The University of Sydney: Sydney eScholarship Journals online
Not a member yet
10041 research outputs found
Sort by
Strange Works: A Review of Linda Weste, The Verse Novel: Australia & New Zealand. Australian Scholarly Publishing, North Melbourne, 2022. 182 pages. AU $44 ISBN: 9781922669230; ISBN10: 1922669237
No full textPhilip Mead reviews Linda Westes' The Verse Novel: Australia & New Zealand (2022)
From the Editor
Get PDFWelcome to the 6th Volume, 1st Issue of Health Education in Practice: Journal of Research for Professional Learning. We have a very interesting series of articles in this volume
Lexical structure in The Battle of Maldon
Get PDFThe poem known as The Battle of Maldon tells in circumstantial detail the story of one of the many English defeats at the hands of the Northmen during the long and ill-starred reign of Aethelred. Though the poem is not without its moments of clumsiness,and bathos lines 5 and 6 and line 325 spring to mind, as do the awkward jingles of lines 271, 282, and 2991 - the episode it describes has all the power of classic tragedy as it moves from the fatal self-confidence of Byrhtnoth to his death, the breaking of the English ranks in the following confusion, and the final unforgettable enunciation of the heroic values by Byrhtwold, the old and hardened warrior steadfast in the face of the inevitable. But what, finally, is the poem about? If the battle is its topos, what is its purpose? It does not seem appropriate as a memorial piece for Byrhtnoth: there is no encomium on the fallen leader, though undoubtedly his followers hold him in high esteem. If it is a celebration of heroism and the heroic values it is a deeply ironical one - generosity and honour seem to lead to collective and individual disaster. There is no sign here of the give and take that is so affecting in the story of Cynewulf and Cyneheard; here a society is confronted with treachery within and savagery without and crumbles before them. Again, the poem is not a Christian one in the sense that as a whole it dramatizes a religious message: it is not overtly an exemplum. Although the contrast is drawn between Byrhtnoth in prayer for his soul (11. 173-80) and the hapene scealcas (l. 181 ), the English never claim to be fighting for christendom, but for their king and their land
Merlin: Ambrosius and Silvester
Get PDFIn speaking of the ancient seer known to us as Merlin, Giraldus Cambrensis distinguishes two separate prophetic characters, each with a different name: 'iste qui et Ambrosius dictus est' ('the one who was also called Ambrosius'), begotten by an incubus and prophesying in the time of King Vortigern; the other coming from Scotland, 'qui et Celidonius dictus est' ('who was called both Celidonius') from the Caledonian Forest in which he prophesied, 'et Silvester' ('and Silvester') because in battle he perceived a fearsome monster, became demented, and, fleeing to the forest, 'silvestrem usque ad obitum vitam perduxit' ('lived out the rest of his life as a man of the woods'). This second Merlin is placed by Giraldus in the time of King Arthur! For the prophecies of his character Merlin Ambrosius, Giraldus sometimes draws on Geoffrey of Monmouth's Historia Regum Britanniae, although he ignores the prophecies presented in Geoffrey's later Vita Merlini. In the earlier of these two works, Merlin (Ambrosius) has the role of prophet. He enters the text in the time of Vortigern, but disappears from it after the time of the birth of Arthur. In the later work, Merlin's character is very much altered: here he is a wild man, living intermittently in the Caledonian Forest, though also a soothsayer who has knowledge of events from the time of King Vortigem, through the time of Arthur, and up to the time of Conan (pp. 88-96). The name 'merlinus siluestris. siue caledonis' ('Merlin Silvester, or Caledonis') forms part of the heading of one manuscript of the poem;4 but nowhere is it suggested that the character of this text is separate from the Merlin portrayed in the Historia Regum
Acacia pendula (Fabaceae: Mimosoideae) in the Hunter Valley of New South Wales: Cunningham’s collection from April 1825 and its implications
Get PDFPrevious debate on the status of Acacia pendula A.Cunn. (Fabaceae: Mimosoideae) in the natural flora ofthe Hunter region of New South Wales remains unresolved. However, the discovery of a journal entry and aspecimen of Acacia pendula collected from ‘Hunter’s River’ by Allan Cunningham in April 1825 potentiallyprovide evidence for its long-term presence there. Close examination of a scan of this specimen reveals a poormatch to the lectotype for this species, and its infertile nature means that it cannot be positively identifiedusing taxonomic keys. Rediscovery of a small group of Acacia ‘pendula’ plants near to where Cunninghamtravelled in 1825 confirms the sterile and root-suckering habit of the species which is consistent with thosegrowing elsewhere in the region. Despite this find, Cunningham’s journal entry and collection provide noconfirmation that Acacia pendula naturally occurred extensively in the region (although it may have beenvery rare) but could suggest either that he had located one of the first introduced stands of the species in theregion (through indigenous people or European settlers), or that these sterile root-suckering plants representa currently un-named taxon or un-recognised hybrid. Final resolution of Hunter Valley populations of Acaciapendula s. lat. may only be attained through genetic studies
Writing with the Australian Archive: Digital Posthuman Approaches to Australian Literature
Get PDFNon-Traditional Research Output (NTRO) Statement of Intent
Research BackgroundThis practice-led research was written as part of a broader project into digital literary creative practice. This project explores the process of creating digital-born literature, i.e. works that depend on a computer to exist. It uses Italo Calvino’s Six memos for the Next Millennium as a means to produce digital literary works that renegotiate text and images through recombinant poetics.
Research ContributionBuilding upon Natalie Harkin’s concept of archival-poetics, this work employs digital literary techniques to interrogate and navigate the Australian archive. The ‘icastic’ image of the camel is used to lighten and quickly navigate the posthuman weight of the archive. Following text-image practitioners such as W.G. Sebald and Ross Gibson, the initial ‘static’ work is reimagined using curatorial software, augmented reality, and recombinant poetics. This makes a contribution to both Australian archival studies and Australia digital literary practice.
Research SignificanceThe significance of this work is its use of the icastic image as a prismatic symbol to navigate the posthuman weight of the archive. If the archive is both problematic and posthuman, then such creative research techniques are requisite. Traditional scholarly approaches are limited, so the implementation of creative practice that employs Calvino’s values and digital technologies are necessary to interrogate the archive and address the ‘grave consequences’ (Derrida’s proviso) that result from challenging the processes by which the archive has been established