| Reference Type |
book
|
| Title |
Sex and Anarchy: The Life and Death of the Sydney Push. |
| Town |
Ringwood |
| State |
VIC |
| Country |
Australia |
| Publication Date |
00-00-1996 |
| Citation Date |
|
| Comments |
I liked the book. For the general reader it offers a flamboyant, clear-sighted and detailed history of the growth and eventual decline of an important phenomena in the social movemement that had its beginnings fifty years ago. It paints a portrait of a group of brave and spirited non-conformists who blended political analysis, social rebellion, alcohol, sex and anarchy into a lifestyle that has become a Sydney legend. Those who were touched by the Push were often strongly marked by the experience, and some may have a different slant on things, and might prefer their own memories of who did what and with which and to whom. The authorâs view of the relative importance of particular figures may be disputed and Melbourne intellectuals may criticise the exclusive focus on Sydney, older Sydney Push activists may well quarrel with the way the last third of the book focuses on feminism, censorship, Marxism and the anti-Vietnam War movement while others will welcome it. I believe Anne Coombs intended this text to be read by everyone interested in the Sydney Push, but as I stated earlier it will be received differently by each reader depending on their involvement in the push and many other factors like sex, political beliefs and age. The information is very useful for anyone wanting to learn as much as possible about the push, and especially for me John Flausâs involvement in the Sydney push. The text is important to understand why the push was formed, their beliefs and how they tried to publicize their somewhat left winged views. The texts value is enormous in trying to understand the impact the people involved in the Sydney Push had on Australiaâs culture, and more specifically the influence they had on the Australian film scene. I believe this book is the most thorough and non-biased piece of information about the Sydney push. As I have earlier mentioned it is somewhat biased towards the people that Anne Coombs primarily used to interview and gain information. However, this source is still incredibly reliable and thorough as most information is coming from people directly involved in the Sydney Push and Australiaâs film industry.
VWM |
| Synopsis |
Anne Coombs book, Sex and Anarchy: the Life and Death of the Sydney Push is an in-depth, historical study of the Push. It describes The Libertarian Society as âthe heart of the Push, its beating centre that gave it its distinctive characterâ. The Libertarian Society was founded in 1950. Many of the opinions and manifestos of this group were published in the Libertarians Broadsheet. The Sydney push and libertarian society took to heart two principles generated from statements by John Anderson, âFreedom in love is the condition of other freedoms.â and
âThe desire for security and sufficiency is the very mark of the servile mentality.â The group shared an anti-authoritarian stance with anarchists. They rejected the values of family, sobriety, authority and mainstream employment put forward by the Menzies government of the time. However, they did not align themselves with either the Labor or the Communist parties.
This book is sensible, well researched and persuasively argued. It is coloured to some extent by the views of the people Anne Coombs spoke to, however the information and content of this book is very useful in understanding the Sydney Push and the people involved in it.
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