School of Historical and Philosophical Studies - Theses
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ItemA history of occupational health in Victoria until 1980( 1998)A History of Occupational Health in Victoria until 1980 In the flurry of activity in occupational health which began in the late 1970s, the impression was often given that nothing had been done before. In fact the State Governments made a considerable contribution to occupational health prior to this time, a contribution that has not previously been documented. The main theme of the thesis is the role of science in the prevention of occupational disease, with emphasis on the scientific work of the State Occupational Health Divisions, particularly in Victoria. Subsidiary themes concern the public administration of occupational health; the history of union involvement in occupational health; and the effect on occupational health of the changing political climate in the 1970s. The history of occupational health in Victoria began around 1900 with concern about the health of miners. In the beginning most of the work - including the chemical analysis of industrial pollutants - was done by physicians rather than scientists. In 1937 the Industrial Hygiene Division was set up in the Department of Health under the direction of,-- Dr D.O. Shiels. Eventually specialist inspectors and scientists, later known as Industrial Hygienists, were employed in the Division, an arrangement that continued until 1982. In that year the election of a Labor government in Victoria marked the start of a new attitude to occupational health, which placed less emphasis on a scientific approach to_ the assessment of occupational health hazards and more on the use of industrial relations as a means of protecting workers health. The history until the 1980's divides into three eras: prior to 1937; from 1937 - 1956 when Dr D.O. Shiels was appointed Industrial Hygiene Medical Officer in the Department of Health and established the Industrial Hygiene Division; and from 1956 - 1980 when the Division was under the control of Dr A.J. Christophers. Within this chronological framework, the thesis illustrates the effect on occupational health of various labour, industrial and governmental activities by means of a series of small case studies. These are: (i) the anthrax deaths in the 1950s which illustrate the IHD's scientific approach to problem-solving; (ii) the phosphine inquests which illustrate some of the attitudes of unions, employers and expert witnesses; (iii) a case of arsenic poisoning, claimed to be due to eating contaminated mussels and said to be a government cover-up; iv) the involvement of the IHD in other environmental health issues; (v) the 1951 Benzene Regulations which resulted in the cessation of the use of benzene as a solvent, despite the initial reaction from industry that no substitute was available; (vi) the wharf on-call service and the attitude of the waterside workers; (vii) the cases of methyl chloride poisoning that resulted in the promulgation of the Methyl Chloride Regulations banning the use of methyl chloride as a refrigerant; (viii) the story of asbestos in the blue Harris trains, which illustrates the differing attitudes of scientists and workers to the question of risk assessment, standard-setting and the acceptability of occupational risk; (ix) the activities of the IHD in monitoring exposures to asbestos and silica, illustrating some of the constraints under which the Division worked. (x) the response of the IHD to radiation hazards, which illustrates the effect of current social concerns on the direction of public policy. Written by Janet Sowden April 1998
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ItemThe mining collection of the National Museum of Victoria 1856-1871( 1990)The Museum of Victoria holds one of the world's great nineteenth century mining collections. This is due to the foresight and energy of Frederick McCoy (1817-1899), director of the National Museum of Victoria from 1857 until his death in 1899. He collected for the museum in many fields, but it was his role as Chairman of the Mining Commission of Victoria during 1856-58 that provided the impetus and funding to commence a mining collection. Models were commissioned, mining tools and implements were collected and a large body of documentary material was assembled by McCoy to support the collection. Particular strengths were models and tools from Victoria, Saxony, the Harz Mountains, the Ural region of Russia, and the United Kingdom. In 1871 the mining collection (along with the agricultural collection) was separated from the natural history specimens at the National Museum and transferred to the newly constituted Industrial and Technological Museum, precursor to the Museum of Victoria, Division of Science and Technology. This break with McCoy's control over the mining collection has provided an appropriate point of termination for this present work although sufficient evidence is included to show that the collection reached its zenith in its earliest years and then declined. The catastrophic disposal of part of the collection following the Second World War is also documented. The collection comprised approximately. 300 items at its greatest extent although I have only been able to locate about one third of these items. All models acquired prior to 1871 are included in the catalogue which comprises Appendix One of this study. This study explores the notion that such a collection, extraordinary for a colonial institution, was assembled by McCoy for the purpose of technical education for miners. In this, McCoy was following the 'metropolitan' model of the Museum of Practical Geology in London and influential mining academies in Freiberg, Clausthal and Paris. That he succeeded in assembling a world class model collection is proved beyond doubt and this study examines changing views about the relevance of such a collection for local conditions. A shift in McCoy's thinking about technical education for miners is highlighted against the background of his unsuccessful quest to establish a school of mines at the University of Melbourne in conjunction with the mining collection under his control at the National Museum of Victoria. Contemporary opinion is also marshalled in an attempt to judge the success of McCoy's aspirations. Such opinion is interspersed in the chronological narrative of the first six chapters, while the final chapter summarises this evidence and presents some general conclusions. The central theme of technical education for miners is also examined in light of subsidiary themes such as the debate over the most appropriate location of the museum. and its implications for the users of the museum; the changing nature of Victoria's mining industry during the two decades 1851-71 and how this affected the collection; the nature of colonial patent legislation and its relationship with the mining collection; the impact of intercolonial and international exhibitions on the museum; and the role of the museum in nineteenth century culture and in particular the role of the National Museum in the culture of colonial Victoria. This study also draws upon and makes accessible for future researchers an important and almost totally neglected source of information about nineteenth century mining technology in both the colonial and international context.
