White Flour, White Power: from Rations to Citizenship in Central Australia

Rowse, Tim

ISBN 10: 0521624576 / ISBN 13: 9780521624572

Published by Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1998

About this Item

255 pages. Damaged stamp on verso title page. Otherwise as new with only minor shelfwear.; Hardcover; Octavo; The colonial practice of rationing goods to Aboriginal people has been neglected in the study of Australian frontiers. This book argues that much of the colonial experience in Central Australia can be understood by seeing rationing as a fundamental, though flexible, instrument of colonial government. Rationing was the material basis for a variety of colonial ventures: scientific, evangelical, pastoral and the post-war program of 'assimilation'. Combining history and anthropology in a cultural study of rationing, this book develops a new narrative of the colonisation of Central Australia. Two arguments underpin this story: that the colonists were puzzled by the motives of the Indigenous recipients; and that they were highly inventive in the meanings and moral foundations they ascribed to the rationing relationship. This study goes to the heart of contemporary reflections on the nature of Indigenous 'citizenship'.

Seller Inventory # 21297

Bibliographic Details

• Title: White Flour, White Power: from Rations to Citizenship in Central Australia
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press, Cambridge
• Publication Date: 1998
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0521624576
• ISBN 13: 9780521624572
• Binding: Original Boards
• Edition: Reprint.
• Condition: with no dust jacket
• Dust Jacket Condition: No Dust Jacket

About this title

Synopsis

This book focuses on the colonial practice of rationing goods to Aboriginal people, arguing that much of the colonial experience in Central Australia can be understood by seeing rationing as a fundamental, though flexible, instrument of colonial government. Rationing was the material basis for a variety of colonial ventures: scientific, evangelical, pastoral and the postwar program of "assimilation." Combining history and anthropology in a cultural study of rationing, this book develops a new narrative of the colonization of Central Australia.

Review

"Especially useful for advanced undergraduate and graduate students and researchers interested in colonial economies and social relations." Choice

"Those readers looking for a fresh and nuanced reading of indigenous/non-indigenous relations in outback Australia in the twentieth century will find this book a welcome addition to the literature on the subject." Peggy Brock, American Historical Review

"If the examination of history is a means to grasp the present, then this book is a success." Laurent Dousset, Pacific Affairs