Footprints (a novella for adults) ; and Sketchy business (a novel for young readers) ; and Alienation and boundaries in selected works of Tim Winton written for adults and for young readers

Jennifer Banyard

Research output: ThesisDoctoral Thesis

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Abstract

Western Australian author Tim Winton said that if we accept boundaries other people set for us then we’re just suckers. His comment reflects the hypocrisy and fickleness of many boundaries, and the flimsy foundation of alienation that may arise from being on the ‘wrong’ side of a boundary. The issue of alienation and associated boundaries is explored in each of the three components that comprise this creative writing thesis. The novella for adults, Footprints, set in Japan and in Broome, Western Australia, focuses the theme of alienation and boundaries on the WWII internment of the Japanese pearl diver Hiroshi, attempting to paint a picture of the human side of the Japanese population that was demonised en masse during the war. The novel for young readers, Sketchy Business, elicits the theme through the over-eager newshound Pollo, whose biased assumptions lead to damaging false judgements about a newcomer to her town, and through Pollo’s offsider, Will, who is having family troubles. The dissertation explores the concepts of alienation and boundaries as rendered by Winton in his novels Dirt Music and Lockie Leonard, Legend. It looks, in particular, at Winton’s manipulation of narrative elements such that Legend, though departing from several commonly accepted conventions of young readers’ fiction, maintains strong appeal to its young audience.
Original languageEnglish
QualificationDoctor of Philosophy
Publication statusUnpublished - 16 Sept 2013

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