Voltaire's Walkabout

A traditional Aborigine named KUNMANARA (protagonist) emerges from the Northern Desert of Australia and begins a Walkabout. At night, in the Dream Time, he converses with the philosopher, VOLTAIRE, who also teaches him French. While traveling around the world, he is imprisoned and tortured at Guantanamo in a case of mistaken identity. Escaping only to become a pawn in international politics, he finally finds sanity in the Stone Age. Along the way, he accidentally goes on hajj, becomes a rock star, and is even briefly worshipped as a demigod, all the while fleeing the ever ubiquitous men with guns. He finally returns to Australia and disappears into the Outback. A scathing indictment of political posturing and religious fanaticism, Voltaire s Walkabout is populated by an assortment of cowardly politicians, pompous celebrities, religious fanatics and, as noted, men with guns. The Nobel Savage turned on its head; the novel is ultimately a commentary on the absurdity of modern life. Questioning commonly held assumptions concerning the nature of progress and knowledge, Voltaire s Walkabout serves as a warning regarding the denigration of indigenous cultures. Misperceived as simplistic and primitive by those who meet him, the protagonist is the epitome of a transcendent being, a model of clarity for confused times.