Understanding pornography in Australia: public discourses and pornographic texts. This project will offer a detailed, large-scale analysis of the place of pornography in Australian culture. It will interview 300 producers and distributors of pornographic texts, and almost one thousand consumers of these texts. Using insights from this research into the ways in which pornography is understood by those involved with it in Australia, one hundred popular pornographic videos will be analysed to under ....Understanding pornography in Australia: public discourses and pornographic texts. This project will offer a detailed, large-scale analysis of the place of pornography in Australian culture. It will interview 300 producers and distributors of pornographic texts, and almost one thousand consumers of these texts. Using insights from this research into the ways in which pornography is understood by those involved with it in Australia, one hundred popular pornographic videos will be analysed to understand what is in them, and how they are used.
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INVENTING PERFECT AUSTRALIAN WOMANHOOD: THE MISS AUSTRALIA QUEST AND THE ROLE OF DISABILITY IN POSTWAR AUSTRALIA. The Miss Australia Quest articulated the concept of perfect white womanhood in the postwar era. Sponsored by a major charity, the Spastics League, the Quest sought to locate representatives of conventional womanhood yet who had exemplary appearance, poise and moral virtue. Bodily and moral perfection ran counter to the sponsoring organisation which dealt with the severely disabled. ....INVENTING PERFECT AUSTRALIAN WOMANHOOD: THE MISS AUSTRALIA QUEST AND THE ROLE OF DISABILITY IN POSTWAR AUSTRALIA. The Miss Australia Quest articulated the concept of perfect white womanhood in the postwar era. Sponsored by a major charity, the Spastics League, the Quest sought to locate representatives of conventional womanhood yet who had exemplary appearance, poise and moral virtue. Bodily and moral perfection ran counter to the sponsoring organisation which dealt with the severely disabled. With competitions held throughout the Commonwealth, the finalists were designated by their state of origin. Hence both regions and then states competed alongside individuals. The broadcast of the Quest was a major television event until 1986. An analysis of the Quest allows interrogation of the role of fundraising for charity, the construction of celebrity, the nature of idealised young womanhood and interstate rivalries. Scholarly articles and a book alongside a projected exhibition at the new National Museum of Australia are anticipated.Read moreRead less
Citizenship, Governance and Gender: Chinese Women in Political Action. The project provides the first book-length analysis of Chinese women's involvement in politics in Greater China (PRC, Hong Kong, Taiwan, ROC) since 1900. Currently, Chinese women's participation within formal, informal and civil society politics is poorly understood. My project examines crucial interactions between discursive notions of citizenship and gender in the Chinese cultural context. I also provide a comprehensive exa ....Citizenship, Governance and Gender: Chinese Women in Political Action. The project provides the first book-length analysis of Chinese women's involvement in politics in Greater China (PRC, Hong Kong, Taiwan, ROC) since 1900. Currently, Chinese women's participation within formal, informal and civil society politics is poorly understood. My project examines crucial interactions between discursive notions of citizenship and gender in the Chinese cultural context. I also provide a comprehensive examination of structural factors influencing women's political engagement. My project will be the first in Chinese Studies to adapt western notions of gender, citizenship and ideologies of governance to understandings of Chinese women in politics.Read moreRead less
A Generic Study of Colette's Short Writing. The study uses "genre" as a key to a literary-historical account of Colette's short writing in its cultural context. The corpus is generically ambiguous, since it first appeared as "articles" in magazines and was later collected in volumes, thus acquiring a more "literary" status as "essays". Taking into account both the conditions of publication and the rhetoric of these pieces, I shall investigate the network of cultural relations in which they parti ....A Generic Study of Colette's Short Writing. The study uses "genre" as a key to a literary-historical account of Colette's short writing in its cultural context. The corpus is generically ambiguous, since it first appeared as "articles" in magazines and was later collected in volumes, thus acquiring a more "literary" status as "essays". Taking into account both the conditions of publication and the rhetoric of these pieces, I shall investigate the network of cultural relations in which they participate, and their command of their readership. This will show how Colette made a place for "women's knowledge" in public culture and what that place was.Read moreRead less
Letters between Vance and Nettie Palmer, 1909-1959: The Complete Correspondence. Nettie and Vance Palmer were two highly influential national figures, of considerable significance in literary and cultural circles especially in the inter-war period. This project, the preparation of Collected Letters, will considerably extend knowledge of their public contribution to cultural production in Australia and also of their private lives. It will provide a vital reference tool for historians, literary ....Letters between Vance and Nettie Palmer, 1909-1959: The Complete Correspondence. Nettie and Vance Palmer were two highly influential national figures, of considerable significance in literary and cultural circles especially in the inter-war period. This project, the preparation of Collected Letters, will considerably extend knowledge of their public contribution to cultural production in Australia and also of their private lives. It will provide a vital reference tool for historians, literary critics, biographers and scholars as well as be entertaining and compelling for the general reader. As a highly innovative example of the genre of the edited letter, in retrieving these writings of two gifted individuals, Australia's cultural heritage will be enriched.Read moreRead less
