Imagining the 'Oriental' woman: Australian soldiers in Imperial India

Paper

Gehrmann, Richard. 2008. "Imagining the 'Oriental' woman: Australian soldiers in Imperial India." 9th International Women in Asia Conference: Transition and Interchange. Brisbane, Australia 29 Sep - 01 Oct 2008 St Lucia, Australia.

Paper/Presentation Title	Imagining the 'Oriental' woman: Australian soldiers in Imperial India
Presentation Type	Paper
Authors	Gehrmann, Richard
Journal or Proceedings Title	9th International Women in Asia Conference: Transition and Interchange: Conference Handbook
Number of Pages	2
Year	2008
Place of Publication	St Lucia, Australia
Web Address (URL) of Paper	http://asaa.asn.au/asaawomensforum/WIA-ConferenceSept2008.pdf
Conference/Event	9th International Women in Asia Conference: Transition and Interchange
Event Details	9th International Women in Asia Conference: Transition and Interchange Event Date 29 Sep 2008 to end of 01 Oct 2008 Event Location Brisbane, Australia
Abstract	This paper examines the representation of women by Australian soldiers in Imperial India. For many Australians, India is a part of Asia that is often forgotten, despite a long shared history under the auspices of the British Empire. In 1947 neutralist India gained independence from Great Britain just as Australia began to be increasingly identified with the Western Alliance in the Cold War. While Indian and Australian history have moved apart since 1947, in the colonial era significant ties existed between these two subordinate components of the British Empire. This is particularly noteworthy when the military dimensions of the relationship between India and Australia are examined. In the decades prior to Indian independence, several hundred Australian male and female soldiers lived and worked in India either as part of the long term British imperial military establishment, or on short term exchange postings to India. This paper explores the representation of women in India by these soldiers, concluding that unrealistic (and unattainable) 'orientalist imaginings' of the exotic shaped Australian expectations and representations of women at this time.
Keywords	Australia, India, military in India, representation of women
ANZSRC Field of Research 2020	430302. Australian history
	440808. International relations
	440804. Defence studies
	430301. Asian history
Public Notes	No evidence of copyright restrictions preventing deposit.
Byline Affiliations	Department of Humanities and International Studies
Institution of Origin	University of Southern Queensland

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