Australian Poem Analysis-Speech
Slide 1
Good Morning/Afternoon,
Today I will like to talk to you about two Australian poems and discuss their meaning and how they relate to the Australian Experience.
Slide 2
'Andy's Gone with Cattle' was written by the famous Australian writer and poet, Henry Lawson. It was first published on the 13th of October, 1888 in the The Australian Town & Country Journal. The following is a video in which 'Andy's gone with cattle' is recited out loud.
The Poetic Devices in this poem are as follows:
Rhyme-The last words of line one and line three of each stanza rhyme. The last words of line two and line four of each stanza also rhyme. The rhyming words contribute to the rhythm and flow of the poem.
Repetition-The word
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'now' is used eight times in the whole poem. I believe the poet used this poetic device to clearly emphasise how different it is on the farm without Andy. Metaphor-The metaphorical terms in this poem are as follows: 'the red marauder', 'His tongue is growing hotter now' and 'good angels send us the rain'.
'Red marauder' is a metaphorical term which the poet uses to describe Australian droughts. 'His tongue is growing hotter now' means that the beggar has become more vulgar and aggressive in his verbal abuse. 'Good angels' is another way of saying luck or fortune.
Personification: 'When Fortune frowns her blackest' is the only example of a personification in this poem. Fortune, which is an inanimate concept, is given the human ability of frowning in this poem. This poetic device is used to capture the attention of the reader and enhance
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meaning. Slide 3 This poem is about a struggling farm near Macquarie which has been further affected by the absence of a young inhabitant called Andy. Andy is the backbone of the farm and without him the farm cannot function properly. He has the ability to uplift everyone when times are dull or bad with his simple smile. One day, Andy decides to leave the drought-stricken farm and cross the Queensland border to find a water source for his cattle. Everybody is devastated by his decision. Everybody on the farm is in a sad and depressed state since Andy left. The narrator's Aunt and Uncle are pale with worry since Andy left. Blucher, Andy's dog, howls all night since his master left Macquarie. The gates of the farm are out of order because they have been neglected since Andy left. The 'riders' or timber used to secure the roofs of bush house rattle in storms since Andy left the farm. A beggar who comes and verbally abuses the inhabitants of the farm has become more vulgar and aggressive in his verbal abuse since Andy left Macquarie. The narrator wishes that lots of rain would fall to fill the water tanks and feed the plants so that Andy can come back with the cattle. Slide 4 'Andy's gone with cattle now' is very relevant to Australian society because it features stereotypical elements of the Australian bush culture such as the outback, cattle-droving, camaraderie and the love of nature. It is also very relevant to our modern society because just like Andy who had to leave his drought-stricken farm to find a new water source for his cattle, many farmers in Western Queensland and all throughout Australia struggle with severe drought and are worried about their cattle. This poem is also very relevant to the Australian Experience because it features many Australian Colloquial words such as Selection, which is a plot of farming land, Droving, which means to move large herds of cattle by foot, Squatter, which is a person who occupies a plot of land unlawfully, and riders, which are pieces of timber that are used to secure the roof of farm houses. There are also references to geographical locations in Australia including the Darling River and Port Macquarie. Slide 5 The second poem that I will like to discuss with you today is 'Australia's Culture in Writing' by contemporary Australian poet, Sara Pierce. I will now like to recite the poem. The Poetic Devices in this poem are as follows: Repetition:The last words of every two lines rhyme. Onomatopoeia:The words 'Sizzle' and 'Fizzle' are words that resemble the sound that they are representing. Slide 6 This poem describes the main features of Australia’s Culture by mentioning stereotypical features of Australian culture and natural environment like: Cricket, AFL and Rugby, which represent Australian Sport; Sizzling steak and fizzling beer, which represents Australian food and beverages;and the 'Burning sun' , which represent our natural environment.
There is a reference to our multiculturalism in the lines ‘All cultures together as one. Yet, individual until the game is won’. These lines acknowledge the fact that even though Australia is an increasingly Multicultural society, all Australians, regardless of their ethnic backgrounds, share the same values, principles and national identity.
There is also a reference to our military history in the line ‘After wars and battles’. These lines recognise and express gratitude for the sacrifice that Australians soldiers made so that we may be able to live in a peaceful, democratic society.
The line ‘The drover’s with cattle’ accepts the fact that Australia started off as simple rural communities and colonies which developed to become the advanced urban society we know today.
Australia's potential and opportunity on the World stage is recognised in the last line of the poem which says 'With all our dreams to
fly'. Thanks for listening to my presentation.
‘Sometimes Gladness’, a collection of poems by Bruce Dawe presents various references to Australian culture; although these can often be overlooked by the reader, due to more prominent themes relating to the human experience, which engages and preoccupies the reader instead. ‘Drifters’ and the ‘Reverie of a Swimmer’ can be easily recognised as Australian, however, these poems amongst others like ‘Homecoming’, ‘Enter Without so much as Knocking’ and ‘LifeCycle’ also aim to address and engage a larger audience to consider universal issues like grief, isolation and loss. Lastly, a distinct Australian poem would only be expected to explore issues relating to the country’s individual culture or issues, though Dawe chooses to represent many prevalent
Bruce Dawe is considered to be one of Australia’s most influential poets of the 20th century. Dawe’s poems capture Australian life in numerous ways, whether it is our passion for AFL in Life-Cycle or our reckless nature towards war as in Homecoming. Dawe creates very complicated poems reflecting the author’s context relevant to the time period, your context is based upon your reading of the poem, where you may gather different meanings, to that of the original intent, hidden within the text.
