ABSTRACT
Nauru letters grasp the extraordinary perverse dynamics of post 9/11 border panic, and the spectral presence of asylum seekers continues to haunt those of us who encounter the epistolarium and witness the suffering of asylum seekers anew. In the letter, the performance of rhetorical, justification, judgement and interrogation assume an intimate and personal force that produce powerful affects of shame, complicity and responsibility. Although the iconic image of the Afghan refugee is a woman, in fact Afghan female asylum seekers on Nauru come into view, veiled and in family group photographs, and few women write letters. The distinction between letters and correspondence determines the organisation of the epistolarium. Stanley distinguishes correspondence as an exchange, as opposed to the single letter. The epistolarium becomes vast and busy at this point: it includes all the images and texts that get bound up with it, the letters and photographs and objects that are sent from Nauru.
