Lawson and Slessor differ on views of the Outback

The two poets I have chosen are Henry Lawson and Kenneth Slessor in the poems "Ballad of the Drover" and "North Country". I chose these two poems because of their devotion to the country life and how they can carry a theme across to the reader. Most people read poetry to find deeper meaning and a particular theme, not me however. I look for a poem that sets an image, tells a story and leaves me thinking about it after.

These two poems tell of the hardships and changes in outback Australia. They have very effective ways of telling the readers about a completely different environment out there, especially if the readers are city folk. Lawson tells a touching story about a cattle driver and the hardships he experiences in the outback plains of Queensland. Slessor on the other hand presents images of Northern Australia but does not "use this opportunity to tell a story". Slessor is a poet of the twentieth century. He talks of the outback with a sense of disgust and how it has changed over the years. He also portrays just how many changes modern man has made to the "once quiet" and undisturbed outback by the introduction of the mill and saw. There is a significant deal of anger and disgust expressed in this poem. This was effective, as this same feeling of disgust rubs off onto the reader.

These poets have used two completely different techniques. Lawson starts off in a warm atmosphere of carefree stability as we see cattle being driven through the countryside. By the end of the poem however, the tempo increases and the atmosphere changes to one of loss. He uses the ballad to tell his story, which would seem like the only way to tell this story, otherwise it wouldn't work for his contemporary readers. The main theme put across here is the "fight" and "heart most Australian breeds" (88), that outback pioneers possess. Lawson sticks to eight line stanzas each containing eleven lines, a format which make it easy and more enjoyable.

Slessor uses free verse for his poem. This style does not help the words roll off the tongue too easily. Although his lines are of similar lengths to that of Lawson's, they seem longer and are much more difficult to read. It was expressed in a more hostile environment than Lawson's. The theme expressed here is the amount of damage man has caused to the vegetation and peace of the north. Slessor's method of story-telling is not nearly as effective as Lawson's. However, one advantage he has over Lawson's poem is his imagery: " North country, filled with gesturing wood, With trees that fence, like archers' volleys, The flanks of hidden valleys. Where nothing's left to hide" used in the opening verse of Slessor's "North Country" . As you can see, it is effective writing and transports the reader into a completely different environment.

In conclusion, these two poems offer strong contrasts on outback Australian life. They are pertinent to the eras in which they were written. In the first poem, the environment had been untouched and every cattle driver and his dog was free to roam over it! In the second poem, Slessor portrayed the changes affecting outback Australia since Lawson's time. So in some ways, these two poems deal with the outback seen at different times, and so their styles and settings are completely different.

Sean F. D. 1998 (edited 2000)

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