard Keane makes the case for governance, Tim Hollo argues we won't know what happened, and more.

Weight: 488g
Dimension: 255 x 181 x 14 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780522878523