Sentimental blokes: a cultural history of working-class masculinities in Australia, 1850-1929. For decades now, therapists, academics and activists have called for Australian men to be more emotionally articulate. This is necessary in part because stereotypes of Australian masculinity emphasise hostility towards emotion, especially sentimental emotion. By demonstrating the significance of masculine sentimentality in Australia's past, this project will help to change this. Drawing on the insights ....Sentimental blokes: a cultural history of working-class masculinities in Australia, 1850-1929. For decades now, therapists, academics and activists have called for Australian men to be more emotionally articulate. This is necessary in part because stereotypes of Australian masculinity emphasise hostility towards emotion, especially sentimental emotion. By demonstrating the significance of masculine sentimentality in Australia's past, this project will help to change this. Drawing on the insights of theatre and cultural studies and publishing in diverse forums, it will also bring a more interdisciplinary dimension to the history of Australian masculinities. Further, it will make Australian material relevant to international scholarship on emotional history, the relationship between class and gender, and gendered subjectivities.Read moreRead less
Frigidity in France: the history of a sexual pathology and of its place in feminist critique. The history of sexuality is an area of research which puts into historical perspective the disorders and abnormalcies which make up so much modern talk about sexuality. It helps to show that many of the supposed sexual problems which are central to modern thinking took shape only recently, and did so in particular circumstances. This is in fact a very active field of international humanities research, a ....Frigidity in France: the history of a sexual pathology and of its place in feminist critique. The history of sexuality is an area of research which puts into historical perspective the disorders and abnormalcies which make up so much modern talk about sexuality. It helps to show that many of the supposed sexual problems which are central to modern thinking took shape only recently, and did so in particular circumstances. This is in fact a very active field of international humanities research, and this project will make an Australian-based scholarly contribution to it. A detailed, circumstantial history of frigidity will make it possible to question the 'science' which founds twentieth-century norms for female sexual behaviour. It will also enable the project to make a critical contribution to modern feminist thinking.Read moreRead less
From musume (daughters) to shojo (girls): representations of young women in modern Japanese literature. This will be the first comprehensive study of the transition of young women from musume (daughters) to shôjo (girls) in modern Japanese literature. Intended as a pioneering study of "girl power literature", it will identify neglected texts and authors, clarify the significant changes in literary representations of young women, and recognise the positive and creative aspects in these representa ....From musume (daughters) to shojo (girls): representations of young women in modern Japanese literature. This will be the first comprehensive study of the transition of young women from musume (daughters) to shôjo (girls) in modern Japanese literature. Intended as a pioneering study of "girl power literature", it will identify neglected texts and authors, clarify the significant changes in literary representations of young women, and recognise the positive and creative aspects in these representations. With its scope covering historical and contemporary, and popular and serious, the project will enhance Australia's understanding of Japanese literature, culture, and society. It will also be beneficial to studies of women, children, and adolescence in other communities including Australia.Read moreRead less
A Critical Genealogy of Normality. The rather divergent ideas about normality that emerged in nineteenth-century medical thought continue to have a widespread cultural influence today. Cultural assumptions about what constitutes a normal body inform a wide range of medical practices and underpin the use of standardised testing to determine health or disability. They are also in play when doctors decide when to undertake preventative health measures and when to intervene surgically. A detailed un ....A Critical Genealogy of Normality. The rather divergent ideas about normality that emerged in nineteenth-century medical thought continue to have a widespread cultural influence today. Cultural assumptions about what constitutes a normal body inform a wide range of medical practices and underpin the use of standardised testing to determine health or disability. They are also in play when doctors decide when to undertake preventative health measures and when to intervene surgically. A detailed understanding of how bodily norms come to be established has an important role to play in both shaping medical ethics and in helping people make more informed choices about elective surgical procedures.Read moreRead less
Enhancing numeracy learning and teaching across the curriculum. Leaving school without an adequate level of numeracy has devastating consequences for young people's life chances. This project will implement a rich approach to numeracy across the curriculum in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 with the aim of improving students' numeracy learning outcomes and teachers' confidence with and understanding of numeracy.