THE CONCEPT OF MATESHIP
WHAT IS MATESHIP?
Introduction
Mateship is an Australian cultural idiom that embodies equality, loyalty and friendship. There are two forms of mateship, the inclusive and the exclusive. The inclusive is in relation to a shared situation such as employment, sports, or hardship, whereas the exclusive type is toward a third party, like a person that you have just met. Russel Ward, in The Australian Legend, saw the concept as a central one to the Australian people. Mateship derives from mate, meaning friend, commonly used in Australia as a form of 'friendly' address. Mateship can also be expressed in qualities such as loyalty to one's mates. Military Context Mateship is regarded as an Australian military virtue. For instance, the Australian Army Recruit Training Centre lists the "soldierly qualities" it seeks to instill as including "a will to win, dedication to duty, honour, compassion, honesty, teamwork, loyalty, physical, moral courage and mateship itself. Mateship is vitally explored through a Military Context in the film 'Gallipoli', where Archy and Frank, two young Australian sprinters want to join the army to fulfill their sense of duty. Because they are too young, the pair hop a freight train to Perth, where they are allowed to join up. They board a troop ship heading to Cairo and after training in the shadows of the Great Pyramids, the boys are finally sent to the front line, where their speed makes them candidates for messengers in one of the war's bloodiest battles. |