AustLit

'Australia and Chile both constitute large and extremely diverse environments, with ecosystems ranging from some of the driest to some of the wettest in the world. They are also relatively isolated: Australia is, of course, an island, while Chile is bordered by dramatic mountain ranges and coastlines. Nevertheless, their common geological heritage means that they share a surprising number of species of flora. They also share histories of colonization by European powers. This essay will involve a discussion of four poets and their relationships to these two colonized landscapes: Butcher Joe Nangan and Judith Wright from Australia, and Pablo Neruda and Paulo Huirimilla from Chile. What brings these poets together into this discussion is how their work raises questions about the relationship between poetry and colonized ecologies... '(Author's abstract p. 143)