Abstract
The struggles of the 1890s have been told and retold in the pages of Australian
historiography. The defeat of the great strikes, the emergence of the Labor Party
and the disappointment of political radicalism have preoccupied successive
generations of scholars and activists. Indeed some have shaped the 'legend of the
'90s' into a national mystique; a cause for celebration or regret.1 For all the debate
which surrounds this formative period of Australian history,2 our knowledge of
the 1890s is alarmingly incomplete. Notwithstanding the achievements of recent
scholarship, social histories of the depression remain comparatively few. We still
have a very inadequate understanding of those the depression hurt the most: the
unemployed
historiography. The defeat of the great strikes, the emergence of the Labor Party
and the disappointment of political radicalism have preoccupied successive
generations of scholars and activists. Indeed some have shaped the 'legend of the
'90s' into a national mystique; a cause for celebration or regret.1 For all the debate
which surrounds this formative period of Australian history,2 our knowledge of
the 1890s is alarmingly incomplete. Notwithstanding the achievements of recent
scholarship, social histories of the depression remain comparatively few. We still
have a very inadequate understanding of those the depression hurt the most: the
unemployed
Original language | English |
---|---|
Article number | Australian Historical Studies, no. 94 (April 1990): 41-63. |
Pages (from-to) | 41-63 |
Number of pages | 23 |
Journal | Australian Historical Studies |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 1990 |