Preface; Introduction; Part One: Travellers; 1. The Explorer-Hero; 2. The Antihero; 3. The Initiate; 4. The Stoic Survivor; 5. The Father-Pilgrim; 6. The Brownfella; Part Two: Views; 7. An Australian Monomyth?; 8. Internalising the Outback; 9. Obstacles and Helpers; 10. Dark Places; 11. The Empty Centre; 12. The Spiritual Desert; Conclusion; Coda; Bibliography; Filmography; Notes; Index of Names
Summary
What is it about the Australian outback? For nearly two centuries, narratives of outback journeys have been suffused with the aura of death. Why? It is not just that the desert is big, dry, hot and apparently empty. The outback is Australia's "mythological crucible," and journeys there have become rites of passage. It is where settler Australians go to die and perhaps be reborn. This book explores the landscape of this evolving national mythology. It argues that a more conscious engagement with the process of symbolic death and rebirth is needed for Australians to enter into a deeper understan
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references and index
Notes
Online resource; title from PDF title page (EBSCO, viewed March 9, 2017)
