In this essay I will put this claim to the test by analysing the structure of two Australian films, ‘On Our Selection’ and ’Robbery Under Arms’. I will look carefully at the various ways in which these films reproduce Australia’s quest for national identity, through prominent portrayals of masculinity and male orientated films. By delving into how each of the films illustrates, that even today the ideals and values of the bush survive as a powerful endorsement of Australia’s origins as a ‘bush’ nation, bestowed in mythical terms. The uniqueness of Australian films, which seem to employ a particular style and attitude are not seen in mainstream Hollywood flicks, or those from other countries. As Australian film seeks to define an essential Australianness, they tend to adhere closely to a particular template, while slightly varying the ways in which they represent and resolve conflicts and the ways in

Australian national identity in the past was created on the basis of an assumed masculinity; this unwritten proclamation appeared to lie at the heart of Australian self-image. Women had a tendency to be seen in a subordinate role, but with a touch of the vigour and resilience of males as well. This male oriented image of Australianness is evident in both films, particularly in ‘Robbery Under Arms’ were the women are seen purely as the sexual other. However femininity in ‘On Our Selection’ is brought to another level in the sense that their opinions are also foregrounded during the film, one example of this can be seen in their fight to be able to vote in the elections. Yet this is not a prominent feature of the film as the women are still playing a subsidiary role to their fellow male characters. This depiction of masculinity, where the feminine appears as a support for the male, is significant to Australian national imaginary. This reflects the cultural values of the early Australian nation in a male oriented dimension as well as the “existence of a counter-tradition of strong female types and images.” (Seminar 1, page 9) The desire to signify Australia exclusively in terms of a pioneering spirit involving ordinary workingmen submitting themselves to hard unremitting manual labour, as seen throughout the film ‘On Our Selection’, is responsible for this masculine self-image. It is therefore candid to say that the films ‘On Our Selection’ and ‘Robbery under Arms’ both perpetuate the ‘Australian Myth’ of idealised masculinity.

“This unconventional farming family who didn’t give a damn about authorities, or the conditions, made this land what it is today” here we see an early version of the ‘Aussie Battler’ fighting off the forces of large scale capital in order to protect his small piece of Australia. This persistence featured in many early ‘bush’ films is typical to the cultural values held by many Australians, exposing the fervent zeal imbedded in the hearts of countless Australians’. This template of stability which progresses to instability through conflict and intervention, then as the problem is res

Some topics in this essay:
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