AustLit

'I need to explain first how I come to be contributing a Paper to a collection of studies on the work of the Australian literary giant Patrick White; although I am no specialist in the field of literature. A few years ago, while I was still teaching at Kurongkurl Katitjin at Edith Cowan University, a colleague working in the field of literature launched her book on White's construction of the Indigenous characters in his works, a portrayal which respected their human dignity. This was a radical departure from earlier Orientalist representations which had dominated Australian writing for decades. (vanden Driesen 2009) The book presented White's work as making a contribution to white Australians' perception of the importance of dealing rightly with the nation's indigenous peoples.' (Introduction)