More than a mere story : social and political markers in Australian short fiction of the 1980's

This thesis is a literary history which argues that much of the short fiction published in Australia during the 1980s was deeply influenced by the rapid social and political changes during that decade. My argument concentrates on links between the short stones of the period and the socio/political environment into which they were written. The decade was marked by massive changes in technology, the workplace, and in all other areas of social life. In general terms, the ideology of the 'market' predominated over notions of small 'l' liberalism and the last vestiges of state intervention in the economy. The Australian short story benefited from the social 'experiments' of the 1970s in that its concerns became broader - encompassing the onslaught of feminism, the foregrounding of 'multicultural' concerns, and a move away from the bush into the city as a primary site for narratives. The decade was a rich period for the genre. Why was there a tolerance for a new diversity, in literary terms, when the social and political environment was turning to the right? This is a central question of the thesis. I argue that instead of the 'base' determining the 'superstructure' (i.e. culture) the superstructural changes were essential to the deconstruction of the social and political landscape. This thesis contends that a relationship always exists between the 'literary' and 'the social'. I argue, among other things, that many of the short fictions were influenced by 'postmodern' theory to the extent that they became a form of traumatic note-taking, which masked a late romanticism beneath a fear of the sovereign subject. The fear of 'closure' which insinuated itself into many of the texts, besides being a form of academic corrective, was also a flight from emotional candor. I argue that storytelling was, in many cases, the loser.

Christianity and the shaping of Vanuatu’s social and political development

The Pacific island state of Vanuatu has been considerably shaped by its Christian heritage. Indeed, the role of the various Christian Churches has been pivotal in the development and sustenance of Vanuatu prior to and since its Independence. These Churches include Anglican, Catholic, Pentecostal and evangelical denominations. Missionaries and later local Church leaders were involved directly in Independence movements and shaped the legal and social infrastructure of this nation. This involvement and influence has continued to the present. This article will consider the role the Church has played in the development of Vanuatu. First, a case study analysis of both the historical and contemporary role the Church has played in the development of Vanuatu will be presented. This review will consider the impact of both key individual Church leaders who played central roles in Vanuatu’s Independence. Secondly, the paper will consider the contemporary role Christian Churches play in the provision of social service- including education and health-across Vanuatu. It will conclude that Christianity has therefore played and continues to play a central role in the political and social development of Vanuatu.

Social work research : ethical and political contexts

Written in an engaging and accessible style, this book bridges the gap between theory and reality by discussing a range of research paradigms and placing them in the context of professional social work. It also discusses the political and ethical contexts that are intrinsic to social work practice.

From Masterchef to the Arab spring via Wikileaks : social media and political change

This comparison between Bahrain and Australia shows how the main impact of social and mobile media has been in the form of facilitators of rapid political mobilization, as well as tools for everyday socializing and entertainment. Social media are both contributors to, and symptomatic of, a blurring of the boundaries between politics and entertainment, and public and private spheres, whether their users are in Australia or Bahrain, but they are not in themselves the makers of material sites of democracy or even agency.

Leadership in pursuit of purpose : social, economic and political transformation

This chapter critiques the field of educational administration and leadership from a feminist perspective,. It argues that leadership should focus on social justice and this requires wider transforantive social, economic and political  change.

Theoretical issues and political dilemmas in working with men

The aim of this chapter is to highlight some of the theoretical issues and political dilemmas involved in working with men in the human services. To develop a framework for practice with men, we have to adequately conceptualise the issues £1cing men. These are confusing and unsettling times for many men. To make sense of this confusion it is important to understand men's experiences within the context of the patriarchal structures in society and their relationship to class, race and gender regimes. Men and women who work with men in the human services should have an analysis of the social construction of masculinities and they need to understand how the forces that construct dominant masculinities embed men and women in relations of dominance and subordination that limit the potential for them to be in partnership with each other. To the extent that we ignore the social construction of masculinity,
it blocks insight into the real trouble in men's lives. Furthermore, if men do not grasp the basic notion of gender as a social construction, then feminist critiques of patriarchy, dominant masculinity and abusive male behaviours are going to be felt by men at a deeply personal level (Schwalbe 1996, pp. 187, 231).

Emotion, reason and tradition : essays on the social, poltical and economic thought of Michael Polanyi

This collection of essays demonstrates the continuing importance of the work of Michael Polanyi for the understanding, not only of the great events of the 20th century, but also of the problems that face us in the 21st century. Polanyi moved liberalism away from a negative, sceptical and rationalist basis towards an acceptance of trust, tradition and faith in transcendent values. His conception of the free society is not one merely of doing as one pleases nor vacuously 'open', but one of individual and communal self-dedication to those values and ideals.These essays, authored by a distinguished international and interdisciplinary panel of invited contributors, examine Polanyi's specific insights in the theory of knowledge, the nature and source of social order and the philosophy of economics and science and draw relevant comparisons between Polanyi and related thinkers such as Popper, Hayek and Mises. This book shows the sources of Polanyi's ideas and his distinctive contribution to philosophy generally, to social and political thought and to economics.

