Thesis Examines a Form of Biography That Is Regularly Critically Maligned: That of the Contemporary Political Figure

Between Whirling Poles: Profiling the Biography of the Contemporary Political Figure in Australia Volume I Exegesis Patrick Joseph Mullins Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Communication (246AA) July 2014 Faculty of Arts & Design, University of Canberra Abstract This thesis examines a form of biography that is regularly critically maligned: that of the contemporary political figure. Frequently described as banal, mediocre and often superficial (Blewett 2007, p. 8; Dickenson 2010, p. 114; Walter 2009, p. 104), the biography of the contemporary political figure is nonetheless a recurrent feature of the Australian electoral cycle, with leaders and prominent members of political parties often receiving biographical attention in the lead-up to federal elections. This form of biography, however, is arguably far more complex than can be accounted for in this type of reductionist criticism. While not necessarily inaccurate, such critiques are insufficient to understand the imperatives and nature of a form in which practice has outstripped scholarship. Through the application of practice-led research methodology, this thesis argues that the biography of contemporary political figure is significantly affected by the agendas of the multiple stakeholders involved in production and that upon publication such a biography present dangers and opportunities back to those stakeholders in ways not yet comprehensively understood. This thesis argues that the characteristics of the form and the opportunities and dangers it affords are indicative of the ability of this form of biography to mediate between the demands, opportunities and limitations of day-to-day journalism, and those of the more distant, ‘magisterial’ biography. Using a case-study analysis of the extended biographical studies of Kevin Rudd and Tony Abbott—contemporary examples that are emblematic of the form, diverse, and well-suited to a comparative examination—and interviews with their authors, and by dramatising the aforementioned arguments in a novel of political fiction, this thesis is intended to: firstly, broaden the critical discussion of the biography of the contemporary political figure; secondly, examine in detail the personal, political, commercial and critical forces that affect iterations of the form; and finally to then situate that form in a context that leads to a more informed and engaged understanding of it. iii Contents Abstract iii Certificate of authorship of thesis v Retention and use of thesis by the University vii Acknowledgements xi Exegesis 1 Introduction 1 2 History and Scholarship of Biography 7 3 Characteristics of the Biography of the Contemporary Political Figure 33 4 Dangers and Opportunities 61 5 Mediating Between Biography and Journalism 87 6 Conclusion 95 Bibliography 101 Appendices Appendix 1 129 List of biographical studies of Australian federal political figures published while their subjects were serving in the federal Parliament Appendix 2 135 List of biographical studies of Australian federal political figures published while their subjects were serving in the federal Parliament, authored by journalists Appendix 3 141 Transcript of interview with Robert Macklin Appendix 4 163 Transcripts of correspondence and interview with Nicholas Stuart ix Appendix 5 217 Transcript of interview with Lachlan Harris Appendix 6 239 Transcript of interview with David Marr Appendix 7 269 Transcript of correspondence with Susan Mitchell x Acknowledgements Although mine is the only name that appears on the front of this thesis, there are many people whose contribution to this project and support of me must be acknowledged; without them, the following pages would not have been possible. Among them: Robert Macklin, Nicholas Stuart, Lachlan Harris, David Marr and Susan Mitchell gave generously of their time and expertise and I thank them for that. My supervisory panel—Anthony Eaton (chair), Matthew Ricketson, and Paul Magee—have been constant sources of advice, encouragement and wisdom throughout this project, and in my previous undergraduate years at the University of Canberra. Without the feedback and guidance that they’ve provided, this project would be a far lesser work. Anthony, Matthew, and Jen Webb also read over this thesis before submission, and their acute and thoughtful feedback was both kindly and helpful. I thank them all. All of my family—my parents in particular—have been supportive throughout these three years: asking about progress (or not, depending on the look on my face), distracting my attention when necessary, and putting up with what have undoubtedly been interminable monologues about this project. For never telling me to shut up, then, and for the love that they’ve