Nettie Palmer
Nettie Palmer, born Janet Gertrude Higgins on August 18, 1885, in Bendigo, Victoria, Australia, was a significant figure in Australian literature and criticism. Raised in a devout Baptist family, she found solace in creative writing early on, eventually excelling academically and earning degrees from Melbourne University. Her travels through Europe in the early 1910s further enriched her literary perspective. In 1914, she married fellow writer Vance Palmer, and they became prominent figures in Melbourne's literary scene after World War I. Throughout her career, Nettie Palmer became known for her literary criticism, particularly through her influential work, *Modern Australian Literature, 1900-1923*, which highlighted the importance of the short story in Australian writing. A passionate advocate for free expression and a critic of censorship, she played a crucial role in shaping an authentic Australian literary identity, moving away from the colonial influences of the 19th century. In addition to her critical work, she published poetry that often explored themes of love and the connection between humanity and nature. Nettie Palmer's legacy endures as a champion of Australian literature, and she is remembered fondly for her contributions to the cultural landscape of her nation.
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Nettie Palmer
Writer
- Born: August 18, 1885
- Birthplace: Bendigo, Victoria, Australia
- Died: October 19, 1964
- Place of death: Hawthorn, Victoria, Australia
Biography
Janet Gertrude Higgins Palmer, nicknamed Nettie, was born on August 18, 1885, in Bendigo, Victoria, Australia. Her father, John Higgins, emigrated from Ireland to Australia, where he married Palmer’s mother, Catherine MacDonald, a first generation Australian of Scottish ancestry. Both parents were devout Baptists who espoused hard work and eschewed worldly pleasures. To escape the austerity of her upbringing, Palmer turned early to creative writing.
Initially instructed by her mother, the precocious Palmer was soon enrolled at Miss Rudd’s Seminary in Malvern. From 1900 through 1904 she attended Presbyterian Ladies College. A gifted scholar, she received honors in English and languages. She attended Melbourne University beginning in 1905, earning a B.A. in 1909 and an M.A. in 1912. In 1910, she sailed to Europe to study for a diploma in international phonetics. Her travels took her to England, France, and Germany. She returned to Melbourne in 1912 to teach languages at Presbyterian Ladies College. Politically minded, she wrote reviews for the socialist press.
Although she met writer Vance Palmer in 1908, the couple postponed marriage until 1914. They wed in Chelsea Chapel in London and later had two daughters. In the wake of World War I, the couple returned to Melbourne in 1915, eventually settling in Emerald, Australia. Palmer turned her attention to writing, becoming a respected literary critic whose columns appeared in numerous newspapers. A member of cultural and socialist groups, she advocated the establishment of an Australian literary identity.
From the 1920’s through the 1950’s, Palmer was a prominent figure in Australia’s literary circles. As a critic and essayist, Palmer was prolific and profound. Her reviews established the reputations of emerging national writers and her recommendations helped develop a canon of Australian literature. Her landmark study, Modern Australian Literature, 1900-1923, championed the short story as the genre of significance for Australian writers. Throughout her life, Palmer was a fierce combatant of censorship and a champion of free expression. During World War II, she and her husband remained active on both the literary and the political fronts. Attacked for his Communist views during the 1950’s, an increasingly ostracized Vance Palmer died of heart failure in 1959. Nettie Palmer, still popular with Australian readers, was mourned throughout the land when she died in 1964.
In addition to her criticism, Palmer wrote poetry. Her first volumes appeared during her London years, South Wind in 1914 and Shadowy Paths in 1915. The poems in these collections focus on two major themes: human love in its nascent stages and humanity’s relationship to nature. Her metaphors frequently draw upon the landscape of the Australian bush to evoke the transformative power of the natural world.
In 1924, Palmer received the Lothian Book Publishing Company Prize for best essay on Australian literature. Palmer’s legacy remains her advocacy of Australian literature. Her reviews of new works and her biographies of native writers advanced her nation’s literature beyond a focus on nineteenth century colonial writers, whom she believed imitated their European counterparts, to an interest in more authentic twentieth century Australian voices.