A Sociology of Place in Australia : Farming, Change and Lived Experience

This book weaves a social, economic and cultural history of Australia with rare first-hand accounts of the lived experience of change related to farming and agriculture. It provides a rich sociology of how living on the land has changed throughout Australia’s history. The book investigates the complex effects of the state on everyday life, using an historical agricultural case study of place to explore long-running sociohistorical processes of change examined through both a macro and micro sociological lens. This provides a multi-faceted perspective from which to examine economic, social and cultural transformations in each of these contexts and change is examined through multiple sites of expression: public policy and the role of the state; colonial processes of dispossession; social and cultural systems of value; economic change and its consequences; farming practices and lived experience; neoliberalism and globalisation and their social impacts; community decline and trends toward corporate and foreign land ownership. Each of these transformations impact upon lived experience and everyday life and this book provides grounded insight into exactly this relationship and process. Acknowledgements Contents List of Figures 1 Introduction: Goolhi and the Sociology of Place in Australia 1.1 Outline of the Case Study 1.2 The Sociology of the Case Study 1.2.1 Historical Sociology and Comparative-Historical Analysis 1.2.2 Place 1.2.3 Oral History, Memory and the Interpretation of Lived Experience 1.2.4 Evidence-led Research 1.3 Overview of the Book References 2 The Embedded Market: Place, Space, Land and the Self 2.1 Early Capitalism and Change 2.2 Capitalism and the Politics of Space 2.3 Neoliberalism and Globalisation 2.3.1 Neoliberalism, Globalisation and Agricultural Production in Australia 2.3.2 Neoliberalism as Statecraft 2.4 Changes in the Social Imaginary 2.5 Place, Locality and Meaning 2.6 Identity and Lived Experience 2.7 Conclusion References 3 Groundwork: The Social, Political and Cultural History of Land Settlement in Australia 3.1 The Why and How of Colonisation 3.1.1 Historical Context: Britain and World Politics in the Late Eighteenth Century 3.1.2 Capitalism and Imperialism After 1870 3.1.3 The Politico-Juridical Inheritance 3.2 The Role of the State: Economic Goals as Social Goals 3.2.1 Land Settlement 3.2.2 The Role of Government Investment and ‘Colonial Socialism’ 3.2.3 Federation, World War I and the Inter-War Years 3.2.3.1 Soldier Settlement Post-World War I 3.2.4 After the War: Nation-Building and the Role of Land Settlement 3.2.4.1 The New South Wales Returned Services Land Settlement Scheme 3.3 Cultural Ideals in the Australian Social Imaginary 3.4 Conclusion References 4 Dispossession/Possession: Prologue to Moment One 4.1 Dispossession/Possession 4.1.1 The Shared History of Pastoralism? 4.2 Living At Goolhi 4.3 Love and Loss 4.4 Conclusion References 5 Moment One: The Lived Experience of Soldier Settlement at Goolhi 5.1 There for the Taking 5.1.1 Drawing a Block 5.2 Everyday Life 5.3 Hard Work, Hard Country 5.4 Good People, Good Times 5.5 Encountering the State 5.6 There for the Ride 5.7 Conclusion References 6 The Luck of the Long Boom: Epilogue to Moment One 6.1 Early Success at Goolhi 6.2 Multi-scalar Factors of Success 6.2.1 International 6.2.2 National 6.2.2.1 Economic Policy Priorities 6.2.2.2 Access to Resources 6.2.2.3 Improvements in Policy Design 6.2.3 Local 6.3 Conclusion References 7 Unpicking the Stitches: Dynamics of Change 7.1 Changing Economy, Changing Paradigm 7.2 Trade Liberalisation and Australia’s Place in the World 7.3 Farm Sector Reforms 7.3.1 Case Study: Australian Wheat Board 7.4 Globalisation and the Disruption of Traditional Cultural and Political Identities 7.4.1 Political Representation and Change 7.5 Walking the Line: Current Policy Responses 7.6 Conclusion References 8 Moment Two and the Lived Experience of Economic Action at Goolhi 8.1 Contemporary Context 8.2 Embedded Economic Action: Debt Stress and Its Role in Low Capital Investment 8.3 Impacts on Lifestyle—Stress, Pace and Intensity 8.4 Experiencing the Changing Role of the State: New Burdens in a ‘Free’ Market 8.5 Conclusion References 9 Moment Two and Its Social Consequences 9.1 The