particularly dreaded). The final rebellion led byRowan, and supported by the narrator, isagainst this sense of time, this loss of temporalinnocence. The apparent success of the rebellioncertainly leaves the reader in a fantasy world, butagain, with a sense of dissatisfaction. The endingis imposed, rather than resolved, by Rowan'sChrist-like self-sacrifice, while none of the issuesare truly clarified. Expelled from the paradise,which, ironically, has been imposed by the cruelMargai, saved from slavery by the heroic Rowan,we wonder: Who will lead the children now? Thewise Narrator? The sometimes-mean Lon? TheEarth-Mother figure, Rada? The book endswhere Golding's Lord of the Flies begins: agroup of isolated children left to set up their ownpower structures.There are no answers to these hauntingquestions. Perhaps there is a sequel in thepipeline. But it is difficult to envisage aresolution to a world where bondage begetsinnocence, and where it is never made clear, orscarcely even hinted at, what may lie beyond ina world of freedom and experience. Flies of aSummer is good enough to raise expectations ofinteresting answers to such questions. Thereforeit is good enough to create disappointment whenthey do not appear.Should Flies of a Summer thus be dismissedas yet another example of "second rate"Australian writing? This would be bothirrelevant and unhelpful. Like much modemAustralian writing, Flies of a Summer displaystalent, energy and imagination, yet also leavesyou wishing that a little more had been done.Notwithstanding these criticisms, there aretwo positive points I would like to make aboutFlies of a Summer. Firstly, the book is well andsimply written, with none of the pretentiousnessthat characterises many fantasy novels. Yet it isthe unobtrusive, the child-like innocence of thewriting (befitting the narrator) that probablyultimately limits the book's perspective in termsof analysis. At the same time, such a modeexpresses the simple human values of thechildren and the primitive ambitions of theMargai. The story-line, too, is well constructedand gripping. But it is far too short to satisfy theimagination.The second point I would like to make indefence of Flies of a Summer relates to the wayit confronts some basic human values andexperiences directly without the distraction oflocal colour and circumstantial detail. It is good114to read an Australian novel that is not beingprovincially "Australian". This is one of theadvantages of using the fantasy mode. I admirethe largeness of Peter Kocan's ambition. Kocanhas taken a step toward writing on a bigger page.It is simply that more needs to happen to fill thatpage satisfactorily.Alan UrquhartWESTERLY, No.2, JUNE, 1989
VIRGINIA BERNARD -Australian literary journals.NOTES ON CONTRIBUTORSis a poet from Victoria and has had her work published in variousRON BLAIR - is a playwright best known for "The Christian Brothers". He lives in Sydney wherehe is a producer for the ABC Radio Drama and Features Department, presenting the weeklyprogramme "Fictions" on Radio National.LAWRENCE BOURKE - is a widely published poet who recently completed a doctoral thesis atthe University of Queensland.SIMON BROWN -ROSEMARY DOBSON -in anthologies.is a freelance writer who lives in Canberra.has published a number of volumes of poetry and is widely representedCONAL FITZPATRICK -lives on the north coast of NSW. He is the author of Wollongong Poems(1984) and was the Marten Bequest Poetry Scholar for 1987-88.P. GALLASCH - spends a large portion of her time submitting her yet unpublished novel, HappyFamilies, to publishers. The expense of this endeavour however has forced her to return to lecturingwith TAFE to offset the exorbitant cost of stamps.CHRISTINE GODFREY - was born in India in 1957; she left in 1960 for England and came toAustralia in 1972. "Worlds" is her third published short story. She has been published in Southerlyand Fremantle Arts Review.AMANDA GOME - was born in Melbourne in 1960. She graduated from Monash University afterspending three years living in Japan. She now works as a journalist for The Herald in Melbourne.GEOFF GOODFELLOW's first collection of poetry No Collars No Cuffs is now in its fourth printing,and his forthcoming book Bow Tie & Tails will be launched during August 1989.STEPHEN HALL -Western Australia.was born in England and has completed a Law degree at the University ofPAUL HETHERINGTON - is Publications and Promotions Co-ordinator at Fremantle Arts Centreand has had poems published in a number of Australian literary magazines.JAN KEMP - is a New Zealander and teaches English at the National University of Singapore.She writes poems and short stories.JEAN KENT - grew up in rural Queensland, but now lives near Lake Macquarie, NSW. Her poemsand stories have been published in magazines and anthologies, and she was a joint winner of the1988 National Library Poetry Prize.PETER KIRKPATRICK -lives in Sydney, and is writing a book about its literary bohemians ofthe 1920s.MARGOT LUKE -is a writer and critic living in Perth.STEPHEN MAGEE - left Belfast in 1971. He is a barrister and former union official, married withtwo children and living in Sydney. His poetry has been published in a number of magazines.JENNIFER MAIDEN -JOHN McCALLUM -is a poet who lives at Penrith, NSW.teaches in Theatre Studies at the University of NSW.SHANE McCAULEY - lives in Perth. His book of poems, The Chinese Feast, was published byFremantle Arts Centre Press in 1984.BRIAN MOON - is a teacher of English at secondary and tertiary levels. He is currently undertakingpostgraduate studies at Curtin University.ROD MORAN - is a graduate of Melbourne University. He works as a freelance journalist andauthor. His two books of poetry are Highrise Sniper, (1982) and Against the Era (1988).WESTERLY, No.2, JUNE, 1989 115
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CONTENTSWESTERLYVOLUME 34, No.2, JU
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WESTERLYa quarterly reviewISSN 0043
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JAN KEMPTo My Father, M.H.K.My fath
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JAN KEMPThe GypsySuddenly before yo
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WONG PHUI NAMA Death in the WardThe
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WONG PHUI NAMCousinI had to call to
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WONG PHUI NAMObitIt is as thin smok
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So thus I lie here fearful of movem
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VIRGINIA BERNARDA ValedictionWhen N
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"Yeah, yeah," I call, returning the
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she flops for a bit, slurps her tea
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well her students did, she was neve
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English or Indian, that they had th
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ANDREW TAYLORSpringSpring is a dive
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CAROL SElTZERAiming for the MouthTr
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GRAEME WILSONA Selection of Japanes
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a highly ambivalent attitude to his
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Esson attended some rehearsals of T
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the literary life of Bloomsbury. Lo
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Without Yeats Esson would quite lik
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"What theatre do you have in Austra
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In the back room Esson could feel t
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"When we started our little theatre
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a screen against a wall. A theatre
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VINCENT O'SULLIVANSinging Mastery:
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flighty relation in most statements
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living and the dead; that places hi
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quite diverse traditions towards th
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WARRICK WYNNEThe Wetlands (for Liam
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JAN OWENSmileOur mother aimed the b
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RICHARD KELLY TIPPINGOlympic Airway
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