Gillian Bouras
Encyclopedia
Gillian Bouras is an expatriate
Australia
n writer who has written several books, stories and articles, many of them dealing with her experiences as an Australian woman in Greece
.
in 1945. Both her parents and her grandfather were teachers. Her childhood was spent moving around country Victoria
, including Nhill and Beechworth, and Melbourne.
She studied for her Bachelor of Arts at the University of Melbourne
, and from 1967 to 1980 she worked as a secondary school teacher of English. In 1981 she completed her Master of Education thesis at the same university on the life of her grandfather: School teacher in Victoria: the biography of Arthur John Hicks.
She married George Bouras, a Greek emigrant to Australia, in 1969. In 1980 she went with her husband and her two sons to the Peloponnese
area of Greece, initially for a six-month holiday but they ended up staying. She had her third son in Greece, and eventually took out Greek citizenship.
In 1996, her younger sister Jacqui committed suicide, after decades of mental illness. Bouras' book, No Time for Dances, explores her sister's life in an attempt to understand her suicide. As she writes: "I keep trying to close a mental door, or to put a very firm lid on these questions, for there are no answers, and writing them down is one way of attempting closure".
She continues to live in the Peloponnese, Greece, as well as maintaining ties with Australia.
Bouras has also had short stories and articles published in newspapers and journals such as The Griffith Review, Meanjin
and Island. She has presented papers at conferences and participated in literary events, in Australia and elsewhere.
Since approximately 2000, she has also prepared discussion notes for the book group program managed by Victoria's Council of Adult Education (CAE).
Expatriate
An expatriate is a person temporarily or permanently residing in a country and culture other than that of the person's upbringing...
Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n writer who has written several books, stories and articles, many of them dealing with her experiences as an Australian woman in Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
.
Life
Gillian Bouras was born in MelbourneMelbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
in 1945. Both her parents and her grandfather were teachers. Her childhood was spent moving around country Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
, including Nhill and Beechworth, and Melbourne.
She studied for her Bachelor of Arts at the University of Melbourne
University of Melbourne
The University of Melbourne is a public university located in Melbourne, Victoria. Founded in 1853, it is the second oldest university in Australia and the oldest in Victoria...
, and from 1967 to 1980 she worked as a secondary school teacher of English. In 1981 she completed her Master of Education thesis at the same university on the life of her grandfather: School teacher in Victoria: the biography of Arthur John Hicks.
She married George Bouras, a Greek emigrant to Australia, in 1969. In 1980 she went with her husband and her two sons to the Peloponnese
Peloponnese
The Peloponnese, Peloponnesos or Peloponnesus , is a large peninsula , located in a region of southern Greece, forming the part of the country south of the Gulf of Corinth...
area of Greece, initially for a six-month holiday but they ended up staying. She had her third son in Greece, and eventually took out Greek citizenship.
In 1996, her younger sister Jacqui committed suicide, after decades of mental illness. Bouras' book, No Time for Dances, explores her sister's life in an attempt to understand her suicide. As she writes: "I keep trying to close a mental door, or to put a very firm lid on these questions, for there are no answers, and writing them down is one way of attempting closure".
She continues to live in the Peloponnese, Greece, as well as maintaining ties with Australia.
Career
Bouras published her first book, the autobiographical A Foreign Wife, in 1986. It describes her life as a foreign wife in Greece, and the challenges she faced in living within Greek culture and society. Most of the works she has published since then, both autobiographical and fiction, explore the themes of exile, cultural identity, and family.Bouras has also had short stories and articles published in newspapers and journals such as The Griffith Review, Meanjin
Meanjin
Meanjin is an Australian literary journal. The name - pronounced Mee-AN-jin - is derived from an Aboriginal word for the land where the city Brisbane is located.It was founded in December 1940, in Brisbane, by Clem Christesen...
and Island. She has presented papers at conferences and participated in literary events, in Australia and elsewhere.
Since approximately 2000, she has also prepared discussion notes for the book group program managed by Victoria's Council of Adult Education (CAE).
Awards and nominations
- 1994: Aphrodite and the Others: Ethnic Affairs Commission Award in the New South Wales Premier's Literary AwardsNew South Wales Premier's Literary AwardsThe New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards were established in 1979 by the New South Wales Premier Neville Wran. Commenting on its purpose, Wran said: "We want the arts to take, and be seen to take, their proper place in our social priorities...
- 2007: No Time for Dances: Shortlisted for the National Biography AwardNational Biography AwardThe National Biography Award, established in Australia in 1996, is awarded for the best published work of biographical or autobiographical writing by an Australian. It aims "to encourage the highest standards of writing biography and autobiography and to promote public interest in those genres". It...
Non-fiction
- A Foreign Wife (1986)
- A Fair Exchange (1991)
- Aphrodite and the Others (1994)
- Starting Again (1999)
- No Time for Dances: A Memoir of my Sister (2006)
External links
- "Gillian Bouras: A Sister's Story", on ABC Radio National Life Matters, 2006-05-18 Accessed: 2007-11-12
- Gillian Bouras Website Accessed 2010-03-12