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Bushrangers: Ned Kelly and Australian identity.
- Source :
-
Journal of Sociology . Dec2008, Vol. 44 Issue 4, p373-390. 18p. 4 Charts. - Publication Year :
- 2008
-
Abstract
- Be they highwaymen, bandits or bushrangers, outlaws are mythical figures celebrated across a variety of cultures. Australians' knowledge of colonial outlaws is examined by asking a national sample of adults if they could name four 'bushrangers'. A large majority identified Ned Kelly and a substantial proportion Ben Hall, although less than a quarter could name four bushrangers and one in five were unable to name any bushrangers at all. Australian-born, middle-class, middle-aged, politically informed people who live in Queensland or NSW were the most knowledgeable, with the educational achievement findings suggesting that bushrangers occupy the realm of 'middle-brow' taste. Ned Kelly is confirmed as Australia's best-known colonial figure and folk hero. Immortalized in Sidney Nolan's paintings and mythologized in various cultural milieux, Kelly has transcended bushranging to symbolize a romantic and rebellious aspect of Australian identity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Subjects :
- *BUSHRANGERS
*CULTURE
*AUSTRALIANS
*ACADEMIC achievement
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 14407833
- Volume :
- 44
- Issue :
- 4
- Database :
- Academic Search Index
- Journal :
- Journal of Sociology
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 35847427
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1177/1440783308097127