ABORIGINES
A Population destructed by British since the 18th century
Kim Scott's Viewpoint
Kim Scott (born in 1957) is an Australian novelist of Indigenous Australian ancestry. He is a descendant of Western Australian Noongar people. The Noongar people were people who lived in balance with the natural environment. They were aborigines.
Their social structure was focused on the family with Noongar family groups occupying distinct areas of Noongar Country. British colonisation and the expansion of settlement disrupted Noongar life, culture and customs.
Moreover, Kim scott wrote That Deadman Dance in 2010. This novel describes the early years of whites settlements in Albany in Western Australia and its surrounding area which has been inhabited for thousands of years by the Noongar people.
He had seven awards including four for That Deadman Dance.
Scott was not sure if there was a place for him in Aboriginal literature and whether his work would
be accepted by Aboriginal readers or not. Except for these doubts he was aware of the fact that he
had the responsibility to speak for not only his relatives but also for Aboriginal people as such.
Although he hesitated about the purpose of his writing it is quite obvious that being a speaker of
Aboriginal community is a praiseworthy thing. By speaking and writing, Scott represents the
experiences of many Aboriginal people.
Supernatural elements are incorporated in the novel True Country and are closely connected to the oral narrative of Aboriginal people. The magic of old Aboriginal people, quite often mentioned in the novel, shows the importance of Aboriginal culture and its belief.
Novels are not Scott’s only domain – he is the author of the poetry which has been
unconventionally presented in trains. He is also well-known for his public reading of his own
writing and for publishing children’s books. His emotional performance can influence the perception of his work. It seems that he wants to continue with the oral tradition of Aboriginal people. His writing helped develop his sense of Aboriginality. While searching for archival materials and interviewing his aunt, he managed to learn more about his own identity. It is the honour for Scott that he has been included in the list of Aboriginal writers: “[…] I never thought of it as
Aboriginal writing. I was just writing, so I was very pleased when it was accepted like that”
(Scott qtd. in Fielder).
Generally, Scott’s writing is for readers interested in the Aboriginal tradition of storytelling and the texts that show the absolute absorption of the author.
