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'Addressing the European Parliament in Strasbourg on 8 March 1994, as he made the case for the Czech Republic’s membership in the European Union, Vaclav Havel described the deep historical entanglements that defined and created “Europe”.
Europe is a continent of extraordinary variety and diversity geographically, ethnically, nationally, culturally, economically and politically. Yet at the same time all its parts are and always have been so deeply linked by their destiny that this continent can accurately be described as a single albeit complex political entity. Anything crucial in any area of human endeavour occurring anywhere in Europe always has had both direct and indirect consequences for our continent as a whole. The history of Europe is, in fact, the history of a constant searching and reshaping of its internal structures and the relationship of its parts. Today, if we talk about a single European civilization or about common European values, history, traditions, and destiny, what we are referring to is more the fruit of this tendency toward integration than its cause.
'This interdependence of political, economic, cultural, social, ethnic, scientific and intellectual activity has always been at the heart of the continent’s history. It lies still at the heart of the present crises over Europe’s future, questioning its form of governance and indeed its very identity. Some commentators even foresee the death of “Europe”, in the face of the compounding pressures since 2015 of the Greek debt debacle, the refugee crisis, and Brexit. But what is the Europe these people hope to preserve? Is it a polity, a cultural entity, or even a state of mind? The articles in this special issue of the Australian Journal of Politics and History can be seen as a series of efforts to place this problem in its historical frame. They derive from papers delivered at the 2017 conference of the Australasian Association for European History (AAEH), held at Monash University in Melbourne, which took as its theme the concept of “Europe’s Entanglements”.2 One of the particular attractions of this biennial conference is the way it serves as a barometer of the state of historical research on Europe within Australia and New Zealand. Since 2000 selections from its papers have appeared in a special issue of the Australian Journal of Politics and History. As editors of this contribution to that series, we have sought to maintain the established practice that the selected papers should focus upon the work of emerging scholars and allow them the opportunity to publish their research in a leading journal. If these articles do not form a single, cohering answer to the problem of how to understand Europe, they each attempt to confront some aspect of the myriad interwoven elements of Europe’s past that Havel identified.' (Introduction)
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Contents indexed selectively.
Contents
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[Review] La Trobe: Traveller Writer Governor,
single work
review
(p. 501-502)
'This beautifully illustrated book pays homage to the multi‐talented, often misunderstood, first superintendent of the Port Phillip District and later lieutenant governor of the colony of Victoria during its tumultuous gold‐rush years. Charles Joseph La Trobe took up duties at Port Phillip in 1839 at the age of thirty‐eight, serving fifteen years before resigning to return to Europe. While his Victorian years provide a natural focus for Australian readers, La Trobe’s earlier and subsequent experiences all contributed to the making of his legacy; the private man moulded the sometimes unappreciated public image.' (Introduction)
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[Review] The Bible In Australia: A Cultural History,
single work
review
(p. 502-503)
'With a fluent, anecdote‐punctuated style, Meredith Lake traces the history of the Bible in Australian culture from the colonial days, through the “Great Age of the Bible”, into the formation of “nationhood” and the two World Wars, and concluding in contemporary “secular Australia”. There are few surprises in this history; the author thinks the Bible is historically significant, and that it still makes a valuable contribution in contemporary Australian culture.' (Introduction)
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[Review] Eric Bogle: Music and the Great War: “An Old Man’s Tears”,
single work
review
(p. 506-507)
'Michael Walsh has published in three different areas of art history: British (including imperial) cultural production in the first two decades of the twentieth century, especially on the Great War; medieval heritage and conservation in the post‐conflict zone of Famagusta, Cyprus; and twentieth‐century music biography, especially on protest and pacifism. It is surprising that Walsh is the first person to write a scholarly study on Eric Bogle, yet no surprise that he has done so in no ordinary way.' (Introduction)
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[Review] Incorrigible Optimist: A Political Memoir,
single work
review
(p. 511-512)
'Gareth Evans continues to be one of the more thoughtful figures in Australian public life, entering the Senate in the late 1970s and serving with distinction in both the Hawke and Keating governments, as, at various times, Attorney‐General, Minister for Resources and Energy, Minister for Transport and Communications, and Foreign Minister. He then went on to grace the international stage as head of the Brussels‐based International Crisis Group before becoming Chancellor of the Australian National University in 2010.' (Introduction)
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[Review] Writing Home: Walking, Literature and Belonging in Australia’s Red Centre,
single work
review
(p. 512-514)
'The Centre, variously understood as the Dead Heart, the Red Heart and the Never Never, has long been significant in the Australian cultural imaginary. Explorers, anthropologists, journalists and travellers have played an important role in shaping understandings of the Centre but there has been little scholarly analysis that has sought to bring together and to critique this literature. Glenn Morrison’s Writing Home: Walking, Literature and Belonging in Australia’s Red Centre, seeks to address this gap.' (Introduction)
