As defined by the Oxford dictionary, national identity is "a sense of a nation as a cohesive whole, as represented by distinctive traditions, culture and language." In Australia, there were many factors that were cohesive in forming a common identity, but there was also an overwhelming amount of divisive elements that made it impossible for all Australian to develop a distinctive identity that was likened to each and every one of them before 1890. The shared experiences of life in the outback did indeed foster ‘mateship’ between fellow bushman, with famous Australian writers supporting the idea of a distinctive Australian identity. However, Britain’s presence was still massively felt, as social and family values were transplanted from the mother country into the new colonies. Australia’s racism and Anglo-Celtic behaviour likewise threatened a national identity, as different ethnic groups were abused and alienated from society. During the 19th century Australians believed they had discovered a distinctive national identity based on the experiences related to the outback, and the life of a ‘typical bushman’. Many Australians identified strongly with this concept as it dominated their self-image. This saw a new generation of writers, such as Henry Lawson and Banjo Patterson, write poems, short stories and bush ballads which were all distinctively ‘Australian’, and influential in increasing people’s sense of national consciousness. Their writings encouraged the idealization of the bush life, and no longer echoed English writers and styles, but instead captured the qualities and experiences of the new land. They likewise wrote with a different rhythm and feeling, using new vocabulary such as ‘boomerang’ or ‘kookaburra’ to capture the feel of the rural areas. Australian writers also explored the idea of the ‘mateship’ of the bush, and the unique experiences of the outback. This is echoed in ‘Clancy of the overflow’ by Banjo Patterson saying ‘And the bush has friends to meet him, and their voices kindly greet him.’ These writers encouraged an identity with rural Australia, and were known to adapt street ballads or music hall songs of England and Ireland to the Australian