Were the convicts hardened criminals, innocent poachers or something in between?
The convicts that were sent to Australia ranged from being murderers and thieves to being advocates for social and political reform and debtors. However, no matter their reason for being sent to the penal colony, they all had the fact that being poor contributed to their crimes in common. Men and women who were too poor to pay their debts were sent to Australia. Murderers and thieves who often times were led to commit their crimes in an attempt to escape the poverty that they were in. Finally, the men and women who saw what was going on in regards to how the poor and disenfranchised were treated by both society and politics and sought reforms for both
Why have public archival bodies been tempted to destroy or conceal Australian convict records?
Why might some Australians even today be uncomfortable about acknowledging the place of their family's history in the bigger narrative of Australia's past?
The reason for this may be because of the meaning and image that is associated with the word convict. For many people the word convict brings to mind images of a violent criminal, a person who lies cheats and steals to get ahead, and someone who cannot be trusted. This is an idea that many people may not be comfortable associating themselves with and to remind people of their ancestry is damaging to the narrative they have created in order to justify their pride in their country. However, many forget that the convicts that were sent to Australia were not criminals as we understand them to be today. Instead, they were people who were too poor to pay their debts, and reformers who wanted change in both society and politics. Nevertheless, there were some convicts who were sent to Australia that were actually criminals. This is generally irrelevant in the big picture because it has been proven by psychology that criminal behavior is not an inherited trait, but rather a learned one
Why are others so proud of their convict ancestors – even to the point of believing themselves to be ‘more Australian’ than others?
Many younger Australians are proud of their ancestry because they feel pride in the fact that their ancestors stood against the tyranny and oppression of their taskmasters. This gives them a sense of pride to know that their ancestors fought against the system. On the other hand, people who are educated, well paid and living in the city do not idealize their convict ancestors. This is because they prefer to have Bushrangers among their ancestors due to it being cooler in society
Why did Russel Ward believe that the convicts were the basis of our national character?
Even though Australia was founded by the English as a penal colony. The experiences of the men and women who were transferred here became part of Australia’s national character according to Russel Ward. Many of the convicts were simple people who had been beaten down by society so much that they no longer cared about following society’s rules. When the first convicts arrived to Australia they saw themselves as equal to the other convicts that were with them. This was because they had all been wronged by the system in some way. The convicts were also extremely resourceful. They showed this by not only being able to quickly adapt to their situations, but also by being able to create things that they needed out of little material.. The convicts sent to Australia had the ability to be at home in any environment that they were in.
However, while the convicts were resourceful when it came to each other and their lives outside of the work they were given as punishment. Their taskmasters found them to be lazy, and untrustworthy in regards to the work assigned to them. The fact is while some of the convicts were repeat offender. Many of them were men and women who once free never returned to prison and lived lives that were beneficial to society. This was because many of them still hoped to return to their homeland at some point and carried themselves with the dignity of English people.
Bibliography
Fletcher, Brian. "Australia's Convict Origins: Myth and History." History Today 42 (October 1992): 39-43. doi:10.1017/cbo9781139084840.
Hobsbawm, E. J., and T. O. Ranger. The Invention of Tradition. Cambridge [Cambridgeshire]: Cambridge University Press, 1983.
Smith, Babette. Australia's Birthstain: The Startling Legacy of the Convict Era. Crows Nest, N.S.W.: Allen & Unwin, 2008.
Tranter, Bruce, and Jed Donoghue. "Convict ancestry: a neglected aspect of Australian identity." Nations and Nationalism 9, no. 4 (2003): 555-577. doi:10.1111/1469-8219.00127.
Ward, Russel Braddock, and J. B. Hirst. "The Founding Fathers." In The Australian Legend, 15-45. Melbourne: Oxford University Press, 2003.
