Don Aitkin
What Was It All For?: The Reshaping of Australia
Allen & Unwin, 2005
Australia has emerged, sixty years after the end of the Second World War, as one of the world's most successful societies. How did we go from being a blinkered and conservative former British colony, to the progressive and confident society we are today? And how can we keep it this way? These are the questions at the core of What Was It All For?.
In this compelling book, Aitkin reflects on the key factors education, immigration and wealth that have produced this change. We've seen important advances in areas as diverse as sport and music, work and leisure, and religion. We've celebrated the changing status of women and observed shifting attitudes to the importance of Sunday and of churchgoing, the houses we buy and renovate, the books we read and the food we eat. But at what cost? Strong community bonds have given way to an individualist, materialist ethic, while the very notion of community' has changed fundamentally. Australians know who we aren't, as was the case in 1950, but are we any surer now of who we are or what we stand for?
Enlivened by the life-experiences of his own high school Class of '53, Aitkin's new book is a must for anyone who wants to know how Australia got to be the way it is and what needs to be done in the future.
“This is a remarkable book. Don Aitkin brings fresh insight to the question What does it mean to be Australian?”
About the Author
Don Aitkin AO (1937-2022) was a political scientist, writer, and administrator. He became well known in Australia both as a widely read columnist in the now defunct National Times and as a television commentator and was also a columnist for The Australian Financial Review. Don published both text books and monographs, and novels. Among his many roles he was Vice Chancellor of the University of Canberra for 10 years and played squash for the ACT.
