The Unknown Judith Wright

Judith Wright (1915-2000) remains a giant figure within Australian art, culture and politics. Her 1946 collection of poetry, The Moving Image, revolutionised Australian poetry. She helped to establish the modern Australian environmental movement and was a key player in early campaigns for Aboriginal land rights. A friend and confidante of artists, writers, scholars, activists and policy makers – she remains an inspiration to many. And yet, as Georgina Arnott is able to show in this major new work, the biographical picture we have had of this renowned poet-activist has been very much a partial one. This book presents a more human figure than we have previously seen, and concentrates on Wright’s younger years. New material allows us to hear, directly, thrillingly, the feisty voice of a young Judith Wright and forces us to reconsider the woman we thought we knew.

Author Biography

Georgina Arnott is a researcher in the History Program at Monash University. In 2013 she received a doctorate in History from the University of Melbourne for her study of the life of Judith Wright. She holds a Masters in Literary Studies, has taught in that field at Swinburne and Victoria universities, and has had a number of articles and book reviews published in Australian journals.