AustLit

'Torres Strait Islander South resettlement belongs to the sap/bethey story of Ailan (Island) pipel (people). The sap/bethey story is the story of our people’s travel away from their Ged (homeland) of Zenadth Kes and resettled on Ladaigal (Aboriginal) Country, the Country of Au ged buai (Aboriginal people ). Although Ged is an Eastern Island language word, its meaning is for ‘all’ Ailan pipel as with the meaning of Zenadth Kes, the Story of Gelam in Chapter III, and Tagai in Chapter VI of this thesis. The term migration and associated words have been used in the study of the movement of our people from Zenadth Kes to mainland Australia (Beckett; Shnukal).

'Although this research is part of a migration study, the migration term will be used sparingly in this thesis because the term is culturally inappropriate, hence, the “migration myth.” The word migration and associated words will only be used in direct reference to the academic study of migration and in reference to the ‘migration myth.’ Ailan cultural terms are used to culturally reinforce the story, to enhance and enrich the documented experiences of our people and to expose the migration as a myth.

'To provide a culturally appropriate story, the movement of our people from Zenadth Kes to Ladaigal Country cannot be explained as “migration”, including the reference of related words and concepts. Some Kole words will be substituted for Ailan language and Torres Strait Creole terms. The thesis approach is to allow the reader access into a privilege space and story, through sharing, participation, and gradual cultural immersion. The first two chapters are introduction to the cultural immersion, sharing and participation. The word “myth” explains a natural or social phenomenon (social reality) of my people in Zenadth Kes.

'The myth of migration is our reality, and I am explaining the reality of it through my cultural lens and the South story of the sap/bethey. I talked about our cultural and social realities (in topics and statements throughout my chapters) of what is considered an overlap in understanding, between fiction and non-fiction. My cultural reference to myth is relevant to and part of that meaningful discussion. All seven story chapters are the Ailan cultural story of the journey of the sap (driftwood) lubabat (totem). The sap is one of my lubabat. The Meriam Mir (MM) word ‘sap’ or the Kala Lagaw Ya (KLY) term ‘bethey’ reinforces concepts of travelling away from home temporarily. The story of the sap/bethey does not arrive at the destination. Therefore, the drifting concept of the sap/bethey describes our South status. The focus of the thesis story is not on the resettlement, but on leaving Ged and traveling away from it. The resettlement on Ladaigal Country is the metaphor of the drifting of the sap/bethey, with no destination in the drifting. There are many stories of mainland resettlements from different experiences, situations, and circumstances of Ailan individuals and families who moved down South. Leaving home and travelling away, is the story of the Ailan individual, a single story, the story of a boy who left home. All Ailan pipel have only one home, Zenadth Kes. This Ailan South sap/bethey story is told through the cultural lens of the traveller storyteller, the Ailan South ‘buai’ (people). Primary and secondary sources are combined, reinforcing the Ailan cultural accounts and experiences using an Indigenous research paradigm, Indigenous ontology, epistemology, methodology, and axiology. The research is conducted from an Indigenous perspective.

'The Preface and Introduction chapter identifies who Ailan pipel are and where they come from. Chapter II Dato’s Story is the story of the impact of changes to Ailan pipel, culture and society. The reader is invited in a culturally appropriate way. Chapter III is the story of Gelam. Gelam’s Story localizes the movement down South to the unique situations and experiences of Ailan pipel drawing on cultural concepts, philosophies and reasonings. Gelam’s story highlights the cultural meaning of home through our Ged relationships. Chapter IV Elder’s Story is the story of our Old people, our Elders who are respected and have been at the forefront of every movement of our people and society, pre-and-post contact. Chapter V Voices of Ged Story highlights the strong Ailan cultural practice which gives us our identity, our strong sense of belonging and of who we are and have been. It is also about an acknowledgement of messages in sounds which through the communication process, are voices, speaking to us or for us. Chapter VI Mir Kak Story (story of silence) is a story about important living aspects and experiences of our Ailan knowledge systems. It is about the unspoken parts of our oral culture, its secret and secretive practices. Cultural constructs within the story of Gelam and ‘Tagai’ (the stars) is utilized to support moral and ethical cultural arguments, concepts, and reasoning. Chapter VII is the concluding Sap story. The sap is the lubabat (totem) of the Meriam people of Zenadth Kes. The metaphor of the sap/bethey is the story of Ailan South travel. Just as the travel began from the Torres Strait, it is the starting point where the sap drifted from. The resettlement and ‘South people’ status of Ailan pipel is the drifting metaphor of the sap because our people are on Ladaigal Country. Besides stating the obvious of “drifting” in Ladaigal Country, the use of the term “migrant” will not provide clarity in the myth of Ailan migration and our South resettlement status. Perhaps to help the reader understand our Indigenous world, I liken our Ailan mainland resettlement status as that of ‘expatriates’ rather than ‘migrants’ since we left our Ged and have resettled on Ladaigal Country. This is the sap/bethey story and the Ailan migration myth.'

