summary of the novel voss by patrick white

Moving inland, “the expedition left Jimbour, the farthest outpost of settlement on the Darling Downs, on 1 October. After solitary journeys in the Hunter Valley, and between Newcastle and Moreton Bay, Leichhardt gathered an exploring party that sailed from Sydney to Brisbane on 13 August 1844. Leichhardt arrived in Sydney in 1842, eager to expand European science in his chosen fields of knowledge by exploring the new continent. People nevertheless recognised his learning by conferring on him the honorary title of “Dr.” Leichhardt’s Expedition, 1844-45

As a young, impoverished scholar at the universities of Berlin and Göttingen, Leichhardt studied languages, philosophy, biology, botany, geology and medical science purely because he loved knowledge, and without taking out a degree. White’s model for Johann Ulrich Voss is the explorer, Friedrich Wilhelm Ludwig Leichhardt (1813-1848?), a legendary figure in Australian history.

More detailed outlines of White’s life are available online: for example, search for Patrick White, author, at I recommend that you read White’s illuminating autobiography, Flaws in the Glass: A Self-Portrait (London: Jonathan Cape, 1981), and David Marr’s equally illuminating biography, Patrick White-A Life (London: Jonathan Cape, 1991). White’s influence on post-war Australian writing and on novelists such as Thomas Keneally and Thea Astley was considerable. From early in his career he was recognised as an author of international stature, and in 1973 received the Nobel Prize for literature, to date the only Australian author to be so honoured. First published in London or New York, White’s novels have been translated into most European and Asian languages. Between 19 White’s intense commitment to his writing produced twelve novels, in addition to plays, poetry and short stories. Following training as a jackeroo, a degree in French and German language and literature at Cambridge University, time spent with friends in France and Germany, and war service in Egypt, White and his life-long partner, Manoly Lascaris, settled in Sydney in the early 1960s. Patrick White was born in London into the Australian squattocracy on. These are: the physical or plot layer characterisation the emotional layer the moral layer and the metaphysical or spiritual layer. Under “content” the guide deals with five layers of meaning that are evident both in individual passages and in the novel’s overall design. Under “context” it summarises the novel’s reception,its place in the author’s life, and its inspiration in the expeditions of the lost explorer Ludwig Leichhardt. This study guide addresses both the context and the content of Patrick White’s classic Australian novel Voss.

Summary of the novel voss by patrick white