In The Moment of the Essay: Australian Letters and the Personal Essay, Daniel Juckes muses on the similar ground he covered in a 2023 TEDx talk. In a short, explorative volume published as part of the University of Western Australia’s Vignettes series, Juckes argues that Australia is in a ‘moment’ of the personal essay.Â
“The breadth and depth of personal essay writing being produced right now in Australia is deeper and more textured than at any other time during the period in which literature has been written down in this country,” he argues on the first page.
In the ensuing pages, Juckes explores memory, connection, and perceptions of the body and objects. He frequently quotes Virginia Woolf, but also a range of other Australian literary writers. He analyses Mykaela Saunders, Anwen Crawford, Elfie Shiosaki, Timmah Ball, Eloise Grills, Vanessa Berry and Sally Olds.
In profiling the work of a diverse group of emerging, experimental and innovative Australian essayists with earnest adoration, is The Moment of the Essay at its most successful. It is a rare piece of work that so concisely raises the profile of a handful of thought-provoking Australian writers.Â
Elsewhere, Juckes skips over the more tantalising aspects of the personal essay. He is rarely forthright in his opinion and the reader leaves the discussion with very little idea of who Juckes is, or why he is so personally affected by this work. This is ironic, given the lengthy discussion on the construction of ‘self’ that is the perennial conversation of any Creative Writing workshop on personal essays.
Juckes also never fully brings his discussion into the 21st century, with its all-important intersection between the societal and the personal. Juckes draws from an admirably diverse pool of Australian writers, but conversations of race, gender identity or national politics are bewilderingly absent. This is especially true in the chapter devoted to ‘bodies’, where Juckes discusses mostly female writers. Yet discussions of gender or 21st century political feminism and identity, or even trans and queer identities, are omitted.
Read: Book review: Dropping the Mask, Noni Hazlehurst
There is no doubt that Juckes is well-read, and any reader who is a fan of Australian writing and the literature landscape will enjoy this book. Literature critics in training will significantly benefit from Jucke’s sophisticated discussion on notions of the self and memory, and as an introduction to a diverse portfolio of contemporary Australian writing.
The Moment of the Essay: Australian Letters and the Personal Essay, Daniel Juckes
Publisher: UWAP
ISBN: 9781760802745
Format: Paperback
Pages: 120
Publication: 12 November 2024
RRP: $22.99