One of the many factors that have contributed to the success of Australian poetry both locally and internationally is the insightful commentary or depiction of issues uniquely Australian or strongly applicable to Australia. Many Australian poets have been and are fascinated by the issues relevant to Australia. Many in fact nearly all of these poets have been influenced or have experienced the subject matter they are discussing. These poets range from Oodgeroo Noonuccal Aboriginal and women’s rights activist to Banjo Patterson describing life in the bush. Bruce Dawe is also one of these poets. His insightful representation of the dreary, depressing life of many stay at home mothers in “Up the Wall” is a brilliant example of a poem strongly relevant to Australia.
The bush and its unique landscape was something that distinguished Australia from the European sceneries familiar to many new immigrants. Australians romanticized the bush in their attempt to establish self – identity.
Audience, tone, and mood are key aspects towards the understanding of this poem. The audience in this poem includes everybody specifically those who are ignorant to the life and culture of aboriginal living on reserves. The tone is positive and establishes the true essence and pure beauty of nature. The tone could also be reflective because it reflects upon the qualities that accompany life on the reserve. The reader can simply infer that the mood is peaceful, hopeful, cheerful, and
The larrikiness of the Australians was shown by their lack of discipline and disregard for the people of Egypt. We saw this in the movie when Frank Dunn and his mates caused trouble by harassing owners of shops and playing pranks on others and paying for prostitutes.
...at these several events in our nation’s history have demoralised our reputation to other countries globally. To make us known as a better country to other nations, we’ve completely abolished the White Australia Policy, gave back the aborigines their freedoms and we were also the first country in the world to give women rights. Australia today in present day is now one of the most multicultural societies on Earth, and we definitely follow our values of mateship, acceptance and freedom.
Rhymes are two or more words that have the same ending sound. Songwriters and poets often times use rhymes to help their piece flow better, or keep the audience or readers engaged. Billy Joel’s song “We Didn’t Start the Fire” is filled with rhymes, with a rhyme in almost every single line: “Brando, the King and I, and the Catcher In The Rye / Eisenhower, Vaccine, England’s got a new Queen / Marciano, Liberace, Santayana goodbye” (line 6-8). Billy Joel uses the rhymes to move from one topic to the next, and the song is even in chronological order from 1950 to 1989. The rhyme schemes of the song are end rhymes as well as perfect rhymes. On the other hand, the poem is completely free verse, or without a single rhyme. This makes the poem less artistic and harder to remain engaged and interested. In addition to rhyming, allusions are another way of displaying artistic
Reynolds, H. (1990). With The White People: The crucial role of Aborigines in the exploration and development of Australia. Australia: Penguin Books
This poem brilliantly shows how thoughtful use of effective words can shape our feelings and emotions. With this in mind, the first line of this poem begins with a powerful simile, “Bent double, like old beggars under sacks.” Here we get a strong comparison; an image of a duality within the soldiers. Once proud serving men, to now bent and crippled creatures, hobbling about like dirty, mud covered old beggars. The strength in these first few words is immense. Not only as a simile but also as bold imagery. I could write an entire essay on the effectiveness of this carefully constructed first line, the colors and sounds that come to mind are incredible, but I digress; let’s continue on. In addition to powerful line one, we are thrown into an equally powerful line two. “Knock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge.” Owen again uses a brilliant simile; showing the humanistic side of the once proud and innocent soldiers; to this now creature like hag. The word hag itself imp...
Thus, this creates connotations to patriotism and pride towards the country the reader lives in. Coupled with the large image of Australia filled with smaller images of people of all ages, and race, sporting the Australian flag, influences the reader to enter the article with a positive attitude towards Australia Day, as it seems to put this day in high esteem, which consequently convinces the audience, before even commencing to read, that the day is about ‘unity’ and not division. The smaller images of a non-traditional and traditional stereotypical Australian prove that race play no part in this celebratory day, creating the sense of Australia being an accepting
Solidarity and mateship are two ideals that Australians view with paramount importance. it. But when the events that occur on our own national day fail to exemplify them—and violence is rife instead—how are we meant to be proud of who we
Multiculturalism is the ethnic and cultural diversity that exists within a certain area. Different countries display various forms of multiculturalism. The most common form of multiculturalism is whereby a citizen of a certain country is born overseas, or of the parents of the individual is born overseas. English speaking countries have a lot of multiculturalism in them. Just like the United Kingdom, Australia has adopted multiculturalism as a national identity. My essay explores how Australia appreciates and accepts many different ethnicities and cultures.
Most of our understanding of the Australian identity has been shaped by the worlds misleading perception of the Australian character and the impact of significant history events, with limited documentation on how everyday Australians understand their national identity. This report found that the Australian identity encompasses a broad set of shared understandings including equality of opportunity and the values of mateship and egalitarianism brought on by iconic Australian concepts such as the Anzac legend. As well, this study found that, with evidence, because of all the changes in Australian culture, because of the contradictions involved in the Australian image, individuals cannot recognize themselves in terms of a unifying essence. Duncan approves with this statement, claiming that because of the diversity of Australia’s population “It does not make sense” (Duncan, 2004) to describe what it means to be Australian, explaining that regardless of birthplace or characteristics, Australian people appear to share and approve a sense of national
...each a resolution by the end of the poem. Both meter and rhyme are very essential in building a solid, yet fluid structure to each poem.