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A review by whatcourtneyreads
Dark Emu by Bruce Pascoe
3.0
Dark Emu ruffled a few feathers (pardon the pun) when it was published a couple years back, for boldly suggesting that the whitewashed, coloniser history we were taught in school in Australia was wrong. Colour me shocked!
Pascoe explains that despite the narrative of First Nations people in Australia being primitive, hunter-gatherer types, evidence actually suggests that they used techniques resembling agriculture, such as controlled burning to allow seeds to spread and dormant plants to grow, and the farming of tubers. In addition, they sewed clothes, built dwellings, and used complex fishing contraptions. Basically, this book rewrites the idea that Aboriginal people had no skills or organisation, and were living off the land haphazardly, which was the justification for colonisation.
The content was really interesting and enlightening. However, the delivery was very dry and scholarly, and I often found myself having to rewind; it reminded me very much of the kind of text that would be prescribed at university. Potentially it’s the kind of topic that lends itself to this, but it did end up feeling like a bit of a slog despite its short length.
I’m hoping things have changed since my primary school education in the 90s, but I would love to see this content taught in schools across Australia. There is even a Young Dark Emu, which is the same book rewritten for kids, so there’s no excuse to not start ‘em young.
Pascoe explains that despite the narrative of First Nations people in Australia being primitive, hunter-gatherer types, evidence actually suggests that they used techniques resembling agriculture, such as controlled burning to allow seeds to spread and dormant plants to grow, and the farming of tubers. In addition, they sewed clothes, built dwellings, and used complex fishing contraptions. Basically, this book rewrites the idea that Aboriginal people had no skills or organisation, and were living off the land haphazardly, which was the justification for colonisation.
The content was really interesting and enlightening. However, the delivery was very dry and scholarly, and I often found myself having to rewind; it reminded me very much of the kind of text that would be prescribed at university. Potentially it’s the kind of topic that lends itself to this, but it did end up feeling like a bit of a slog despite its short length.
I’m hoping things have changed since my primary school education in the 90s, but I would love to see this content taught in schools across Australia. There is even a Young Dark Emu, which is the same book rewritten for kids, so there’s no excuse to not start ‘em young.