Past and the Future: The Lived Experience of Decision-Making 9.2 The Changing Face of Agriculture and the Lived Experience of Community 9.3 Conclusion References 10 Conclusions: Conditions of Possibility 10.1 Overview 10.2 Key Contributions and Conclusions 10.3 The Return of the State? References Bibliography Index 'Baker has written a closely observed and perceptive study of profound transformations in rural Australia since World War Two as soldier settler family farms have been replaced by capital-intensive agribusinesses. She explores the dynamic interplay between state policy and lived experience, showing that, in the final analysis, it is the state that calls the shots.' --Emeritus Professor Judith Brett, La Trobe University 'Baker presents a vivid and original account of land, livelihood, and loss in rural Australia, working in the tradition of Karl Polanyi to trace intricate connections between sociohistorical transformations, shifting state policies, and the changing rhythms of everyday life.' --Professor Jamie Peck, University of British Columbia 'A thoughtfully crafted and perceptively argued exposé of life on the land, Baker's book blends personal insights and socio-historical events in tracing Indigenous dispossession, soldier settlement, family farming, and government policy in the making of rural Australia. The author is to be congratulated for delivering a fascinating and provocative account of agrarian transformation--one making a major contribution to rural sociology and the sociology of place.' --Emeritus Professor Geoffrey Lawrence, University of Queensland 'Baker has written a beautiful study of place that illuminates the complex configurations of people and landscape in rural Australia. It's intellectually profound analysis of the social construction of rural land use is informed by deep and heartfelt narratives of people's everyday realities. Their voices are the vines that stretch across the latticework of her theory. This is a book that both informs and delights.' --Professor Bill Pritchard, University of Sydney 'A tour de force. Anyone who wants to understand the "tragic separation between the City and the Land" in contemporary Australia should read Baker's beautifully told economic and social history.' --Emeritus Professor Michael Pusey, FASSA, University of New South Wales Baker has written a closely observed and perceptive study of profound transformations in rural Australia since World War Two as soldier settler family farms have been replaced by capital-intensive agribusinesses. She explores the dynamic interplay between state policy and lived experience, showing that, in the final analysis, it is the state that calls the shots. Emeritus Professor Judith Brett, La Trobe University Baker presents a vivid and original account of land, livelihood, and loss in rural Australia, working in the tradition of Karl Polanyi to trace intricate connections between sociohistorical transformations, shifting state policies, and the changing rhythms of everyday life. Professor Jamie Peck, University of British Columbia A thoughtfully crafted and perceptively argued expose of life on the land, Bakers book blends personal insights and socio-historical events in tracing Indigenous dispossession, soldier settlement, family farming, and government policy in the making of rural Australia. The author is to be congratulated for delivering a fascinating and provocative account of agrarian transformationone making a major contribution to rural sociology and the sociology of place. Emeritus Professor Geoffrey Lawrence, University of Queensland Baker has written a beautiful study of place that illuminates the complex configurations of people and landscape in rural Australia. Its intellectually profound analysis of the social construction of rural land use is informed by deep and heartfelt narratives of peoples everyday realities. Their voices are the vines that stretch across the latticework of her theory. This is a book that both informs and delights. Professor Bill Pritchard, University of Sydney A tour de force. Anyone who wants to understand the "tragic separation between the City and the Land" in contemporary Australia should read Bakers beautifully told economic and social history. Emeritus Professor Michael Pusey, FASSA, University of New South Wales