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ItemSome foundations of science in Victoria in the decade after separation( 1990)The decade following separation from New South Wales must surely be considered one of the most dramatic in Victoria's history. In that short space of time Victoria was transformed from a small dependent colony into a bustling cosmopolitan self-governing community of enormous wealth, completely outstripping its neighbours in the process. There had been an influx of migrants of such magnitude that the civil authorities found it very difficult to keep up with the population explosion. It must at times have seemed to them to be an impossible task to provide food, housing, water, power, roads and transport, sewerage and other amenities adequate to cope with the increasing number of people pouring into the colony. Added to this were problems of civil insurrection, severe economic depression, major constitutional reforms, and great political instability. During this period, despite all the trials and difficulties they had to face, Victorians developed a real sense that they were the premier colony, that they could achieve. whatever they set out to accomplish. There was a great feeling of optimism and self-confidence.
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ItemThe Chinese in Victoria: a longterm survey( 1993)The thesis is divided into three parts. Part One is headed by a fairly broad historiographic review into past works on the Chinese in Australia. This is followed by a brief introduction to the historical and cultural background of the immigrants and the character of their migration. An examination of the passive and proudly in different responses of the Chinese to Victorian anti-Chinese legislation concludes this section. The stress of this final chapter is on the overall lack of influence of the White Australian Policy on the behaviour of the Chinese. Part Two examines the sojourning sentiments of the Chinese and how they affected the sex and age distribution of the population, their choice and method of work, their accommodation and quality of life. Part Three begins by contrasting the impact of science and technology on Australia and China and the focus will be on China’s peripheral position in the industrial world. The insecurity of the Chinese in the industrialising environment of Australia will be considered. This will be contrasted by the more accommodating cultural milieu of Southeast Asia and the important thread of Chinese culture and traditions throughout the region’s history. The importance of the ‘modified’ or ‘mixed’ version of the family business in assisting the rise of the Chinese in the Southeast Asian region will be discussed. The final part of the thesis will suggest that the decline of the Victorian Chinese in the four occupations of alluvial mining, furniture-making, market-gardening and laundering was significantly affected by an inflexible attitude to technology. It is argued that the Chinese did not apply science and advanced equipment when it was prudent to do so. The conclusion will summarise the main argument and suggest its relevance for the modern overseas Chinese communities.
