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AbstractHistoryArchive Description
Notes
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Dedication: For E. W.
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Other Formats
- Also braille, sound recording.
Works about this Work
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y
Mother What Art Thou? : A Study of the Depiction of Mother Figures in Recent Australian and New Zealand Fiction for Teenagers
Perth
:
2003
18159916
2003
single work
thesis
'This thesis is a study of the representations of mothers and mother figures as found in five contemporary (published between 1984 and 1999) novels for teenagers. The focus is on western constructions of motherhood, as both normalising and universalising discourses. Utilising a variety of critical approaches this thesis examines the socio-cultural issues present in the novels in conjunction with western models of maternity. This study argues the category of mother is interdependent upon the category of child. As children's literature often focuses on the development of the child, the mother figures are often read as the “unconscious” of the texts. I examine the extent to which the mother figures are given a "subject-in-processness" (Lucas, 1998, p.39) subjectivity. The texts considered are The Changeover (First published in 1984) by Margaret Mahy; Greylands (1997) by lsobelle Carmody; Speaking to Miranda (First published in 1990) by Caroline Macdonald: Touching earth lightly (1996) by Margo Lanagan and Closed, Stranger (1999) by Kate De Goldi. In part, the selection of the texts has been based upon the various and multifaceted relationships between the mothers and the children. I use the Mahy text as a means to establish selected mother and, to a lesser degree, child characteristics. Some comparisons are made with this sole text of the 19805, in order to ascertain if there has been an evolution in the articulation of mother, figures in the 1990s. This study does not adopt a survey approach nor does it claim that the five novels present all the categories of "mother". Rather it addresses categories such as, mother as nurturer, as sexual being and, importantly, the dichotomy of the “good/bad" mother. Within western discourses of maternity, this latter category is still used as a model by which to label women who mother. This study considers the stability of this binary within the novels. This thesis relies upon close reading of the primary texts. The emphasis is on critical approaches that draw attention to contexts, with particular emphasis on the socio-cultural issues present in each particular novel. My readings suggest that there is the possibility for engagement with the texts' social content/comment, in conjunction with the representations of western models of maternity. I draw from a variety of motherhood discourses and theoretical approaches, including amongst others, the work of Luce Irigaray, HeIene Cixous, Judith Hennan, Martha Fineman, Rose Lucas, and Robyn McCallum.'
Source: Abstract.
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Representations of Mothers and Mothering in Contemporary Australian Children's Literature
1997
single work
criticism
— Appears in: La Trobe Library Journal , Spring no. 60 1997; (p. 97-107) -
Caroline Macdonald : 'Future to Present'
1997
single work
criticism
— Appears in: The Adolescent Novel : Australian Perspectives 1997; (p. 165-172) -
Other Selves: Subjectivity and the 'Doppelganger' in Australian Adolescent Fiction
1996
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Writing the Australian Child : Texts and Contexts in Fictions for Children 1996; (p. 17-36) -
The People: Family Life Versus Individualism
1995
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Australian Children's Literature : An Exploration of Genre and Theme 1995; (p. 121-136)
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Untitled
1991
single work
review
— Appears in: Magpies : Talking About Books for Children , May vol. 6 no. 2 1991; (p. 33)
— Review of Speaking to Miranda 1990 single work novel -
Kids Don't Need More Old Hat
1991
single work
review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 20-21 July 1991; (p. 4)
— Review of Hector and Maggie 1990 single work picture book ; Magic Beach 1990 single work picture book ; Strange Objects 1990 single work novel ; The Farseekers 1990 single work novel ; Captain Deadlight's Treasure 1990 single work children's fiction ; Jeremy's Tail : A Story 1990 single work picture book ; Hero 1990 single work novel ; First at Last : And Other Stories 1990 selected work children's fiction ; Greetings from Sandy Beach 1990 single work picture book ; Speaking to Miranda 1990 single work novel ; Boris and Borsch 1990 single work picture book -
Forecasts
1990
single work
review
— Appears in: Australian Bookseller & Publisher , September vol. 70 no. 1008 1990; (p. 36,38)
— Review of Speaking to Miranda 1990 single work novel -
Slowly Unfolding Secret
1991
single work
review
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 19 January 1991; (p. B6)
— Review of Speaking to Miranda 1990 single work novel -
Carved Up With a Keen Sense of the Absurd
1991
single work
review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 2 February 1991; (p. 41)
— Review of Speaking to Miranda 1990 single work novel ; In this House 1990 selected work short story -
Representations of Mothers and Mothering in Contemporary Australian Children's Literature
1997
single work
criticism
— Appears in: La Trobe Library Journal , Spring no. 60 1997; (p. 97-107) -
Other Selves: Subjectivity and the 'Doppelganger' in Australian Adolescent Fiction
1996
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Writing the Australian Child : Texts and Contexts in Fictions for Children 1996; (p. 17-36) -
Caroline Macdonald : 'Future to Present'
1997
single work
criticism
— Appears in: The Adolescent Novel : Australian Perspectives 1997; (p. 165-172) -
The People: Family Life Versus Individualism
1995
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Australian Children's Literature : An Exploration of Genre and Theme 1995; (p. 121-136) -
[In]quest of the Subject: The Dialogic Construction of Subjectivity in Caroline Macdonald's 'Speaking to Miranda'
1992
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Papers : Explorations into Children's Literature , [December] vol. 3 no. 3 1992; (p. 99-105) McCallum examines "the narrative strategies used by Macdonald [in Speaking to Miranda] to represent the complex processes through which subjectivity is constructed out of a range of appropriated discourses, images, voices, memories and desires".
Awards
- 1991 commended Australian Family Therapists' Award for Children's Literature
- 1991 third Children's Book Awards (NZ)
- 1991 shortlisted CBCA Book of the Year Awards — Book of the Year: Older Readers
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cNew Zealand,cPacific Region,
- Melbourne, Victoria,
- Sydney, New South Wales,
- Darwin, Darwin area, Northern Territory,