''My Brilliant Career'' is a 1901 novel written by

Miles Franklin Stella Maria Sarah Miles Franklin (14 October 187919 September 1954), known as Miles Franklin, was an Australian writer and feminist who is best known for her novel ''My Brilliant Career'', published by Blackwoods of Edinburgh in 1901. While ...

. It is the first of many novels by Stella Maria Sarah Miles Franklin (1879–1954), one of the major

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal A ...

writers of her time. It was written while she was still a teenager, as a romance to amuse her friends. Franklin submitted the manuscript to

Henry Lawson Henry Archibald Hertzberg Lawson (17 June 1867 – 2 September 1922) was an Australian writer and bush poet. Along with his contemporary Banjo Paterson, Lawson is among the best-known Australian poets and fiction writers of the colonial perio ...

who contributed a preface and took it to his own publishers in Edinburgh. The popularity of the novel in Australia and the perceived closeness of many of the characters to her own family and circumstances as small farmers in

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

near

Goulburn Goulburn ( ) is a regional city in the Southern Tablelands of the Australian state of New South Wales, approximately south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Canberra. It was proclaimed as Australia's first inland city through letters pate ...

caused Franklin a great deal of distress and led her to withdrawing the novel from publication until after her death. Shortly after the publication of ''My Brilliant Career'', Franklin wrote a sequel, ''

My Career Goes Bung ''My Career Goes Bung: Purporting to be the Autobiography of Sybylla Penelope Melvyn'' is a satirical novel by Australian author Stella "Miles" Franklin, and the sequel to her widely acclaimed debut novel, ''My Brilliant Career''. Written 1902� ...

,'' which would not be published until 1946.

Plot summary

The heroine, Sybylla Melvyn, is an imaginative, headstrong girl growing up in rural Australia in the 1890s. Drought and a series of poor business decisions reduce her family to subsistence level, her father begins to drink excessively, and Sybylla struggles to deal with the monotony of her life. To her relief, she is sent to live on her grandmother's property, where life is more comfortable. There she meets wealthy young Harold Beecham, who loves her and proposes marriage; convinced of her ugliness and aware of her tomboyish ways, Sybylla is unable to believe that he could really love her. By this time, her father's drinking has plunged the family into debt, and she is sent to work as governess/housekeeper for the family of an almost illiterate neighbor to whom her father owes money. She finds life there unbearable and eventually suffers a physical breakdown which leads to her return to the family home. When Harold Beecham returns to ask Sybylla to marry him, she concludes that she would only make him unhappy and sends him away, determined never to marry. The novel ends with no suggestion that she will ever have the "brilliant career" as a writer that she desires.

Film, TV or theatrical adaptations

A 1979

film version A film adaptation is the transfer of a work or story, in whole or in part, to a feature film. Although often considered a type of derivative work, film adaptation has been conceptualized recently by academic scholars such as Robert Stam as a dia ...

, produced by Margaret Fink and directed by Gillian Armstrong, features

Judy Davis Judith Davis (born 23 April 1955) is an Australian actress in film, television, and on stage. With a career spanning over 40 years, she has been commended for her versatility and regarded as one of the finest actresses of her generation. Frequen ...

and

Sam Neill Sir Nigel John Dermot "Sam" Neill (born 14 September 1947) is a New Zealand actor. Neill's near-50 year career has included leading roles in both dramas and blockbusters. Considered an "international leading man", he has been regarded as one o ...

in starring roles as Sybylla and Harry.

Release details

* 1901, Australia, William Blackwood & Sons (ISBN NA), Pub date ? ? 1901, hardback (First edition) * 1980, UK, Virago Press (), Pub date July 14, 1980, paperback * * * *

References

External links

* * *
Introduction to a new edition published in ''The Sydney Morning Herald''
{{Miles Franklin 1901 Australian novels Australian novels adapted into films Novels by Miles Franklin Novels set in New South Wales Novels set in the 19th century Roman à clef novels William Blackwood books 1901 debut novels fr:Ma brillante carrière