Abstract
In Seven Poor Men of Sydney (1934), Christina Stead evokes the cityâs history in her naming of the Tank Stream Press, the novelâs central location. The fresh water Tank Stream assured the colonyâs survival in its fledgling years; however, it soon became an open sewer and was buried as a stormwater drain in order to maintain public health. This essay argues that Stead uses the Tank Streamâs watery history to shape a narrative about cultural life and urban modernity in early twentieth-century Sydney. The functioning of the business is informed by the streamâs various identities of essential water supply, sewer and drain: at times, it seems as if culture and learning may usher in an intellectual and internationalist utopia in the city, liberating the minds and bodies of those who inhabit it; at others, all such hope is lost. The narrative Stead develops around the printery and its employees brings local place into contact with transnational socialist and other intellectual discourses, and links both to culture as a material, interactive force within the urban milieu. Through a close reading of the Tank Stream Press, this essay explores the novelâs conflicted vision of culture, politics and urbanity in modern Sydney.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have