Donald Robert Stuart (13 September 1913 – 25 August 1983) was an Australian

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living wage, living writing novels and other fiction, while other ...

whose works include stories with Aboriginal backgrounds, and a series recounting his experience as a

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...

in Burma in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Early career

Donald Stuart was born in Cottesloe,

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

and apart from his time spent overseas during World War II, he lived all his life in that state. His father was

Julian Stuart John Alexander Salmon "Julian" Stuart (18 December 1866 – 3 July 1929) was an Australian trade unionist, journalist, poet and politician. Early career John Alexander Salmon Stuart was born in Raymond Terrace, New South Wales, and grew up on th ...

, a poet and activist, and he was the brother of Lyndall Hadow, also a writer. Stuart left home at age 14 and began a career as a

swagman A swagman (also called a swaggie, sundowner or tussocker) was a transient labourer who traveled by foot from farm to farm carrying his belongings in a swag. The term originated in Australia in the 19th century and was later used in New Zealan ...

(an itinerant who wandered the roads seeking casual work). He travelled through much of northern Western Australia finding work on cattle stations and it was during these years that he came into close contact with Aborigines.

The war years

Stuart volunteered at the start of World War II for the

2nd Australian Imperial Force The Second Australian Imperial Force (2nd AIF, or Second AIF) was the volunteer expeditionary force of the Australian Army in the Second World War. It was formed following the declaration of war on Nazi Germany, with an initial strength of one i ...

. He saw service in the

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

as a 2/3rd Machine Gunner and then in

Java Java is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea (a part of Pacific Ocean) to the north. With a population of 156.9 million people (including Madura) in mid 2024, proje ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

, where he was captured by the Japanese. He then spent three and a half years as a POW. Along with

Weary Dunlop Colonel Sir Ernest Edward "Weary" Dunlop, (12 July 1907 – 2 July 1993) was an Australian Surgery, surgeon who was renowned for his leadership while being held prisoner by the Japanese during the Second World War. Early life and family Dunlo ...

, he was sent to work on the

Burma Railway The Burma Railway, also known as the Siam–Burma Railway, Thai–Burma Railway and similar names, or as the Death Railway, is a railway between Ban Pong, Thailand, and Thanbyuzayat, Burma (now called Myanmar). It was built from 1940 to 1943 ...

, a purgatory from which many did not return. In Stuart's own words: "We built a railway from near Bangkok to near Rangoon—thousands of us POWs starved, scourged, racked with malaria, dysentery,

beri-beri Thiamine deficiency is a medical condition of low levels of thiamine (vitamin B1). A severe and chronic form is known as beriberi. The name beriberi was possibly borrowed in the 18th century from the Sinhalese phrase (bæri bæri, “I canno ...

pellagra Pellagra is a disease caused by a lack of the vitamin niacin (vitamin B3). Symptoms include inflamed skin, diarrhea, dementia, and sores in the mouth. Areas of the skin exposed to friction and radiation are typically affected first. Over tim ...

and stinking tropical ulcers that ate a leg to the bone."

Writing career

Stuart's first novel, ''Yandy'', was published to critical acclaim in 1959. It became a modest best seller and was studied at the high school level in some Australian school systems. The events take place against the background of the

1946 Pilbara strike The Pilbara strike was a landmark Strike action, strike by Indigenous Australian pastoral workers in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. The strike lasted between 1946 and 1949, and was the longest industrial action in Australian history. T ...

. The book was to set the tone for others that followed, causing literary critic Adam Shoemaker to write: "Donald Stuart probably comes the closest of any White Australian writer during this period to a sensitive depiction of the Aboriginal people as Aboriginal human beings."Shoemaker, Adam, ''Black Words, White Page: Aboriginal Literature 1929-1988'', University of Queensland Press, Queensland, 1992 ''Yandy'' was followed by a series of novels featuring

Aboriginal Australians Aboriginal Australians are the various indigenous peoples of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland and many of its islands, excluding the ethnically distinct people of the Torres Strait Islands. Humans first migrated to Australia (co ...

as main characters. In ''Ilbarana'' and ''Malloonkai'', Stuart attempts to view the world from the Aboriginal point of view, making him one of the few Australian writers, along with anthropologists such as

T.G.H. Strehlow Theodor George Henry Strehlow (6 June 1908 – 3 October 1978) was an Australian anthropologist and linguist. He studied the Arrernte (Aranda, Arunta) Aboriginal Australians and their language in Central Australia. Life Early life Strehlow's ...

, Charles Pearcy Mountford,

Ronald Berndt Ronald Murray Berndt (14 July 1916 – 2 May 1990) was an Australian social anthropologist who, in 1963, became the inaugural professor of anthropology at the University of Western Australia. He and his wife Catherine Berndt maintained a clo ...

and

Catherine Berndt Catherine Helen Berndt , ''née'' Webb (8 May 1918 – 12 May 1994) was a New Zealand-born Australian anthropologist known for her research in Australia and Papua New Guinea conducted jointly with her husband, Ronald Berndt. Early life and edu ...

, to even attempt to come close to a personal knowledge of Aboriginal people. In 1974, Stuart published the first book in what would become the series known as ''The Conjuror’s Years''. ''Prince of My Country'' recounts the story of an Aboriginal station owner who makes a success of running his business, against all odds. This was set at a time when Aboriginal people were not allowed to vote, and they were little known for their skill as entrepreneurs. The next book is also pre-war, with the last four books mainly dealing with the war years, and especially the time spent on the Burma–Thailand railway.

Death

Donald Stuart died in Broome in 1983.

Bibliography

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References