Russel Ward: The Australian Legend

“That’s not a knife, that’s a knife” is arguably one the most iconic Australian movie quotes and has become a symbol connected with our national identity. Paul Hogan was the ultimate representation of the working class Australian as the typical outback character Mick in his first movie ‘Crocodile Dundee’. He is an internationally recognised icon that has been and still is truly beneficial to us, generation Z; through his dominant and beneficial characteristics of a true Australian shown by Mick Dundee.

Australian people and culture are often stereotyped in the media in different forms, one of them being film. The two films being examined, ‘Red dog’ (2011) and the ‘Sapphires’ (2012), are an example of the Australian identity but from different points of view. ‘Red dog’ shows the kind and positive side which exemplifies mateship and loyalty. The film ‘Sapphires’ ,which takes place in the 1950’s through to the 1960’s, shows a negative and racist view towards the indigenous people. Both the films show different aspects of the Australian identity, not all insights of the films accurately represent contemporary Australian identity as the Australian identity has changed by the evolution of people and their lifestyle.

Banjo Paterson is remembered as a hero due to him often evoking a strong affection for the Australian bush and community. Many became enamoured with him, as he depicted the typical Australian as “loyalty to a mate”.

The tale of ‘The Man from Snowy River’, has played a focal part in the Australian National Consciousness. In addition it became a national symbol of the bushmen horse rider and are now consequently enshrined in our cultural mythology.

“Without history, how would be believe in the idea of Australia? In fact, history shapes the country through its events and its people and the Aboriginal history is a prominent part of Australia history. It is a dramatic story of people who had endured the colonisation pioneers’ over first people.it is a story of a stolen generation who had been subject of an assimilation ideology by rejecting their heritage and adopting the Wight culture, where their names were changed and prohibited to speak their native languages. However, the everyday suffering of aboriginal have just been used as kind of visual and pleasure in the Australian media and public debates. In the midst of this darkness emerged a handful of Australian historians who have

“That’s not a knife. That’s a knife.” This has to be the most well-known statement in Australian film history. These statements illustrate the Australian understated humour And reveal a larger than life, down to earth, easy going character of Mick ‘Crocodile’ Dundee. Good morning/afternoon Mrs Provan and class, we should all know that the true Australian identity is displayed by the, Mick ‘Crocodile’ Dundee. A common stereotype of Australians is that they are good natured, down to earth, use slang, are down to earth and hard working, have a pragmatic sense of humour, have a larrikin streak and are cheeky as. This is definitely displayed in one of Australia’s most iconic movies, Crocodile Dundee. The true Aussie culture is illustrated by the character Mick Dundee played by Paul Hogan, who plays a typical bushy fella who takes a well-known American reporter into the Australian bush. Mick Dundee displays true Australian stereotype by embodying the great sense of humour we have, and also displaying that Australians are down to earth, easy going and hard working.

In 1800s the term larrikin was used to identity people showing, disrespect to authority, involvement in gangs and violently behaviour. The 20th century, ‘larrikin’ started to be used in a positive way; referring to a joker or a masculine man who were deemed Australian heroes. Thereby larrikinism made a leap to form significant aspect of the Australian National identity. ‘Historical constructs of the larrikin stereotype have produced a relaxed Australian national identity although problems that may arise from using the larrikin as a national character includes the suggestion that violence and disrespect for authority are excusable’. This essay I will show how larrikin stereotype has assisted in constructing an Australian national identity starting

Men were portrayed as an Australian legend, hardworking and masculine, not feminine, child bearing and housekeeping. Although men had the right intentions for their families, by having a few acres of land and going droving to support them, men also suffered hardship just like the women. Droving saw men suffer the physical ailments of the bush, fighting the drought, and dealing with starving cattle (Lawson, Patterson 360) and the mental hardship of the bush, which can also be seen in ‘The Bush Undertaker” where the old man also goes mad from being isolated, however like the women, shows loyalty not to family but to his friend Brummy (Lawson, The bush undertaker). However, Lawson’s portrayal of a strong connection between alcohol and the bushman is demonstrated in both ‘Water Them Geraniums’ were Joe moves to the bush due to his alcoholism and the ‘Bush Undertaker’ where Brummy is an alcoholic living in the bush, demonstrates a connection between alcohol and the Australian bush man regardless of the city or country, and the stigma this had on all bush man of the

Australia’s national and cultural icons range from natural landmarks to man-made wonders. They are instantly recognisable, have special significance and are uniquely Australian. (1) Two Australian artist’s that created cultural iconic images through their artworks, were Sydney Nolan and Russell Drysdale. During the 1940s cultural, social changes and the Second World War influenced them to depict issues in their works. Both artists were affected by the war, had an interest in the bush, its people and the harsh drought at the time. This encouraged them to reflect on national themes which they personally could associate and identify with. Their

The first type of bushranger was convicts from the first fleet who fled the colony for freedom. The second types of bushranger were those who chose to become an outlaw. Within this essay I will highlight the reasons why a bushranger became an outlaw by explaining the lifestyle of the early Australian settlement and how they shaped Australian’s Colonial Identity and became an important part of Australian history.

Ned Kelly is a renowned Australian Bushranger, known for his courage when rising against the colonizers of Australia. However, it is still argued whether Ned Kelly is a hero or villain from the perspectives of the modern society. Ned Kelly is more commonly depicted as the Robin Hood of Australia considering his purpose for his malicious deeds rather than a murderous villain having done criminal deeds. There are visual representations that deliver Ned Kelly’s intentions on being a criminal and these representations help people to make judgements based on whether he is an Australian folk hero or a murderous villain. There are key scenes in the film ‘Ned Kelly’ (2003) on the interpretation of Ned Kelly’s life and a documentary reviewing differing

For the Australian fairy tale, it has been a long journey in search of nationhood identity. With the enduring legacy of Australia’s history as a settler colony there was no surprise that it invested the landscape with strangeness and it became a part of the dream like world within fairy tales. Through the history of Australian literary culture, the mythology of the bush tradition has been a powerful voice in the Australian cultural context, which continues to have strong force in creating national identity. However, it has become an inaccurate form of cultural identity.

Rarely seen without dirt under his fingernails or dressed in anything apart from his famous khaki uniform, Irwin's 'Aussie' boyish good looks, larger-than-life personality and unique ability to capture the oldest prehistoric dinosaur of our time, has ultimately earned him the legendary title 'The Crocodile Hunter' amongst loyal fans around the world.The extraordinary life of crocodile legend Steve Irwin has expertly been captured within his one hundred and forty-four page autobiography, appropriately entitled 'The Crocodile Hunter'.

No wonder, this leads to a lot of assumptions, half-truths and stereotypes when this story is passed on from one to another. For example a lot of people think that Australia is like the land of the kangaroos and there’s crocodile Dundee catching crocodiles in the Australian outback, but they do not acknowledge the cities, towns, suburbs, and the people who talk good English. These stories told by

The concept of an Aboriginal Literature Review may seem like a contradiction in terms! Aboriginal peoples traditionally passed most of their worldview. Aboriginal culture is an oral culture and for forty thousand years or more, it has been passed down from generation to generation. Aboriginal Mythology was expressed through legends and stories that visualize people’s concept of the metaphysical world and give explanation to the differences found in shaping the landscape. In Aboriginal beliefs, every object and every creature on this earth has its own wisdom, spirit and language, whether it has life or not. Every object in this life is like a human being; it has its own conscious and its existing shape. They see this as an assured fact, not subjected to any controversy, and a realistic necessity in all their legends. Present review explores selected information regarding the Fable, Folktale, Myth In Australian Aboriginal Literature.