Catholic social thought and labouring ideals in Australia's new industrial context

This article sets out the principles of Catholic social doctrine as they pertain to the rights of employees, the duties of the employers and the obligations of the state. It relates these to the historical development of industrial work and employment in Australia, noting the close proximity of the principles to the social and political arrangements that emerged over the period of the Australian Settlement. It goes on to identify the more recent demise of Catholic activism, which, in combination with the pursuit of neo-liberal policy solutions and market reforms, has purged previous arrangements of their former notions of `fairness' and equity. It concludes that those opposing such solutions and reforms should think beyond simply framing arguments in terms of the economic or the instrumental, and might usefully draw on the labouring ideals set out in Catholic social doctrine to develop a more thorough set of moral and ethical principles to support their cause.

Arts curriculum reform : social and cultural reproduction in Victorian schools

This thesis examines the implementation of the government educational policy document The Curriculum and Standards Framework. I examined the historical and political motivation behind the development of this document and how it introduced a pervasive new initiative of outcomes based education and accountability based on economic rationalism. In particular I examined the implications this new approach had for visual arts education and the subsequent changes to the arts curriculum. This has entailed the introduction of the aesthetic appreciation of the arts as an outcome of the CSF: The Arts. I applied Bourdieu's theory of cultural reproduction in education which draws predominantly on a Weberian view and a theory of practice. Bourdieu discusses differential educational achievement according to cultural capital stating education requires certain forms of cultural capital that are not equally distributed among the classes. This therefore impedes or enhances life chances according to social class i.e. educational qualifications become a commodity in the labour market and other social fields. I examined how aesthetic appreciation of the arts has evolved historically as a form of social distinction. This entails an abstract element of arts discourse, which demands a certain linguistic competence, and familiarisation, which Bourdieu claims, is developed in the family, as 'cultural capital' this is further perpetuated in schools. The likely outcome is that the introduction of aesthetic appreciation in arts education i.e the demand to 'write about' and 'talk about' art, will perpetuate class inequality due to social and cultural difference. The study has been to examine the practices of arts education in four schools and the extent to which aesthetic appreciation was implemented in the visual arts. Data was collected by case study methods of observation, questionnaire and interview and was interpretive in both quantitative and qualitative methods. I analysed the data based on class differentiation by socioeconomic divisions and examined the school ethos and attitude towards the Arts along with differentiation in cultural capital between student population. I also found teacher and student habitus played a vital role in the implementation of the CSF. This is because habitus can cause resistance to change due to the division between the formulation of the curriculum in the bureaucratic order and the practice of teachers in classrooms. My thesis interprets education as a form of social reproduction, perpetuating the existing social order. However, as Bourdieu asserts and I agree education is a form of symbolic power as it conceals its social function under the guise of neutrality and the technical functional premise. Therefore, this thesis aims to make transparent how the education system serves the interests of the dominant group through curriculum policy. Consequently, it becomes clear how education has far reaching social implications where the distinctions of class are perpetuated through cultural reproduction.

Dream dolls : misogyny and political mythology in fin de siecle Australian culture

Examines Australian nationalism from the 1890s onwards through the interaction between cultural stereotypes of the feminine and issues of identity, citizenship and political constructions of "democracy". The employment of an idealised masculine aesthetic as catalyst to creating an imagined state was compared in Australia and Wilhelmine Germany.

What’s in a name? The personal and political meanings of 'LGBT' for non-heterosexual and transgender youth in Kyrgyzstan

In this article, we focus on the ways in which non-heterosexual and transgender youth involved with the non-governmental organization ‘Labrys’ in Kyrgyzstan have begun to demand the protection of their basic civil and human rights on the basis of self-identification as ‘LGBT’. This acronym, which stands for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender, is relatively new to Kyrgyzstan and other post-Soviet states, and represents a change in the terms used by non-heterosexual and transgender people to describe themselves. We frame our discussion using the concepts of sexual citizenship, private/public divides and stigma and base our discussion on debates amongst the staff and community of Labrys about the purpose and scope of the organization. Centrally, we suggest that the strategic use of ‘LGBT’ as a public and politicized identity represents a new, pro-active form of stigma management. By employing this strategy, young LGBT people become ‘would-be’ sexual citizens and challenge traditional societal norms that seek to keep discussion of sex and sexuality in the private sphere and restrict rights to heterosexual, cisgender citizens.

The circumstantial activist : holistic practice, learning and social activism

The 21st century has seen renewed interest in issues relating to social justice, campaigning and social change globally. This paper considers the educational nature of activists’ learning as they engage in progressive social change within and against the state. A great deal has been written on learning in the workplace in recent years, it is widely believed that adults learn throughout all of their lives and that a majority of this learning occurs in the workplace. Drawing on current research, this paper argues that learning of a similar nature takes place in the unpaid work of social and political activists, through social learning. It is argued that activists’ learning is holistic and embodied, that is, they use cognition, the emotions and the physical body to learn. This paper explores the significance of learning associated with the processes and practices of activism; learning that has only recently been recognised in Australia as ‘real’ adult education.