Made in England: Australia's British Inheritance - Quarterly Essay Issue 12

David Malouf
(Black Inc.) $12.95 PB

For those not familiar with the Quarterly Essay periodical, it's a Melbourne invention, designed as a forum for 'political, intellectual and cultural debate'. In this latest issue, David Malouf renders his thoughts on Australia's ties to Britain: how they originated, how they have affected this country and if they will ever be severed. As a novelist Mr. Malouf is obviously acclaimed, but an essay that's part of a national debate requires a different kind of creativity and contemplation. In accepting this challenge Mr Malouf had to address not only the requirements of a new medium, but a fairly hefty topic too: the shape of this country - past, present and future.

The standard format for a Quarterly Essay combines a brief introduction outlining the issue and the main contentions to be presented, followed by the essay itself, followed by a handful of correspondence in response to the previous issue. Well, actually, before the introduction, there's a handy little dissertation outlining the base aims of the periodical. The crux of this describes the desirable range of an essay: it should be more than a newspaper column, less than a specialised study, and accessible to the broadest possible readership. Amusingly, it also describes its aims towards a certain kind of readership, to a 'committed general reader'. My own hopes (disregarding for the moment whether or not I fit that bill) would be to discover subjective, analytical, imaginative essays, filled with ideas.

Malouf begins his piece inside a vault, revelling in the world's largest collection of 'Shakespeariana' (it's in Washington D.C., by the way). He allots a great deal of credit to the writer, not only for his impact upon the English language, but also for his mark upon English-speaking culture. From these opening sentences Mr Malouf shows himself to be a fine exponent of the tools Shakespeare used and crafted. His writing is eloquent and finely tuned, while communicating quickly and practically. Throughout the essay he flows effortlessly between his personal reflections and swatches of informed history and anecdote.

With the style of the work so pleasurable, it would be quite easy to just read through Made in England as though reading a novel. Mr Malouf writes ably on pudding, on metaphor, on the First Fleet, on Australia's involvement in war; there is a particularly lovely passage (on page 56) about Australia's response to the threat of invasion in World War II. He uses childhood reminiscences as examples of things and times that have stood this country in good stead; parts of the process of change; foundations that we should not falter in recognising. I've no doubt these sentiments would speak loudly to Mr. Malouf's contemporaries. But as a debate, there was not much in it for me, for my generation. I would have preferred he spend a lot more time looking forward than looking back. The sections of the essay where he does talk about Australia's current culture and identity, our triangular relationship with Britain and America, and the republic debate are brief, but far more stimulating.

Mr Malouf also does a rather neat job of almost entirely excluding Aboriginal Australia. In fact, the first time the Aborigines are encountered in this telling, it's in the paintings of Russel Drysdale. As much as this essay is one man's ideas on the topic of British settlement in Australia, it is also about our national identity, and on this score I find Mr Malouf all too eager to forgive and forget. It's demonstrative of an essay that, overall, is rather mild, and rather polite. As the starting point for a debate, I would have liked a bit more throwing caution to the wind, a bit more dreaming, a lot more ideas. Save the elegant recollections for memoirs.

Now, if I'm going to be that judgmental it's only right that I get back that question about me, the audience. Am I, or am I not, a 'committed general reader'? To be honest, I'm not sure what that means, which suggests that I'm possibly not one. On those grounds, I've no real right to give my five cents worth (hmm.... I'm almost sure that used to be 'five shillings'). I guess I'm just taking an opportunity while it's open to me, and maybe that's something this country, and its people, could do more of.

Review by Leah Muddle