How does this poem address ideas of land, country, place, and environment?
Henry Lawson’s “Song of the Darling River” depicts the post-federation country of Australia. The poem addresses a period of Australia’s history which was underpinned by bush legend, drought, isolated outback, and the post-colonial era. The apprehension derived from the period of settlement as a major part of the Australian history is mirrored within this poem. This essay identifies the ways in which land, country, place, and environment are addressed in this poem.
First of all, the title has encompassed a significant proportion of the land of Australia by mentioning the country’s longest river. The Darling River flows from Queensland through New South Wales all the way to the south into the Indian Ocean. A river that connects east to the south and through such an extensive part of the country can be a way of framing the overall country of Australia. The song of Darling River is the song of Australia; as it is mentioned by Schaffer (114) that the established credentials of Henry Lawson are the authentic voice of Australia, which is the voice of the bush.
The land has a symbolic status in this poem and represents the general distinctiveness of the whole country. The land is inhabiting the Darling River on itself. Nevertheless, the experience has not been always pleasant as the footprint of the last flood has remained “sickly stream on the grey-black mud” (Lawson 98). Considering the words “sickly” and “stream”, the initial stressed sounds have created a proper echo by repeating the same consonant twice within this single phrase, which has brought to use a very suitable alliteration. Additionally, this verse illustrates a powerful imaginary landscape by which a passive or even a destructive outcome can be seen from the previous influx. Despite the fact that Darling River has been streaming for ages, and spreading life in the countryside by “fill[ing] branches” and “lave bare hills” (Lawson 98), the overall result appears to be horrifying, that is why the Darling River is grumbling, “in vain I have tried, ah! in vain I have tried” (Lawson 98). Indeed, the sound of the Darling River, the voice of the country does not seem contented because many things are yet to be achieved including the public’s happiness. This happiness should go beyond the Christmas time “racing steamers the seasons round” (Lawson 99), and should be perceived everywhere along the Darling River. Nonetheless, these could not be achieved until the whole environment is not open “the sky is brass” and the country is not shiny and happy “scrub-land glare[s]” (Lawson 99). Therefore, this is the “land” and the country with its overall places that need to be satisfied.
The poet has used a variety of techniques to explore his ideas in a way that easily strikes the mind of readers. First of all, the rhythm of the poem is embedded in a harmonized form, which is called ballad. For instance, the ending sounds of the verses have paralleled musically “Queensland rain” with “again and again”. This form lets the poem achieve a wider exposure of audiences because it is readily sing-able. Secondly, the poetic language aligned the words together in a creative way by which powerful images are being illustrated, like the scene of “the salt-springs bubble and quagmires quiver” (Lawson 98). Furthermore, each of the words such as “death”, “ruins”, “salt-springs”, “quagmires”, “glades”, “blistering”, and “bleaching” invokes at least one of the five senses to create a set of deep mental images. Finally, setting the entire compositions of the poem between two phrases of “death and ruins” at the beginning and “demon dance” (Lawson 99) at the end provide a vivid picture of conquest which is not just disastrous but also intrinsically malevolent.
This poem is rich with gothic images and symbols. According to Wheeler (142) the antipodean position, inhospitable landscape, and convict legacy of Australia made it particularly apt Gothic setting. In fact, at the time gothic was dominating Australian art and literature to some extent. Henry Lawson, as one of the pioneers of Australian literature, was not an exception. For instance, in this poem, the “bare plains” as abandoned areas under the yellowish skies “brass” produce a perfect gothic scene, where horror and anxiety can cause any sort of disaster and consequently lead the Darling River into a dirge. The broken lands, dry and decayed gullies, the repetition of the ideas of death and ruins, all are associated with the gothic.
In conclusion, the “Song of Darling River” perpetuates some of the great myths of Australia; and the ideas are fleshed out by gothic mode to express the land, country, place, and environment of this country.
References:
Lawson, Henry. “Song of the Darling River”. Poetical Works. A&R Classics edition. Landon, Sydney, Melbourne: Agnus & Robertson, 1975: 98-99. Print.
Schaffer, Kay. “Henry Lawson - The People's Poet”. Women and the Bush: Forces of Desire in the Australian Cultural Tradition, 1988: Pages 112-147. Print.
Wheeler, Belinda. A Companion to Australian Aboriginal Literature. Rochester, New York: Camden House, 2013: 139-152. Print.