What does it mean to be a second generation Greek-Australian? How clear is your sense of identity and of belonging?Against the backdrop of Greece’s rich history of language and ideas, there’s been a great modern tradition of writing from across the Greek diaspora. This was especially so amongst the first generation of Greek migrants who took their birthright of poetry and prose with them to new lands, and especially to Australia. They used words to articulate their connectedness and their remoteness. There was a certain melancholy assurance of who they were and where they’d come from.
But for the second generation there is none of that visceral sense of belonging. Memories are received, culture is inherited, but all of it is second-hand.
Southern Sun, Aegean Light is a diverse collection of poems from second generation Greek-Australians. They are full of the poignancy of longing for an identity and a sense of place, but the range of works shows that the term ‘Greek-Australian’ fails to describe the disparate nature of the second generation experience.
Guests
Efi Hatzimanolis—Writer and poet
Dr Nick Trakakis—Philosopher and poet
Helen Nickas—Publisher and specialist in Greek-Australian poetry
Peter Lyssiotis—Artist and poet
Publication
Southern Sun, Aegean Light
Edited by Nick Trakakis
Published by Arcadia (an imprint of Australian Scholarly Publishing), 2011
ISBN 978-1-9218751-2-0
Credits
Producer—Michael Shirrefs
Sound Engineer—Garry Havrillay
Readers—Elle Mandalis & Steve Mouzakis
List of poems
The Sea Urchin by Efi Hatzimanolis
Inheritance by Nick Trakakis
Prayer At Midnight by Nicholas Kyriacos
Widows Of The Sun by Chrisoula Simos
The Bird In The Belltower by Peter Lyssiotis
32 Davis St, East Burwood by Peter Lyssiotis
Peloponnese Sunset by Angela Costi
The Man Who Knew To Smile by Nicholas Kyriacos
I Hate, Hate by Luka Haralampou
Sparing Lives by Phillip Constan
Pencil by Tom Petsinis
Mind by Salome Argyropoulos
The Lucky Country by George Athanasiou
© 2015—Michael Shirrefs & ABC RN