Alfonso I Dhanya Gopal I Review

November 26, 2014


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A semi-autobiographical novel by Felix Calvino, is the story of an immigrant who is trying to find his way in a new country. Alfonso is a Spanish immigrant who finds himself attached to his home country’s culture and art. He moves to Australia in search of a job. He manages to grow in this job and buys himself a livable but by no measure a luxury house. The routine gets to his nerves. Alfonso dreams of settling down with a girl and having a family. However, he lets a rare encounter with a beautiful and smart girl go by in fear of marriage and the complications it comes with. He regrets this decision too late in his life. Alfonso goes through bouts of depression, loneliness and monotonous living. As an immigrant who is often surrounded by men and women of his country, he often finds it hard to integrate in the new country. However, he consciously tries to assimilate. Alfonso clearly sees that no matter what he tries, he will still feel distant from the new country.

“It was clear to him that the pain of nostalgia paralyses him, and if left unguarded, might ruin this new life of his that provided all he needed and more than he had ever expected.“

I identified with the protagonist in more ways than one. Although one is in a new country, the heart and soul goes back to home country every single minute, like Felix Calvino puts it, “Ahead, the empty hours between mealtimes and bedtime. Ahead, old dreams, old omens and regrets dying within the coils of his memory.” The memories of home are inextricable from one’s life. It’s almost as valiant an effort as separating a fish from water.
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(WiP) Conference, “The Life of Things”

November 4, 2014




EMSAH Work-in-Progress Conference Prize Winners 2014


Congratulations to Prateek, who was awarded the 2014 Dr John McCulloch Memorial Prize as part of the annual Work-in-Progress (WiP) Conference, “The Life of Things”, for his paper, “Hubble-bubble of transcultural encounters: a study of the social life of hookah.”

The judging panel also highly commended Sushma Griffin, Chari Larsson, Elliot Logan, and Nick Lord for their papers.
The annual prize is named in honour of Dr John McCulloch OAM (1938-2010), who died of pancreatic cancer just after submitting his doctoral thesis on Queensland suffragist Elizabeth Brentnall. The prize is made possible by the generosity of Dr McCulloch’s partner, Mr Gary Portley.
This year, the Conference featured the inaugural Creative Writing Showcase, a celebration of the creative outputs of writing postgraduates from EMSAH and other universities. The event, held at the UQ Art Museum, included eight readings across a wide range of forms from short fiction and creative non-fiction through to prose poetry and a play script.

The Showcase Prize was jointly awarded to Félix Calviño for “The Valley of the Butterflies” and David Thornby for “The Pitch Drop”. Both Félix and David are EMSAH postgraduates in Creative Writing. The Prize was supported by the generous donation of research funding by Professor Gillian Whitlock.

Conference organisers Jami-Leigh Acworth, Gabriella Blasi, Belinda Burns, Wilson Koh, and Emily Yu Zong, along with guidance from Associate Professor Jane Stadler and Dr Nathan Garvey, presented a diverse program of more than 70 papers, including a keynote address by Professor Richard Read from the University of Western Australia and a Plenary Panel including Professor Gay Hawkins and Professor Gillian Whitlock.
Many thanks to all staff and students who attended, and all who contributed to making this event such a success, particularly: Mr Gary Portley, Professor Gillian Whitlock, Professor Gay Hawkins, Professor Peter Holbrook, and Professor Richard Read.