Cirrus@Austlit

'Ob-Scene Spaces in Australian Narrative is an exhaustive survey of Australian literature proposing itself as a journey through time and space. With a sound selection of texts which recount Australian history from the early days of white colonization to the present, this study endeavours to cast light on the process of socio-topographic construction that the settlers imposed upon the continent.

As suggested by the title, the textual inquiry conducted in this book is driven by the stimulating ambiguity that lies between the physical space and its discursive construction. A selection of canonical and non-canonical texts by authors ranging from Henry Lawson to Christos Tsiolkas aims to reveal the relationship between the space of the city (the scene) and the outback (the ob-scene space beyond the metropolitan area) and its role in the process of spacial construction that, through the last two centuries, has shaped Australia.' (Publisher's blurb)