Collection Loneliness and Solitude Curated by Overland Editors Loneliness: the state of being without company, of being destitute of sympathetic companionship, remote from people or places of human activity. Solitude: the state of being or living alone.The articles, stories, and poems in this collection – spanning more than fifty years of Overland’s output – explore various shades and facets of loneliness. In Everything is Not Enough, Nancy Keesing highlights the connection between loneliness and creativity when she says, ‘A child must have a bit of loneliness, a bit of self-reliance, make his own world. Creativity feeds on that.’ In The Legend and the Loneliness, a Discussion of the Australian Myth, leading Australian writers of the time suggest that loneliness is somehow inherent in the Australian landscape and its settlers—and in their art as well. We see this in The Lonely Hero, a review discussing the sense of aloneness portrayed in Sidney Nolan’s series of Ned Kelly paintings. Some of the pieces gathered here explore specific experiences of loneliness, such as the isolation experienced by a young gay man in a prejudiced Seventies’ Australia, while others are more general meditations on the existential loneliness that is an indelible part of the human condition. In this collection Published in Overland Issue · The Legend and the Loneliness: A Discussion of the Australian Myth Overland Editors In an attempt to get some kind of an appraisal of the present direction of Australian creative work - or of an important section of it - Overland brought together in March a group of writers and others to discuss the contemporary variants of the Australian myth or legend. Published in Overland Issue 169 — 2002 · By Permission of G.M. Glaskin Jeremy Fisher "In 1974, there were few Australian gay texts about, except the ones we were writing ourselves.8 It was both a shock and thrill to begin reading 'No end to the way' and realise it was set in Australia, in Perth of all places." 1 19 August 202018 September 2020 · Reflection Loneliness without privacy: on isolation under lockdown Scott Robinson All our lockdowns are different versions of the same restrictions, from flats ringed with police to suburban houses and beyond. We’re trapped with each other without the possibility of solitude. As the online world takes over many of our social rituals, we are also lonely without privacy. Published in Overland Issue 16 Summer 1959-60 · Poetry Stranger Who Was Flesh (a poem) Robin Luftus Stranger who was flesh and marrow of my bone How far and lonely have you comeIn seven years. A little space of timeAnd yet your universe and mine To separate worlds in different orbits spinI sense a wild kaleidoscope within your brain But cannot enter in. Once your eyes reflected but a single world And […] Published in Overland Issue 32 Spring 1965 · Reviews The Lonely Hero: Review of “Ned Kelly: 27 Paintings by Sidney Nolan” Ian Turner It is, of course, irrational; but when I look at Sidney Nolan’s first Kelly painting, and that stark, strong symbol, the two rectangles which stand for Kelly, the hair bristles on the back of my neck- just as it does when I hear someone sing with fire, ” ‘I’ll fight but I won’t surrender,’ said […] Published in Overland Issue Issue 3 Autumn 1955 · Poetry Insomnia Edward Harrington There’s something wronpg with my brain tonight,Though I’ve drawn the blinds and I’ve quenched the light;I can’t for the life of me sleep a wink,I lie in the dark and think; and think.While the hours creep by and the clock ticks loud, Like the steady tramp of a marching crowd;And the forms and faces of […] Published in Overland Issue 57 Summer 1973-74 · Fiction Have You Ever Been Lonely, Have You Ever Been Blue? Morris Lurie Leo was alone. He had always wanted to be alone and now he was. No pestering acquaint- ances, no nagging relatives, no poky neighbors, no boss. Maybe just a little bit more alone than he wanted to be (he was twelve months an orphan, and his girl friend had just married someone else), but what […] Published in Overland Issue 17 Autumn 1960 · Poetry There is Anguish in Knowing Dorothy Hewett There is anguish in knowing that I cannot reach you.This kiss can break no barrier of bone,I know no ease of language that might teach you In that last place where we must stand alone. Only in bitter struggle do we grow wise, Knowing no quarter, and no compromise. There is anguish in knowing that […] Overland Editors More by Overland Editors › Overland is a not-for-profit magazine with a proud history of supporting writers, and publishing ideas and voices often excluded from other places. If you like this piece, or support Overland’s work in general, please subscribe or donate. Related articles & Essays 8 November 20248 November 2024 · Poetry Announcing the final results of the 2024 Nakata Brophy Prize for Young Indigenous Writers Editorial Team After careful consideration, judges Karen Wyld and Eugenia Flynn have selected first place and two runners-up to form the final results of this year’s Nakata Brophy Prize! 4 October 202418 October 2024 · Main Posts Announcing the Nakata Brophy Prize for Young Indigenous Writers 2024 longlist Editorial Team Sponsored by Trinity College at the University of Melbourne and supporters, the Nakata Brophy Prize for Young Indigenous Writers, established in 2014 and now in its ninth year, recognises the talent of young Indigenous writers across Australia.
