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Tell 'Em I Died Game : The Legend of Ned Kelly
Ned Kelly did not say "Tell 'em I died game!" But well he might have - and many people believe he did.
Graham Seal's classic study of the Ned Kelly legend shows that, in a sense, facts are unimportant. Many generations of Australians have needed to believe in Ned Kelly and have tailored his legend to fit their needs.
The recent upsurge of interest in Ned Kelly is the latest phase in a tradition that has taken Ned from bush Robin Hood and folk hero to media obsession and national icon, projected to the world as part of the 2000 Sydney Olympics celebratons.
Regardless of the fact, the bsuhranger who murdered policemen and robbed banks remains Australia's best loved villain - or hero!
Graham Seal's classic study of the Ned Kelly legend shows that, in a sense, facts are unimportant. Many generations of Australians have needed to believe in Ned Kelly and have tailored his legend to fit their needs.
The recent upsurge of interest in Ned Kelly is the latest phase in a tradition that has taken Ned from bush Robin Hood and folk hero to media obsession and national icon, projected to the world as part of the 2000 Sydney Olympics celebratons.
Regardless of the fact, the bsuhranger who murdered policemen and robbed banks remains Australia's best loved villain - or hero!
174 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1980
10 people want to read
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November 4, 2015
Graham Seal's Tell 'Em I Died Game is a study of the legend of Ned Kelly, possibly the most famous and iconic Australian of all time. Seal traces Kelly's life and the impact he has had on Australian folklore and the Australian consciousness.
This is a solid little book, interesting and informative. I expected more analysis of the Kelly legend and Kelly-focused media (film, TV, music, etc), revealing what it said about Australia through the years. And while Seal explores these different iterations of the Kelly story, the analysis just never seemed to hit hard enough. It either felt like Seal was stating his conclusion or that he didn't quite hit his point.
For me, Seal also manages to cast an artificial glow on Kelly himself. While it is important to explore how Kelly would have seen himself in relation to the bushranger folklore that already existed, the way Seal did this made me start to question whether great chunks of Kelly's personality are an artifice, designed by Kelly to capture and maintain sympathy. One can almost see Seal's version Kelly transforming his public self like a slick and savvy politician to gain public support. People like the romanticised image of courteous outlaws? Kelly can turn himself into one in no time! Then he'll play up the Irish convict card!
Finally – owning already two books at least that contain the full text of the Jerilderie letter, I did not need another. I acknowledge that it's not Seal's fault that I found and read those other books first, but it did mean I skipped through a great chunk of pages.
This is a solid little book, interesting and informative. I expected more analysis of the Kelly legend and Kelly-focused media (film, TV, music, etc), revealing what it said about Australia through the years. And while Seal explores these different iterations of the Kelly story, the analysis just never seemed to hit hard enough. It either felt like Seal was stating his conclusion or that he didn't quite hit his point.
For me, Seal also manages to cast an artificial glow on Kelly himself. While it is important to explore how Kelly would have seen himself in relation to the bushranger folklore that already existed, the way Seal did this made me start to question whether great chunks of Kelly's personality are an artifice, designed by Kelly to capture and maintain sympathy. One can almost see Seal's version Kelly transforming his public self like a slick and savvy politician to gain public support. People like the romanticised image of courteous outlaws? Kelly can turn himself into one in no time! Then he'll play up the Irish convict card!
Finally – owning already two books at least that contain the full text of the Jerilderie letter, I did not need another. I acknowledge that it's not Seal's fault that I found and read those other books first, but it did mean I skipped through a great chunk of pages.
Displaying 1 of 1 review