To Constitute a Nation

A Cultural History of Australia's Constitution
Erscheinungsjahr 1997
ISBN: 978-0-521-58417-3
Verlag: Cambridge University Press

Buch, Englisch, 267 Seiten, Format (B × H): 152 mm x 228 mm, Gewicht: 655 g

Reihe: Studies in Australian History

This imaginative and resonant 1997 book looks at the constitution as a cultural artefact. It attempts to understand the period during which it emerged, culminating in Federation in 1901. Irving looks beyond the well-known events, places and figures to locate federation and the constitution in the context of broader social, political and cultural changes. She argues that Australians displayed an ability to reconcile the demands of pragmatism with the urge of romanticism. Despite its paradoxical construction, there is something uniquely Australian about the constitution, and it marked a utopian moment as the old century gave way to the new. Irving analyses the background and outcomes of the Constitutional Convention and considers its significance for Australia's possible future as a republic.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Irving, Helen

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Chronology; Introduction; 1. Colonial nuptials; 2. The imaginary nation; 3. Imagined Constitutions; 4. Models for a nation; 5. Things properly federal; 6. White Australians; 7. Australian natives; 8. The people; 9. Citizens; 10. Half the nation; 11. The federal compact; Postscript.