S1 EP4 ‘Cognitive Imperialism:’ losing the colonial baggage

Who gets to critique First Nations literature — and how should it be taught?

Novelist Melanie Saward and critic Ben Etherington join writer and academic Graham Akhurst to dive into the complex world of reading, teaching, and evaluating First Nations writing.

From the classroom to the review page, they explore the responsibilities that come with critiquing Indigenous stories — and what’s at stake when they’re misread or misunderstood.

Plus, a powerful intervention from the archive by Alexis Wright.

Graham Akhurst is a Kokomini writer and the author of Borderland (UWAP). He is the Director of the Centre for the Advancement of Indigenous Knowledges at UTS and a Senior Lecturer in Indigenous Australian Studies and Creative Writing. As a Fulbright Scholar, Graham took his love for writing to New York City, where he studied for an MFA in Fiction at Hunter College. He is a board member of Varuna: The National Writers’ House, and the Sydney Review of Books. He lives with his wife on Gadigal Country in Sydney and enjoys walking Centennial Park with a good audiobook. 

Melanie Saward is a Bigambul and Wakka Wakka woman, author, academic, and publishing all-rounder.  

Ben Etherington is Associate Professor in English at Western Sydney University. His current research, which is supported by an Australian Research Council grant, is on the poetics of anglophone Caribbean Creole verse between the abolition of slavery and decolonization. He is also collaborating with the Sydney-based Jamaican writer Sienna Brown on a podcast series about the history of Caribbean people in Australia. Ben has previously worked with Alexis Wright on feature on the Gangalidda activist and leader Clarence Walden and has been a regular contributor to the Sydney Review of Books, especially writing on criticism. 

Archival recordings  

Alexis Wright, recorded by Ben Etherington for his students. With thanks to Alexis Wright.  

Further reading 

Jeanine Leane’s essay, ‘Cultural Rigour’, from the Sydney Review of Books.  

Credits

Fully Lit is presented by Anna Funder.

The podcast series is produced, edited and sound designed by Regina Botros.

Sound engineering by Simon Branthwaite.

Executive producers are James Jiang and Sarah Gilbert.

Fully Lit is a co-production between UTS Impact Studios and the Sydney Review of Books, with support from the UTS Writing and Publishing Program.