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The article reviews the history of Australian representations of Asia from the mid-19th century to the present. It argues that there are instructive continuities between recent references to 'Asia literacy' and to injunctions to know Asia that date from the late 19th century. It examines representations of Asia that stress fluidity and unpredictability, and argues that fluid Asia has been assigned characteristics not unlike those attributed to women and the crowd. The implications of this analysis for recent discussions of the threat posed by political Islam are also referred to. In such discussions 'the proper treatment of women' is commonly represented as both an established Australian value and one now under threat. The article ends by suggesting that the Howard government sought to marginalise 'Asia literacy', replacing it with 'Australia literacy'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article argues that 'Asia' has tended to function as an ambivalent 'sign' in Australian political discourse, signifying both fear and hope. That ambivalence is reflected in Australian government policy. The article focuses on the period from Gough Whitlam on, tracing the links between debates over Australian relations with Asia and key issues in Australian domestic politics, including debates over immigration, the economy and Australian national identity. Key differences are identified between the views of John Howard and those of recent Australian Labor Prime Ministers. However, it is pointed out that Kevin Rudd also has ambivalent attitudes towards Asia, both encouraging Asian engagement as a path to future prosperity and fearing that Australia will be left behind in an increasingly 'Asian Century'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]