New Historical Perspectives on Migration S.
1 total work
A study of convict history, focusing largely on the penal colonies of early colonial Australia and on transportation, a system of forced migration utilising free labour. Between 1787 and 1868 more than 160,000 individuals were transported from Britain and its colonies for penal offences. This text finds similarities between penal transportation and other systems of unfree migration, such as slavery and indentured labour, not only in economic terms, but also in terms of culture and experience of the convict migrants. Central to this study is the analysis of texts on transported convicts, which seeks to deconstruct both primary and secondary sources. Previously convicts have been the subject of historical stereotyping, and this book suggests a departure in convict studies. Particular attention has been given to convict women and the penal stations. New approaches include an analysis of representations of the convict body.