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ItemA charm in distance: the Victorian anti-transportation movement 1844-1864( 1993)In the late 1840s and early 1850s, in what was then still called the Port Phillip District, a significant social and political unrest gripped the colony. A discourse emerged amongst the young society's most respected members, and it was eagerly followed by virtually all elements of that society, down to the most humble tradesman. This often heated discussion targeted many enemies, among them some of the colony's venerated and wealthy squatter gentry. From this more immediate target, the rhetoric shifted to the Government - first, the government of the Port Phillip District, then to the Home Government in London. In July, 1851, the Port Phillip District separated from New South Wales to form the colony of Victoria. Immediately afterwards, the discourse united the new colony with other Australian colonies - and within but one year, this same dialogue would estrange Victoria from her neighbours, as well as the Mother Country. The source of this occasionally dramatic debate was the influx of convicted felons into the Port Phillip District and its successor, the colony of Victoria. For several years, it engaged the attention of the colony's newspapers and politicians, mechanics and barristers, established pastoralists and recently arrived urbanites. The impact of felons went beyond mere questions of crime. The convict was an affront to national pride, as evinced by the words of the anti-transportationists. But what sort of national pride was being defended in this struggle? To understand the source of this discussion, and to comprehend how and why it took the forms it did, it is necessary to place this phenomenon in a larger historical context. (From introduction)
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ItemShadows on the landscape: memorial aspects of the Great Ocean Road( 1999)Victoria's commemorative landscape is made up of a series of natural and constructed features comprising roads, bridges, memorial sculptures, avenues of honour, coastal fortifications and military memorabilia, yet their memorializing function is largely unrecognized by the general population. Some of these memorials have been linked with the scenic landscape and have become privileged as tourist sites. Their original meanings, however, have been blurred by twentieth century progress. This thesis examines one component of Australia's memorial landscape, the Great Ocean Road in South West Victoria, and questions whether there is a parallel between the Western concept of a memorial landscape and the notions of spirituality in the land which are a primary component of the belief structure of indigenous peoples. This leads to an examination of the local geographical landscape in relation to Aboriginal massacre sites, and a questioning of the congruence between such sites and the now memorialized battlefields of World War 1. Chapter One deals with the history of the Great Ocean Road and traces its development and construction from 1916 to 1932. Chapter Two examines the place of the Great Ocean Road in the overall scheme of post World War 1 memorialization, and questions why its original function has been so little recognized by the community. Chapter Three looks at the complex relationships between the physical and spiritual elements of the land as perceived by Aboriginal culture, investigates the Aboriginal massacre sites within close proximity to the Great Ocean Road, and questions why no memorials have been raised to Aborigines who died defending their land. The theoretical base of the thesis is supported by the notion that landscape is socially and culturally determined, and that place can be invested with spiritual potency. Finally, it is argued that for a place to retain its spiritual strength, regardless of the culture, the spiritual content must be recognized, ritualized and constantly refreshed within the culture.
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ItemMaking the deserts bloom: attitudes towards water and nature in the Victorian irrigation debate, 1880-1890( 1994)In 1836 Major Thomas Mitchell and his gaggle of supply carts, Europeans and Aboriginal interpreters camped on a river and named it Moonlight Creek. Those who followed after Mitchell called the town that grew up near Moonlight Creek “Kerang”, which was supposedly the local Koori word for moonlight. Locals now tell visitors Kerang means “moon over water.” Kerang lies north of Bendigo and south east of Swan Hill. It is part of the area known as northern Victoria. In the past it has been called the northern plains or regarded as part of Australia Felix. The major characteristic of this area is its dependence on water. Water was a major preoccupation of Major Mitchell, as it has been for all those who followed him. Water had both symbolic and practical applications. It has been used as a symbol which unified the experience of European settlers with those who followed them. In part this association can be explained by the ancient European image of the river as a symbol of endurance and of “changeless change”. A river seems to be continually changing between historical, linear time and future cyclical time, between a definite spatial context, and one which is continuous. At Swan Hill, residents have built a monument to their pioneers surrounded by a pool of water. The monument offers clues to the complex relationship between water and society, and attempts to impose a dominant meaning on this relationship. The monument stands at the entrance of Swan Hill’s major tourist attraction, the Pioneer Settlement, a recreation of a nineteenth century pioneer town where local residents in period costume sell boiled lollies and horse rides to tourists. (From Introduction)
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ItemBodies in revolt: a look at three Melbourne based performance artists( 1995)This thesis considers the work of three locally based performance artists; Jill Orr, Linda Sproul and Stelarc. Their performance work will be discussed with specific reference to the ways in which the human body is used and signified. Performance art is an anti-formalist practice which addresses embodied existence by placing 'the body' at the fore of the performance event. I will explore the themes which arise out of the selected performances by these well known performance artists, and in particular, I will demonstrate that the lived human body is continuously produced and reproduced through enactments, rendering essentialist notions of sex, gender and identity outdated. The human body is viewed as always and already mediated by the social and the cultural as well as the biological. The following discussion will also unleash an attack on a western philosophical tradition which has cast the body as a fixed and purely natural entity.
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ItemTwentieth century stained glass in Melbourne churches( 1997)This present study is intended to supplement the documented knowledge on Melbourne's church stained glass and to examine the major threads that run concurrently through the century: the continuation of nineteenth century images, techniques and themes and the influence of modernism on stained glass. It seemed appropriate to chronologically follow from Down's closing date of 1910, subsequently revised to cover the early years of the century and to close with the flurry of activity surrounding the Bicentennial Year, 1988. (From introduction)