Alison Broinowski

The Yellow Lady is the first major critique of Australian impressions of Asia. Alison Broinowski argues that Australians have been backward in developing an appropriate image of themselves because of their ignorance of and ambivalence towards Asians. She traces the history of Australian ideas about Asia and the Pacific from pre-colonial time to the present, and concludes that some of these perceptions, no matter how irrational or archaic, continue to underlie the political and economic decisions Australians make about the Asia-Pacific region. No one has ever looked so exhaustively at Australian images of Asia. Alison Broinowski, a longtime diplomat and writer about Asian issues, identifies these images, where they come from, and how they have changed or not changed. She investigates artists who took an interest in Asia and why they did so. They include visual artists, novelists, film-makers, composers, architects, poets, potters, playwrights, photographers, puppeteers and choreographers. Japan receives the greatest attention as a continuing source of both modernity and tradition. Beginning with early Aboriginal contact with Indonesians, The Yellow Lady shows how chances for harmonious co-existence with the neighbourhood were lost in the colonial period. Successive wars set back this process of adaptation. In the final section, as increasing numbers of Asians migrate to Australia and Asian countries become economically dominant, Australian images of Asia undergo rapid change. Alison Broinowski argues that until Asia is accepted as part of the mainstream of Australian life, Australians will remain uncertain about their status, and that, if Australia's international image is to change, itmust begin by acknowledging the reality of Asia.

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