As dead as

The misrepresentations of the Mauritian dodo

Featured in

  • Published 20231107
  • ISBN: 978-1-922212-89-4
  • Extent: 207pp
  • Paperback, ePub, PDF, Kindle compatible

A COUPLE OF years ago a friend recommended that I listen to ‘Strange Fowle’, an episode of Marc Fennell’s podcast Stuff the British Stole. One evening, after fumbling with my earphones and my app, I got the podcast going while I trudged down the main road near my house. A few minutes in, I began to cry.

Podcasts are often moving. I listened to Serial and Believe with my heart in my throat. The cruelties of The Teacher’s Pet, Dirty John and Sweet Bobby often came with the force of a physical blow. But I was blindsided by my strong emotional reaction to ‘Strange Fowle’. Despite the weighty topic of the series – colonisation and British imperialism – I had not expected it.

Already a subscriber? Sign in here

If you are an educator or student wishing to access content for study purposes please contact us at griffithreview@griffith.edu.au

Share article

More from author

Speaking my language

Non-fictionMY AUNTIE HAS stopped speaking to her siblings. Rifts like these are commonplace in my family, where people fall out with each other like...

More from this edition

Talking to turtles 

Non-fictionEighteen years ago, I moved to a seaside village on Cape Cod on the north-eastern shore of the United States. Finding the ocean there too dangerous, I swam in ponds. I waded through mud the consistency of yoghurt ever on the lookout for fifty- and sixty-pound snapping turtles. I dove in, swam and got out as fast as possible.

Taking the reins 

Non-fictionThat’s when it started, I think. That evening at home I cantered on an imaginary horse along the lawn towards our back paddock, reciting over and over the lines I could remember. An unusual initiation, maybe, but it was ‘The Man from Snowy River’ that set a bespectacled, bookish ten-year-old on course to becoming a ‘horse girl’. 

Into the void

Non-fictionI think with a little fear, as I often do, of the many other (and much larger) creatures whose natural territory this is, and scan the surrounding water for any dark, fast-moving shadows. But soon I relax and settle into the rhythm of my freestyle stroke. Breathe. Pull. Pull. Pull. Breathe. Pull. Pull. Pull. Breathe.

Stay up to date with the latest, news, articles and special offers from Griffith Review.