The unit focuses on romance as both a textual and a social construct. It begins by exploring the place of romance in fluid, colonial society, together with the roles, new and inherited, available to the sexes, before examining recent recastings of this legacy. This is done through a variety of fiction and films that rework established genres and comment on romantic dreams in the light of modern realities. Authors studies included Marcus Clarke, Barbara Baynton, Peter Carey, Elizabeth Jolley, Kate Grenville, Murray Bail and Kathy Lette, as well as the films 'African Queen', 'The Piano', 'The Well' and 'Monkey Grip'.
