Australian Literary Studies

Author: Hu Wenzhong
Publisher:
Publication Date: 1998-10-01
Features: From 1979 to 1981, I studied Australian literature for two years at the University of Sydney, and from then on, I developed an inseparable bond with it. From 1980 to 1994, I published a series of articles in literary journals and academic conferences, most of which were published domestically, with some appearing in foreign magazines. From the content perspective, they can be divided into four categories: one is criticism of Australian literature, another is interviews with writers, another is book reviews, and the last is discussions on the teaching of Australian literature and preliminary research on the translation of Australian literature. Due to my preference, the main part consists of critiques of novels and plays, with very few critiques of poetry. In reality, Australia has many outstanding poets and works worth introducing. In the critiques, numerous writers are mentioned, some only briefly, while about half of the content is dedicated to Patrick White himself and his works. This is partly because I have a greater interest in White's works and have had some interaction with him, but more importantly, White holds a pivotal position in the development of Australian literature. In his novels and plays, he combined modernist techniques with Australia's unique environment, creating a new era. This is what people call the "White Era." It was precisely due to the efforts of White and other writers that the Australian literary scene became vibrant. When compiling the articles into a collection, no substantial changes were made, only minor corrections to individual words and standardized translations. Some facts may no longer be accurate today (e.g., the number of works by a certain writer), but no changes were made to remain faithful to the context in which the articles were written. Since the articles were written over a span of more than ten years, my views on the same writer or work have also evolved, and these differences have been retained in the collection. Domestic research on Australian literature has advanced rapidly, yielding abundant results. In addition to translated works, collections of critiques have also begun to appear. I hope to share my humble work with my peers.