Representations of Aboriginal People in the Novels of Kate Grenville, Doris Pilkington and Kim Scott

Masaryk University Faculty of Arts

Department of English and American Studies

English Language and Literature

Representations of Aboriginal People in the Novels of Kate Grenville, Doris Pilkington and Kim Scott Master’s Diploma Thesis

Supervisor: Mgr. Martina Horáková, Ph.D.

2008

I declare that I have worked on this thesis independently, using only the primary and secondary sources listed in the bibliography.

…………………………………………….. Author’s signature

Acknowledgement:

I would like to thank Mgr. Martina Horáková, Ph.D. for her kind help and valuable advice. Many thanks also need to go to the Department of English and American Studies. I can not omit to express many thanks to my family and everybody that encouraged me to write this work.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction…………………………………………………………………………...5 1.1 The Concept of Aboriginality …………………………………………………….8 2. Aboriginal Writing ………………………………………………………………….15 2.1 Doris Pilkington – Follow the Rabbit-Proof Fence …………………………….21 2.2 Kim Scott – True Country ………………………………………………………27 2.3 Kate Grenville – The Secret River ………………………………………………31 3. Portrayal of the Aboriginal Protagonists ……………………………………………38 3.1 Molly …………………………………………………………………………....40 3.2 Billy ……………………………………………………………………………..42 3.3 Fatima …………………………………………………………………………..46 3.4 Scabby Bill and the Aboriginal People of the Hawkesbury River ……………...48 4. The Relationships between the White People and the Indigenous Inhabitants ...…..52 5. The Relationship to the Land ……………………………………………………….57 6. Parallels and Similarities in the Novels …………………………………………….60 7. Conclusion ………………………………………………………………………….63 8. Works Cited ………………………………………………………………………...66

1. Introduction The aim of my thesis is to analyze the representations of Aboriginal people[1] in selected Australian novels. I have chosen three novels to trace and explore