White is an exceptionally gifted and stylistically unique modernist. In 1973, on the publication of his ninth novel The Eye of the Storm, the Swedish Academy announced their award to him of the Nobel Prize for Literature, on the grounds that ‘his epic narrative art, skilfully depicting human psychology, has introduced a new continent to the world of literature.’

Most of White’s work takes Australian society as its setting and reflects Australian life and thought with strong period colouring and a rich local flavour. However, in matters of style and technique, he stands apart from the traditional Australian novelists. Whether in his choice of language or overall composition, he is in a class of his own. For this reason, White’s writing constitutes a new milestone in the history of Australian literature and has created world-wide interest in Australia.

In his early years, White was strongly influenced by European culture, imitating the techniques of English authors such as Joyce, Woolf, and D.H. Lawrence. In his actual writing, he advocated the exploration of the innerworld with a dissection of the human soul in order to explain and to mirror the immense complexities of the subjective world. Seen in this light, the success of White’s novels lies not in the twists and turns of the plot but in the brilliance of his delineation of the psyche, and this feature makes his style unique. White’s exploration of the human personality (hidden beneath the surface of everyday life and easily overlooked) embraces the search for the causes of fatal human imperfections and the pursuit of an essential meaning of life.

White’s most important novels – The Tree of Man, Voss, and The Eye of the Storm – are panoramic in scope, full of power, and brilliant in delineation. The Tree of Man is a highly detailed account of the opening up of the Australian interior, with all the ‘dynamism and scope of epic poetry’. Voss is a paean to the search for the ideal kingdom of the human spirit and it eulogises modern figures who, regardless of hardship and danger, were willing to sacrifice themselves for the good of future generations. The Eye of the Storm was ‘the grand distillation of his work over 25 years’, an immortal masterpiece and a total synthesis of his main concerns, techniques, and narrative art.

Because of White’s decisive influence on the Australian literary scene, especially considering his prestige and position after winning the Nobel Prize, a new school of novelists gradually emerged with White at its centre. It included Hal Porter (Ha’er Bote), Randolph Stow (Lundaofu Situo), and Thomas Keneally (Tuomasi Jinili), and contended with the traditionalists for supremacy in literary circles.

The difference between the two schools made itself clear in the following ways. The traditionalists upheld realism and in terms of content, placed the most importance on describing the conflict between individuals and their surroundings – the contradictions and struggles between humanity and nature, and between individuals and society. The White school, in contrast, showed more interest in exploring the interior psychological world of people and pondered deeply the value of the self. As for technique, the traditionalists emphasised a finely detailed reality and continuity of plot for the purpose of obtaining a perfect reflection of the objective world. The White school, on the basis of the particularities of the human psyche, employed a discontinuous, non­linear presentation in place of continuous narrative. They also used stream-of-consciousness techniques – fantasy and association – to create a tightly-woven network. By proceeding from one point to another, they were able to link the feelings of the here and now with the personal experiences of the other times and places, in this way transcending the barriers of time and space. Such multi-layered and multi-faceted structures embraced all aspects of life, bringing together the most diverse elements in one whole, while at the same time revealing the confused inner world of people and the complicated world we actually live in. Furthermore, the White school (and especially White himself) all used metaphor in particular, and symbol – in their own unpredictable ways – frequently endowed certain events or plot details with symbolic force. Like pearls on a thread, gems of language are strung together to enchant us. Often, however, it is difficult to grasp the essential meaning of such metaphors because they are so unusual, even to the point of being incomprehensible. Add to this a frequent use of language which is overly self-conscious and a tendency towards obscurity and it becomes clear that, even though the novelists of the White school are masters of language (and a veritable goldmine for researchers), the readability of their work often suffers.

From the 1970s up to the present day, the traditional school and the White school are the two main forces on the Australian literary scene. However, because of the changes in the world’s political climate, Australia’s involvement in international affairs is becoming increasingly pronounced, and a wide range of cultural influences and new intellectual trends are flowing into the country. Amidst these conflicting influences, a group of writers has emerged, making a showy display of their abilities and advocating a complete rejection of tradition (believing that the White school has not gone far enough). They wish to highlight the ‘international flavour’ of Australian literature and painstakingly strive to achieve a totally new form of narrative art, incorporating surrealism, magical realism, and black humour (modes presently very popular in both the United States and Latin America) into their own creative practice – a reflection of urban landscapes and the values of the intelligentsia. The most lively representatives of this group include Michael Wilding (Maike’er Wei’erding), Frank Moorhouse (Folanke Mu’erhaosi), and Peter Carey (Bide Kali). They have been dubbed the ‘New School’ of Australian writers. Although the numbers and influence of this new school is still small in comparison to the two major literary schools discussed above, these new writers have vigour and potential on their side. If they continue to develop, there is a possibility that the Australian literary scene will be divided into three groups, each competing against and complementing the others to the enrichment of cultural life.

Parallel with this, another trend should be pointed out. More and more Australians (including writers) are beginning to turn their attention to Asia, adopting elements of Asian culture, including the ancient cultural tradition of China. This concept was first given political expression by the Whitlam government in 1972. Well-known author and editor of Australian Short Stories Bruce Pascoe wrote the following in his preface to Dángdai Aodaliya zhongduanbian xiaoshuoxuan (Selected Short Stories of Contemporary Australia) which is about to be published in China: ‘The influence of Anglo­European politics and culture will still be with us; the plays of Shakespeare will continue to be read in the classrooms; the paintings of Monet and Van Gogh will still hang on our walls; and the music of Beethoven and Mozart will still ring in our ears. Nevertheless, we will gradually come to consider our country as an Asian nation and not a Western one.’

He goes on to say; ‘I hope that the number of Australians visiting China will continue to increase, and those wishing to go back to the ‘Old Country’ – only two generations back, many Australians considered England to be their spiritual birthplace – will steadily grow less.’

This trend is, in fact, an inevitable consequence of the influence of geographical conditions – within particular social and historical conditions – on cultural development. Today, many tertiary institutions in Australia have Asian Studies Centres and increasing numbers of experts and scholars are devoting their energies to the study of the cultural traditions of the countries of Asia and the Pacific Rim, as well as exploring the links between Australia’s cultural heritage and these nations (indeed, it is still possible that the first people to discover this island continent were in fact the Chinese).

At the same time, more and more emphasis is being placed on the study of Australia’s indigenous peoples to produce a deeper understanding. This research is closely linked with the whole history of Australian culture and has become an important part of the overall research program in Australia. A growing amount of art and literature reflects the Aboriginal people’s historical traditions, lifestyles, customs, and the devastating impact of white settlement, and there is now a substantial number of Aboriginal poets, artists, and

writers.

This deepening interest in the East (Asia, the Pacific Rim, and the indigenous population of Australia) is coming to be reflected in art and literature, and, as a result, a new Australian culture is coming into prominence, combining the best of European and Asian cultural traditions, thus opening a new chapter in the history of Australian literature.