always unconditionally provided, I thank them. Lastly, to my darling Kate: the kindness and warmth you’ve shown over the past two years have reinforced exactly what I thought when I first met you: Wow. Thank you. xi 1 Introduction He had persuaded the Vicar, whom he had met at an episcopal tea party, that biography was just as much a spiritual hunger of modern man as sex or political activity. Look at the sales, he had urged, look at the column space in the Sundays, people need to know how other people lived, it helps them to live, it’s human. A form of religion, said the Vicar. A form of ancestor worship, said Cropper. Or more. What are the Gospels but a series of varying attempts at the art of biography? A.S. Byatt, Possession: A Romance (1991 [1990]), p. 415. By the time of the 2013 election, the lives of the two men vying to be Prime Minister of Australia had been well documented. Over the nine preceding years, Kevin Rudd and Tony Abbott had attracted the attentions of two biographers each and a biographical Quarterly Essay apiece by David Marr. That the lives of Australia’s political leaders should be so studied was not new. In their time, Julia Gillard and Kim Beazley each attracted one biography1. Over his years in power, John Howard attracted the attentions of two biographers2, and Mark Latham, in his tenure as leader of the Labor Party, the attentions of three3. John Hewson and Paul Keating fought the 1993 election with two biographies apiece on 1 They were Jacqueline Kent’s The Making of Julia Gillard (2009) and Peter FitzSimons’ Beazley: A Biography (1998), respectively. 2 They were: David Barnett and Pru Goward’s John Howard: Prime Minister (1997) and Wayne Errington and Peter van Onselen’s John Winston Howard: The Biography (2007). 3 They were: Michael Duffy’s Latham and Abbott: The Lives and Rivalry of the Two Finest Politicians of Their Generation (2004b), Barry Donovan’s Mark Latham: The Circuitbreaker (2004), and Craig McGregor’s Australian Son: Inside Mark Latham (2004). In her Quarterly Essay ‘Latham’s World: The New Politics of the Outsiders’ (2004), Margaret Simons disavows the label of biography (p. 2), but notes that hers is an ‘essay about […] Mark Latham’; although she is interested more in what the ‘Latham phenomenon means’ than in the man himself, ‘the two things are inevitably linked’ (p. 2). The blurring of the political and personal identities is an apt example for some of the problems of biography that this exegesis discusses; for the moment, however, I have not included it in this list of biographies of Latham for ease of clarity. 1 the nation’s bookshelves4; by the time of the 1984 election the lives of Bob Hawke, with three biographies5, and Andrew Peacock, with two6, had been extensively documented. The ubiquity of the biography of the contemporary political figure in Australia7 is such that Neal Blewett, a former academic and cabinet minister in the Hawke and Keating governments, was moved to describe their typical content and characteristics: They have roughly the shelf-life of homogenised cheese and are almost certainly destined for that knacker’s yard for books—the remainder store—whether their subject is successful or not […] These books are hastily compiled confections: a regurgitation of published articles on the subject’s career—extensive but scarcely intensive personal research—plus a dollop of his speeches and writings, mixed together with a heady collection of quotes from colleagues and associates, frequently unattributed. (Blewett 2007, p. 8) Others have echoed the critical description articulated by Blewett. Historian and academic Jackie Dickenson calls such books ‘quickies’, noting that they are ‘produced in a hurry’, are ‘necessarily superficial’, have a short shelf life and often ‘rehash material’ (2010, p. 114). Political scientist and biographer James Walter criticises them as ‘mediocre’. He describes the form as frequently ‘banal’, partisan, and lacking in usable insight (2009, p. 104): 4 They were: Christine Wallace’s Hewson: A Portrait (1993), Norman Abjorensen’s John Hewson: A Biography (1993), Edna Carew’s Paul Keating: A Biography (1988), and Michael Gordon’s A Question of Leadership: Paul Keating, Political Fighter (1993). 5 They were: John Hurst’s Hawke: The Definitive Biography (1979), Robert Pullan’s Bob Hawke: A Portrait (1980), and Blanche d’Alpuget’s Robert J. Hawke: A Biography (1982). 6 They were: Russell Schneider’s The Colt From Kooyong: Andrew Peacock: A Political Biography (1981) and Jim Carey and Toni McCrae’s Peacock: M.P. (1982). 7 In my use of the phrase ‘the biography of the contemporary political figure’, I am referring to biographies of politicians whose political careers are ongoing—usually, those who are sitting in the Parliament—during the production

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