Alexis Wright
Encyclopedia
Alexis Wright is an Indigenous Australian writer best known for winning the Miles Franklin Award
for her 2006 novel Carpentaria
.
Wright is a land rights
activist originally from the Waanyi people in the highlands of the southern Gulf of Carpentaria
. Wright's father, a white cattleman, died when she was five years old and she grew up in Cloncurry, Queensland with her mother and grandmother. Her first book Plains of Promise published in 1997 was nominated for several literary awards and has been reprinted several times by University of Queensland Press
.
Wright has also published two non-fiction works - Take Power an anthology on the history of the land rights movement in 1998 and Grog War on the introduction of alcohol
restrictions in Tennant Creek published in 1997.
Carpentaria took two years to conceive and more than six years to write. It was rejected by every major publisher in Australia before independent publisher Giramondo published it in 2006. Since then it has won the Miles Franklin Award
in June 2007 (ahead of a shortlist including Peter Carey's Theft: A Love Story
), the 2007 Fiction Book award in the Queensland Premier's Literary Awards
, the 2007 ALS Gold Medal
and the 2007 Vance Palmer Prize for Fiction
.
When the Northern Territory Intervention
proposed by the Howard Government
in mid-2007 was introduced, Wright delivered of a high-profile 10,000-word speech, sponsored by International PEN
, in which her identification of an ethos of national fear in Australia came to be portrayed in the national media as a characterisation of the feelings of Indigenous peoples associated with the Intervention.
Miles Franklin Award
The Miles Franklin Literary Award is an annual literary prize for the best Australian ‘published novel or play portraying Australian life in any of its phases’. The award was set up according to the will of Miles Franklin , who is best known for writing the Australian classic My Brilliant Career ...
for her 2006 novel Carpentaria
Carpentaria (novel)
Carpentaria is the second novel by the Indigenous Australian author Alexis Wright. It met with widespread critical acclaim when it was published in mid-2006, and went on to win Australia's premier literary prize, the Miles Franklin Award, in mid-2007....
.
Wright is a land rights
Land rights
Land law is the form of law that deals with the rights to use, alienate, or exclude others from land. In many jurisdictions, these species of property are referred to as real estate or real property, as distinct from personal property. Land use agreements, including renting, are an important...
activist originally from the Waanyi people in the highlands of the southern Gulf of Carpentaria
Gulf of Carpentaria
The Gulf of Carpentaria is a large, shallow sea enclosed on three sides by northern Australia and bounded on the north by the Arafura Sea...
. Wright's father, a white cattleman, died when she was five years old and she grew up in Cloncurry, Queensland with her mother and grandmother. Her first book Plains of Promise published in 1997 was nominated for several literary awards and has been reprinted several times by University of Queensland Press
University of Queensland Press
Established in 1948, University of Queensland Press is a dynamic publishing house known for its innovative philosophy and commitment to producing books of high quality and cultural significance...
.
Wright has also published two non-fiction works - Take Power an anthology on the history of the land rights movement in 1998 and Grog War on the introduction of alcohol
Alcohol
In chemistry, an alcohol is an organic compound in which the hydroxy functional group is bound to a carbon atom. In particular, this carbon center should be saturated, having single bonds to three other atoms....
restrictions in Tennant Creek published in 1997.
Carpentaria took two years to conceive and more than six years to write. It was rejected by every major publisher in Australia before independent publisher Giramondo published it in 2006. Since then it has won the Miles Franklin Award
Miles Franklin Award
The Miles Franklin Literary Award is an annual literary prize for the best Australian ‘published novel or play portraying Australian life in any of its phases’. The award was set up according to the will of Miles Franklin , who is best known for writing the Australian classic My Brilliant Career ...
in June 2007 (ahead of a shortlist including Peter Carey's Theft: A Love Story
Theft: A Love Story
Theft: A Love Story is a novel by Australian writer Peter Carey. It won the 2006 Vance Palmer Prize, the Victorian Premier's Literary Award prize for fiction.-Awards and nominations:...
), the 2007 Fiction Book award in the Queensland Premier's Literary Awards
Queensland Premier's Literary Awards
The Queensland Premier's Literary Awards were inaugurated in 1999 and have grown to become a leading literary awards program within Australia, with $225,000 in prizemoney over 14 categories. One of Australia's richest prizes, top categories offer up to $25,000 for 1st prize.-Fiction Book...
, the 2007 ALS Gold Medal
ALS Gold Medal
The Australian Literature Society Gold Medal is awarded annually by the Association for the Study of Australian Literature for “an outstanding literary work in the preceding calendar year.” From 1928 to 1974 it was awarded by the Australian Literature Society, then from 1983 by the Association for...
and the 2007 Vance Palmer Prize for Fiction
Vance Palmer Prize for Fiction
The Vance Palmer Prize for Fiction is a component of the annual Victorian Premier's Literary Award and is valued at A$30,000. Most Australian state premiers present annual Australian literary awards to promote Australian writing in all its forms. The award is named after Vance Palmer...
.
When the Northern Territory Intervention
Northern Territory National Emergency Response
The Northern Territory National Emergency Response was a package of changes to welfare provision, law enforcement, land tenure and other measures, introduced by the Australian federal government under John Howard in 2007 to address claims of rampant child sexual abuse and neglect in Northern...
proposed by the Howard Government
John Howard
John Winston Howard AC, SSI, was the 25th Prime Minister of Australia, from 11 March 1996 to 3 December 2007. He was the second-longest serving Australian Prime Minister after Sir Robert Menzies....
in mid-2007 was introduced, Wright delivered of a high-profile 10,000-word speech, sponsored by International PEN
International PEN
PEN International , the worldwide association of writers, was founded in London in 1921 to promote friendship and intellectual co-operation among writers everywhere....
, in which her identification of an ethos of national fear in Australia came to be portrayed in the national media as a characterisation of the feelings of Indigenous peoples associated with the Intervention.
External links
- Breaking Taboos Essay