Australian literature on the nose?

One must ask then: is the idea of a national literature of any importance? Do we need it anymore?

There is an obvious change in the way in which we conceive of ourselves as a nation. The whole idea of "nation" has loosened. We operate on a global level in economic and political terms. The nature of the Internet has made national borders redundant in terms of the limits of communication. The domestic political scene of the last ten years has favoured the individual. The Howard Government has successfully changed the way in which we conceive of ourselves as a nation. That is, we are individuals first and a nation second.

As well as putting ourselves first, our idea of "Australia" is now built upon old ideas spun for new political purposes. These ideas are bedded in stories told during another time. These stories have been drained of their original power and now operate as hollow platitudes.

The lack of interest, both general and academic, in Australian literature is alarming for the simple reason that fiction is fast becoming one of the few areas where truths are told. Despite the reading public’s fascination with non-fiction, the stories told in fiction, especially in those texts considered part of a national literature, are part of the culture itself. Non-fiction can tell us only so much about ourself. Literature in its fictional form can take us beyond mere knowledge to a deeper understanding where imagination is allowed to run riot. It is also fast becoming the one place where writers can ask questions they are not allowed to ask elsewhere.

If an entire nation gradually wears down its stocks of literature, if it doesn’t read stories about itself, if it, god forbid, forgets how to tell stories, what are the implications?

Take for example the case of Bernhard Schlink’s The Reader. Although this book speaks in universal themes of love and forgiveness it has particular resonance for Germans in that it explicitly deals with the idea of guilt in post World War II Germany. It asks questions about how Germans themselves deal with the wartime actions of individuals within small communities. It also speaks to those outside looking in on a post-war Germany and not knowing how much to remember and how much to forget.

It doesn’t achieve all these things through dry statement of fact, it achieves these things through a simple story. If there is a continued or even accelerated disinterest in Australian literature in this country, who will tell our stories? Who will be there to read them? Will it even matter?

The implications of a general disinterest in the nation's literature is something that may not be seen for a while.  What happens in ten years time when we don't have a picture of ourself? Is it important to have a national literature? Or will reading fiction soon become a border-less pursuit that speaks to individuals and societies on a larger scale than nations?