“Without Food Everything is Less than Nothing”

Abstract

This paper considers the meanings of the food trope in relation to cultural notions of national identity in two much-loved Australian children's stories: Mem Fox's Possum Magic (1983) and Norman Lindsay's The Magic Pudding (1918). The first is a quest narrative: Hush and Grandma Poss take a trip around Australia sampling a range of typically Australian foods in an attempt to find the “magic” that will make Hush visible again. It seems fitting that the catalyst for Hush's reappearance is a Vegemite sandwich eaten “in the far north of Australia.” Lindsay's “cut-an'-come-again” magic pudding, on the other hand, is an example of the ultimate food fantasy, the mythic cornucopia. This story contains many carnivalesque episodes, which provide child readers not only with the opportunity to explore the boundaries of common decency, but also to learn about Australian “mateship.”