Abstract
In this article, we explore the notion of legacy through the ways graziers in Outback Queensland, Australia, draw on material, narrative, and embodied traces of past ‘events’ to emplot their lives during times of uncertainty. Through an ethnography of pastoral work and storytelling on stations, or ranches, we show how settler-colonial narratives of the frontier and legacy circulate as affective forces in pastoralists' daily lives and become embodied through labour. We argue that pastoral families respond to both the failure of modernist grand narratives and more personal events by renegotiating stories of the frontier to legitimate their ongoing presence in Outback Australia and give meaning to their lives. While these narratives are existentially useful for pastoralists, we argue that they remain tied to exclusionary and unsustainable structures and ideologies that prevent pastoralists from adjusting to contemporary crises.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 18-38 |
| Number of pages | 21 |
| Journal | Oceania |
| Volume | 94 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Mar 2024 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:Part of the research undertaken for this paper was funded through an Australian Postgraduate Award and the University of Queensland Alfred Midgley Award. Special thanks to Sally Babidge and Victor Igreja who supported the research process, to Alexander D'Aloia, Stef Puszka, and Diana Romano who provided feedback on earlier drafts of this paper, to the anonymous reviewers for their thoughtful comments, and to the editors of . Open access publishing facilitated by The University of Queensland, as part of the Wiley ‐ The University of Queensland agreement via the Council of Australian University Librarians. Oceania
Funding Information:
Part of the research undertaken for this paper was funded through an Australian Postgraduate Award and the University of Queensland Alfred Midgley Award. Special thanks to Sally Babidge and Victor Igreja who supported the research process, to Alexander D'Aloia, Stef Puszka, and Diana Romano who provided feedback on earlier drafts of this paper, to the anonymous reviewers for their thoughtful comments, and to the editors of Oceania. Open access publishing facilitated by The University of Queensland, as part of the Wiley - The University of Queensland agreement via the Council of Australian University Librarians.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 The Authors. Oceania published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of University of Sydney.