Translocal Temporalities in Alexis Wright’s Carpentaria L YNDA N G Translocality and Indigeneity N HER 2006 NOVEL C ARPENTARIA , Alexis Wright asserts the impor- tance of local history and traditional customs over the imposed meta- narrative of the nation. Wright begins the novel by stressing the serious consideration that must be given to the unofficial, often unrecorded local nar- ratives which persist and operate below the level of national consciousness. She writes: But this was not Vaudeville. Wars were fought here. If you had your patch destroyed you’d be screaming too. The serpent’s covenant per- meates everything, even the little black girls with hair combed back off their faces and bobby-pinned neatly for church, listening quietly to the nation that claims to know everything except the exact date its world will end. 1 This is a novel that confronts Western assumptions regarding temporality, history, and indigenous culture, and endeavours to provide a counter-narrative capable of overcoming such deeply inscribed beliefs. It situates itself firmly within the local, relating events which unfold in the fictional town of Despe- rance, a rural outpost in the far north of Australia. But Carpentaria is also concerned with showing the various and cumulative effects that globalization has had on local culture, ultimately describing a translocal space where nume- rous cultures exist and interact to create a unique milieu. By foregrounding 1 Alexis Wright, Carpentaria (Artarmon, NSW : Giramondo, 2006): 11. Further page references are in the main text. I