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Colonial and post-colonial aspects of Australian identity
Citation
Tranter, BK and Donoghue, J, Colonial and post-colonial aspects of Australian identity, British Journal of Sociology, 58, (2) pp. 165-183. ISSN 0007-1315 (2007) [Refereed Article]
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Copyright Statement
The definitive published version is available online at: http://interscience.wiley.com
DOI: doi:10.1111/j.1468-4446.2007.00146.x
Abstract
Since the 1988 Bicentennial and the 2001 centenary of federation celebrations
colonial images have flourished inAustralia, highlighting the roles of convicts and
free settlers during early colonization. Old sites, such as Port Arthur have been
re-invigorated, and in 2004 Tasmanians celebrated the bicentenary of ‘white’
settlement. However, social scientists have given little attention to the role of
colonial and post-colonial figures and myths as aspects of Australian national
identity. We seek to address this issue by examining how convicts, free settlers,
bushrangers and ANZACs are associated with contemporary identity in
Australia.2
We examine evidence from the 2003Australian Survey of Social Attitudes and find
that historical figures such as the ANZACs and post-World War II immigrants
comprise important aspects of national identity.A substantial majority of Australians
judged ANZACs to be important, countering recent claims of the ‘demise of
the digger’. Sporting heroes are also at the core of Australian identity. Colonial
figures appear to be far less important, although views on national identity vary
according to social location. In particular, left-wing, university educated, younger,
postmaterialistAustralians view convicts and bushrangers as relatively important,
indicating the salience of the larrikin in Australian identity.
Item Details
| Item Type: | Refereed Article |
|---|---|
| Keywords: | Australia; identity; convicts; ANZACs; sporting heroes |
| Research Division: | Studies in Human Society |
| Research Group: | Sociology |
| Research Field: | Sociology not elsewhere classified |
| Objective Division: | Law, Politics and Community Services |
| Objective Group: | Community Service (excl. Work) |
| Objective Field: | Citizenship and National Identity |
| Author: | Tranter, BK (Professor Bruce Tranter) |
| Author: | Donoghue, J (Dr Jed Donoghue) |
| ID Code: | 44256 |
| Year Published: | 2007 |
| Web of Science® Times Cited: | 13 |
| Deposited By: | Sociology and Social Work |
| Deposited On: | 2007-08-01 |
| Last Modified: | 2010-06-01 |
| Downloads: | 3 View Download Statistics |
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