Source: University of Newcastle Thesis Description.

'Creativity is a uniquely human trait. However its ubiquity does not mean it is simple to understand. Various investigations into the nature of creativity have focused on an individual’s biology or psychology, or studied the surrounding society and culture in an attempt to pinpoint creative action. These types of studies, while they have their merit, have tended to focus only on one part of the phenomenon at the expense of the others. Instead, as current research suggests, a more valuable explanation of creativity is one that encompasses multiple factors in a system of mutual influence. It is argued that Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi’s systems model of creativity (1988, 1996, 1999) along with Pierre Bourdieu’s discussion of cultural production (1977, 1993, 1996) as examples of confluence approaches provide the best theoretical foundation to examine the complexity of creativity, as they both consider personal influences in conjunction with broader social and cultural contexts. All three of these components, a domain of cultural knowledge, a social field of experts, and individual creators can be identified within the sphere of Australian children’s picture books. Analysis of the data collected examined the connections between these three components to reveal the underlying systemic nature of creativity in Australian children’s picture books. This research employed case study methodology to examine the work processes of and interactions between key producers of Australian children’s picture books. Of the 20 people interviewed, 18 had written or illustrated a picture book. These authors and illustrators provide a broad sample from the population with some at the beginning of their careers producing only a handful of books while others produced more than 60 books over multiple decades. Additionally, a number of these authors and illustrators have worked in other production roles as editors, publishers, and booksellers so they were also able to speak to the function these intermediaries performed within the field. To support the interviews conducted with these participants, various modes of observation were used along with document and artefact analysis. The data gathered through these methods has demonstrated that there is a dynamic relationship constantly evolving between individual producers and the social and cultural structures they exist and work within. This research has concluded then, that rather than being the product of a singular individual, Australian children’s picture books are produced within a complex relation of systemic elements. Producers, often authors and illustrators, work as individuals by drawing upon their respective backgrounds to engage with a domain of knowledge that pre-exists them as well as engaging with a unique social structure consisting of all the cultural intermediaries (such as editors, publishers, and audiences) who regulate that knowledge, in order to produce a novel product. Understanding this complex system is the key to enhancing the abilities of cultural producers and increasing the cultural productivity of both individuals and society.'

Source: Abstract.

Popular Entertainment Studies is a peer-reviewed, inter-disciplinary eJournal dedicated to the exploration of all aspects of popular entertainment. Its aim is to stimulate international debate and the exchange of ideas in a field whose meaning and definition remain widely contested. Indeed, the field still retains pejorative connotations that are at odds with its transnational significance. It has suffered from scholarly neglect, possibly because the field's very ephemerality makes documentation and analysis extremely difficult. The journal is set up to address these issues and invites contributions from scholars and practitioners with interests in the history of popular theatre forms, performance studies, the moving image, fine arts, music, health, psychology, economics and cultural studies.

'Hope carries her heavy backpack to school every day. What does she have in there? What makes her strong? What will she do now that Jetpack Day has arrived? (Source: Publisher's site)

Run by post-graduate students for post-graduate students, 'SWAMP is here to circulate the best and the brightest of post graduate creative writing.' -- from SWAMP Issue 1.

'SWAMP is to discover what lurks in the murky waters of postgraduate Creative Writing workshops the world over, and share the words with one and all.' -- Libraries Australia

Includes works by both Australian and overseas postgraduate writers.

'This study examines the origins and early development of organised Aboriginal political activism of the twentieth century. The importance of the study has two aspects; it reveals a significant but missing chapter in the history of this continent and it is fundamental in understanding the flaws in the imperial metaphor of historical discourse. The historical evaluation of the Australian Aboriginal Progressive Association contained in this thesis is of critical importance to the revision of Australian Aboriginal history. Within that construct, it is intended to critique the nature of history. Why and how is it constructed? History in the Western sense is fundamentally about power and control. The research process of this study will examine the constructed Aboriginal place in history. Throughout the course of this study the methods used for the research process will be under continual review. The questions will be raised: Is there a tangible Aboriginal research methodology? If so, what are the guidelines in such an approach?'

Source: Thesis synopsis.