Dropbear — a new poetry collection by Evelyn Araluen - Radio National Interview"The existential darkness at the heart of the continent has been mythologised about since Terra Australis first appeared on a European map. But what do these myths and iconographies, of a wild untamed inland and existential threat, of lazy blacks and noble whites, tell us about the national psyche? Evelyn Araluen is not just a poet, she’s the co-editor of the literary journal Overland and a cultural critic and her debut collection of poetry and prose ranges over the way Australia itself has been imagined in visual iconography, literature and film. From the bush babies Snugglepot and Cuddlepie, to the mythic odes of Henry Lawson and more contemporary imaginings of Australianness, Evelyn takes down some icons and explodes the tropes that seem to define us culturally.
What you might call the Australian imaginary."
Content note: This interview contains strong language.
