The Quarantined Culture: Australian Reactions to Modernism, 1913–1939 (Studies in Australian History) - Hardcover

Williams, John Frank

9780521471398: The Quarantined Culture: Australian Reactions to Modernism, 1913–1939 (Studies in Australian History)

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0521471397 ISBN 13: 9780521471398

Publisher: Cambridge University Press, 1996

In 1913 the Australian press displayed a cosmopolitan openness to the culture of the modern world. By 1919, however, Australia had become an inward-looking society bent on keeping the outside world out - a quarantined culture. This book looks at the impact of the First World War on Australian culture, focusing on reactions to modernist art. John Williams argues that the creation of the Anzac legend, the back-to-the-land movement, notions of racial superiority and the mythology of the masculine nation were reactionary and anti-modern. Reflecting this, Australian pioneers of post-impressionism were ignored in favour of more traditional artists. This engaging book outlines the forces - social, economic, cultural, political - that led to the stagnation of Australian culture between the wars. John Williams' original and provocative work, originally published in 1995, made an important contribution to Australian cultural history.

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Book Description:

This engaging and provocative work examines the impact of the First World War on Australian attitudes to modernist art. John Williams argues that between 1914 and 1939, Australia became an inward-looking, reactionary society, in contrast with the cosmopolitan openness displayed in the media of the pre-war years.

Review:

."..Willian\m's volume is well timed...an angaging and well-paced work..." Chris Nyland, Pacific Affairs

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