Australian and American Settler Capitalism: The Importance of a Comparison and its Curious Neglect

Abstract

Why is Australia so little known about and studied in the United States when prima facie it is one of the best comparators for America; and why do Australian comparativists often ignore the American case? The discourse of difference has predominated in America rather than the discourse of similarity. But in Australia the opposite has been true. Here an equally powerful theme has been one of searching for comparisons, similarities, and generalities between Australia and other nations and societies. Through thinking about answers to these questions, partly via a discussion of some recent writing on America and Australia, this essay argues a case for the necessity for comparison within a world history perspective. More particularly, it argues that American intellectuals and journalists should pay more attention to comparators like Australia since its similarity with America affords valuable insights into American history, politics, economy, society, and institutions, just as the converse has proven to be valuable.

The Eco-Frontier Paradigm: Rethinking the Links between Space, Nature and Politics

“…This first generation combines two intricate processes: the romantic traveller's era, with naturalist explorers and romantic artists becoming preservationists; and the expansion of conservationism in the territories of great Empires such as the United Kingdom 24 and its colonies (mainly Eastern and Southern Africa 25 , Australia, New Zealand and Canada) and the United States and its western frontier territories. 26 The main geographical/geopolitical concepts that clarify this first generation of the ecofrontier are the frontier, the boundary and the commodification of nature. In fact, the parallel between frontier and eco-frontier is relevant in the context of this first generation.…”

A Comparative World-Systems Analysis of Settler Colonies in the Hispanic and Anglo Realms

“…Both Uruguay and New Zealand gained reputations as 'social laboratories' around the turn of the twentieth century, 48 and as Lloyd 49 observes of Australia,…”