Backbencher

Dr. Troy Whitford, of the Charles Sturt University at Wagga Wagga, lectured about Australia: A Short History of Mentality. This lecture focused on Australian history and the rise of Australian values and ideas. Those main values and ideas were materialism, being entrepreneurial and self-reliance. This all headed towards the development of a middle-class mentality. We started with talking about some key historical events in Australia. A few of these events were initial settlement and the colony, the Eureka Stockade, the beginning of the Federation, the 1920s in Australia and the post World War II era. One thing we stuck on for a minute was the British governments being anti-single parent. Dr. Whitford said that some girls were sent to live in orphanages if they did not have a father at home. He also mentioned that if a convict was freed, he received forty acres, twenty more acres if he got married, and twenty more acres for each child the couple had. Another point he stressed was that after World War II, lots of money went into the housing markets. To some Australians owning their own home was a big key to being considered a responsible citizen. This helped to lead to the rise in the middle-class mentality.
I thought this lecture was very interesting to listen to. I really enjoyed listening to Dr. Whitford talk and hear the questions others had for him. I was also interested to hear that Australians have been so influenced by American culture, like when Dr. Whitford was talking about The Cosby Show and Elvis. Overall, I really enjoyed this lecture.

Ashleigh Pust