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AbstractHistoryArchive Description
Notes
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Dedication: To Roy De Maistre.
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Epigraph: It is impossible to do away with the law of suffering, which is the one indispensable condition of our being. Progress is to be measured by the amount of suffering undergone ... the purer the suffering, the greater is the progress. - Mahatma Gandhi.
Contents
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'A Hell of a Calling Card' : Patrick White's Jackeroo Epic Is Finally Reissued,
single work
criticism
Peter Craven concludes his introduction to Patrick White's Happy Valley by saying that the novel 'is a book we need to rediscover. It gives us White as a fledgling novelist, as fresh and wonderstruck and full of a desire to recreate the world as ever Australia was blessed with.'
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Other Formats
- Braille.
- Sound recording.
- Large print.
Works about this Work
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The Passions of the Broken-Hearted
2020
single work
essay
— Appears in: Meanjin , Spring vol. 79 no. 3 2020;'Happy Valley, Patrick White’s brooding, dystopic portrayal of small-town life in the high country of New South Wales, builds to a crisis: a shocking spousal homicide. A bored woman, saddled with a dull, sickly mate, takes up with a virile overseer and she pays a fearful price for her infidelity when her husband explodes in rage. The future Nobel Prize–winning author drew on his experience working as a jackaroo in the region to evoke the setting and characters of his first novel. But the plot twist was true to life, then as now, when intimacy and violence, desire and despair, intertwine.' (Introduction)
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The Boredom and Futility of War in Patrick White's Fiction
2016
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Le Simplegadi , April no. 15 2016; (p. 65-73) This article investigates the representation of war in terms of uselessness and waste in the fiction of Patrick White, with a particular emphasis on the short story “After Alep”, written in 1945 when the writer was enrolled in the RAF as an Intelligence Officer. By analysing the story in the light of White’s approach to the war as to “the most horrifying and wasteful period” of his life (Marr 1992: 493), the article attempts to demonstrate how the narrative devices used by White contribute to demythologize the rhetoric of the war and of war heroes in a way that may be instrumental in conveying a message of peace out of the ultimate sense of futility transmitted by any war. -
Patrick White, Composer Manqué : The Centrality of Music in White's Artistic Aspiration
2015
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Antipodes , June vol. 29 no. 1 2015; (p. 153-161) 'Australian writer Patrick White was burdened with the reputation of a misanthrope. This was, perhaps, self-inflicted but it allowed many to disregard the sensitivity and insights of his writing. It is nevertheless surprising that most critics and readers seem unaware of his deep engagement with music. Certainly, few (if any) literary critics appear to recognize the significance of music in his output. Here, Carmody contends that not only was music profoundly important to White as a human being, but that it fundamentally drove his work. Without a recognition of this crucial importance of music, it is impossible to understand adequately White's aesthetic aspiration.' (Publication abstract) -
Lists! Lists!
2014
single work
review
— Appears in: SF Commentary : The Independent Magazine About Science Fiction , April no. 87 2014; (p. 46-51)
— Review of Happy Valley : A Novel 1939 single work novel ; Nine Days 2012 single work novel -
The Shift from Commonwealth to Postcolonial Literatures: Patrick White’s “The Twitching Colonel” and Manuka Wijesinghe’s Theravada Man
2014
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Patrick White Centenary : The Legacy of a Prodigal Son 2014; (p. 302-318) Isabel Alonso-Breto whose comparison of The Twyborn Affair 'to that of a Sri Lankan writer juxtaposes the postcolonial rebellion of the retired British colonel and that of the seemingly obediently colonised schoolteacher. The daringly experimental nature of this contribution underlines the celebratory aspect of this collection and indicates the chameleon-like possibilities of the White text, its continuing capacity for growth and its openness to varied possibilities of interpretation.' (Introduction xx)
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[Review] Happy Valley
1939
single work
review
— Appears in: The North Queensland Register , 1 April 1939; (p. 59)
— Review of Happy Valley : A Novel 1939 single work novel -
[Review] Happy Valley
1939
single work
review
— Appears in: Desiderata , February no. 39 1939; (p. 15)
— Review of Happy Valley : A Novel 1939 single work novel -
First Tones of White
2012
single work
review
— Appears in: The Saturday Age , 25 August 2012; (p. 24) The Sydney Morning Herald , 25-26 August 2012; (p. 30-31)
— Review of Happy Valley : A Novel 1939 single work novel -
Out of the Wilderness
2012
single work
review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 1-2 September 2012; (p. 18-19)
— Review of Happy Valley : A Novel 1939 single work novel -
Rediscovering White Country
2012
single work
review
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 8 September 2012; (p. 21)
— Review of Happy Valley : A Novel 1939 single work novel -
Patrick White: An International Perspective
1991
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Breaking Circles 1991; (p. 182-196) -
The Place of Happy Valley in the Novels of Patrick White
1974
single work
criticism
— Appears in: ACLALS Bulletin 1974; (p. 17-27) -
Back to the Abyss : Patrick White's Early Novels
1987
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Southerly , December vol. 47 no. 4 1987; (p. 347-369) -
Undercover
2007
single work
column
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 18-19 August 2007; (p. 30) -
The Influence of French Literature on Patrick White's 'The Living and the Dead'
1984
single work
criticism
— Appears in: The French-Australian Cultural Connection : Papers from a Symposium Held at the University of New South Wales, 16-17 September 1983 1984; (p. 148-159)
Awards
- 1941 winner ASAL Awards — ALS Gold Medal
- Country towns,
- New South Wales,