School of Historical and Philosophical Studies - Theses
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ItemFrom Achilles to Anzac: classical receptions in the Australian Anzac narrative( 2016)The Anzac narrative lies at the heart of Australian national identity and this thesis demonstrates how its authors have drawn upon classical narratives to attain and maintain this position. Since the first Australian soldiers landed on Gallipoli’s beaches at dawn on 25 April 1915, allusions to the classical world have been drawn upon to compose the Anzac narrative. The proximity of Gallipoli to the presumed site of the legendary Trojan War (on the other side of the Dardanelles) ignited the imaginations of soldiers, journalists, historians, poets, novelists, artists and politicians. From the outset, Anzac soldiers were likened to ancient Greek warrior heroes and the Gallipoli campaign was compared with the mythical Trojan War. After the Great War ended, large-scale commemoration of those killed in service to their nation commenced in Australia. The idealised image of the Anzac soldier based on the ancient warrior heroes from mythical narratives endured during this period, but was coupled with ideologies from fifthcentury BCE Hellenic democracies, which venerated those soldiers who died in service to their state in order that their deeds be remembered for evermore. Anzac commemoration, like the commemoration of ancient Greek citizen-soldiers, was focussed on equal recognition for all those who died, and memorialised the dead in such a way that their sacrifices inspired the surviving citizens to dedicate themselves to the improvement of their community for future generations. Integral to the coupling of ancient Greek and Anzac commemorative practices was the Australian War Correspondent and Official Historian, C.E.W. Bean. Bean was classically educated and drew on his knowledge of the past to create a detailed record of wartime events as a legacy for the Australian people of the time, and also those of the future. To provide context, the thesis commences with a survey of classical reception in Australia prior to the Great War. It then traces the many ways the classics were drawn upon to compose the Anzac narrative. During the war, journalistic, literary, historical and personal narratives focussed on the strength and beauty of the Anzac soldier, and comparisons to the heroes of ancient Greek mythology were common. After the war, commemorative efforts dwelt on the magnitude of sacrifice, emphasising that building a prosperous Australian future would ensure that these losses incurred would not be in vain. To do this, democratic commemorative practices and funerary rituals of fifthcentury ancient Greek states were employed in Australian commemorative efforts. These established a strong link between Anzac commemoration and ancient Greek ancestor hero cults. After the Second World War, the Anzac narrative dwindled before being revived in the 1980s, in part, by Peter Weir’s film Gallipoli, which transformed the imperialist Anzac narrative into a nationalist story of Australian maturity and independence for a new generation of Australians in need of a distinct national identity. The classics have been written into the very foundations of the Anzac narrative and function to elide space and time, connecting the Australian people to Europe and the Western tradition. Associating Anzac deeds with the classical tradition positioned Australia as a descendant of great civilisations and has ultimately shaped a cult of Anzac reminiscent of ancient Greek ancestor hero cults.