Simon Caterson
Encyclopedia
Simon Caterson is an Australian writer focusing on literature, art, ideas, history and popular culture for various newspapers and magazines. He was born in Melbourne
, Australia
where he currently lives, and trained there as a lawyer
before traveling to Ireland
where he completed a postgraduate degree in Irish literature
at Trinity College, Dublin
. Subsequently he produced a doctoral thesis on the Anglo-Irish
novelist James Gordon Farrell
and a number of academic articles on Farrell and Francis Stuart
in Irish and English journals.
Since the early 1990s when his work began appearing in The Age
and The Australian
, Caterson has published hundreds of items there and elsewhere, his work comprising essays, features, interviews, reports and reviews. In 2004 he had a six-month stint as a columnist at the Sunday Age.
One of Caterson's essays, 'Building the total university', was selected by Robert Dessaix
for the 2005 edition of the Best Australian Essays annual. Caterson wrote introductions to new editions of Australian classics The Mystery of a Hansom Cab
and Madame Midas, both by Fergus Hume
, and The Middle Parts of Fortune by Frederick Manning.
Caterson's work is wide-ranging, encompassing Samuel Alexander
and The Simpsons
. More than once, Caterson has lent support to the movement towards an Australian republic. He has also written at some length, and with ambivalence, on Ned Kelly
. His 2000 essay on the writings of notorious ex-criminal and prolific author Chopper Read
, which appeared in the Australian Book Review
, was described in The Age
as "seminal". Other pieces have appeared in publications such as Eureka Street
, Meanjin
and The Griffith Review
His first book, Hoax Nation: Australian fakes and frauds from Plato to Norma Khouri, a brief history of Australian hoaxes, was published in November 2009 by Arcade.
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
where he currently lives, and trained there as a lawyer
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
before traveling to Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
where he completed a postgraduate degree in Irish literature
Irish literature
For a comparatively small island, Ireland has made a disproportionately large contribution to world literature. Irish literature encompasses the Irish and English languages.-The beginning of writing in Irish:...
at Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin , formally known as the College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, was founded in 1592 by letters patent from Queen Elizabeth I as the "mother of a university", Extracts from Letters Patent of Elizabeth I, 1592: "...we...found and...
. Subsequently he produced a doctoral thesis on the Anglo-Irish
Anglo-Irish
Anglo-Irish was a term used primarily in the 19th and early 20th centuries to identify a privileged social class in Ireland, whose members were the descendants and successors of the Protestant Ascendancy, mostly belonging to the Church of Ireland, which was the established church of Ireland until...
novelist James Gordon Farrell
James Gordon Farrell
James Gordon Farrell , known as J.G. Farrell, was a Liverpool-born novelist of Irish descent. Farrell gained prominence for his historical fiction, most notably his Empire Trilogy , dealing with the political and human consequences of British colonial rule...
and a number of academic articles on Farrell and Francis Stuart
Francis Stuart
Henry Francis Montgomery Stuart was an Irish writer. His novels have been described as having a thrusting modernist iconoclasm. Awarded the highest artistic accolade in Ireland before his death in 2000, his unwillingness to take a clear moral stance with regard to his years spent in Nazi...
in Irish and English journals.
Since the early 1990s when his work began appearing in The Age
The Age
The Age is a daily broadsheet newspaper, which has been published in Melbourne, Australia since 1854. Owned and published by Fairfax Media, The Age primarily serves Victoria, but is also available for purchase in Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory and border regions of South Australia and...
and The Australian
The Australian
The Australian is a broadsheet newspaper published in Australia from Monday to Saturday each week since 14 July 1964. The editor in chief is Chris Mitchell, the editor is Clive Mathieson and the 'editor-at-large' is Paul Kelly....
, Caterson has published hundreds of items there and elsewhere, his work comprising essays, features, interviews, reports and reviews. In 2004 he had a six-month stint as a columnist at the Sunday Age.
One of Caterson's essays, 'Building the total university', was selected by Robert Dessaix
Robert Dessaix
- Biography :Dessaix was born in Sydney and adopted at an early age. He was educated at North Sydney Boys High School. He studied in Moscow during the early 1970s, and taught Russian Studies at the Australian National University and the University of New South Wales from 1972 to 1984...
for the 2005 edition of the Best Australian Essays annual. Caterson wrote introductions to new editions of Australian classics The Mystery of a Hansom Cab
The Mystery of a Hansom Cab
The Mystery of a Hansom Cab is a mystery fiction novel by English writer Fergus Hume. The book was first published in Australia in 1886. Set in Melbourne, the story focuses on the investigation of a homicide involving a body discovered in a hansom cab, as well as an exploration into the social...
and Madame Midas, both by Fergus Hume
Fergus Hume
Fergusson Wright Hume, known as Fergus Hume was an English novelist.-Early life:Hume was born in England, the second son of Dr. James Hume. At the age of three years his father emigrated with his family to Dunedin, New Zealand. He attended Otago Boys' High School and studied law at the University...
, and The Middle Parts of Fortune by Frederick Manning.
Caterson's work is wide-ranging, encompassing Samuel Alexander
Samuel Alexander
Samuel Alexander OM was an Australian-born British philosopher. He was the first Jewish fellow of an Oxbridge college.-Early life:...
and The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
. More than once, Caterson has lent support to the movement towards an Australian republic. He has also written at some length, and with ambivalence, on Ned Kelly
Ned Kelly
Edward "Ned" Kelly was an Irish Australian bushranger. He is considered by some to be merely a cold-blooded cop killer — others, however, consider him to be a folk hero and symbol of Irish Australian resistance against the Anglo-Australian ruling class.Kelly was born in Victoria to an Irish...
. His 2000 essay on the writings of notorious ex-criminal and prolific author Chopper Read
Chopper Read
Mark Brandon "Chopper" Read is an Australian ex-criminal, who wrote a series of semi-autobiographical and fictional crime novels. The 2000 film Chopper was based on his life.-Early life:...
, which appeared in the Australian Book Review
Australian Book Review
Australian Book Review is Australia's leading literary review. Created in 1961 the ABR is an independent non-profit organisation that publishes articles, reviews, commentaries, essays, and new writing...
, was described in The Age
The Age
The Age is a daily broadsheet newspaper, which has been published in Melbourne, Australia since 1854. Owned and published by Fairfax Media, The Age primarily serves Victoria, but is also available for purchase in Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory and border regions of South Australia and...
as "seminal". Other pieces have appeared in publications such as Eureka Street
Eureka Street
Eureka Street is an Australian magazine concerned with public affairs, arts, and theology started in 1989 by Michael Kelly SJ, Morag Fraser, and Adrian Lyons SJ. It was published in paper format for 15 years and was an opinion-forming magazine for many of those years...
, Meanjin
Meanjin
Meanjin is an Australian literary journal. The name - pronounced Mee-AN-jin - is derived from an Aboriginal word for the land where the city Brisbane is located.It was founded in December 1940, in Brisbane, by Clem Christesen...
and The Griffith Review
His first book, Hoax Nation: Australian fakes and frauds from Plato to Norma Khouri, a brief history of Australian hoaxes, was published in November 2009 by Arcade.