The Great Australian Loneliness

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The Great Australian Loneliness is represented by many poems and stories. I will be discussing two poems that represent this theme in very different ways:
'Men of the open spaces’ by William Olgilvie
‘Homo Suburbiensis’ by Bruce Dawe

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'Men of open spaces' depicts men that are
-happy, strong and embrace and enjoy their independence
-leaders, who are praised rulers of their own world
The poem follows the discourse of the ‘Australian Cowboy’

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‘Homo Suburbiensis’ depicts a man that has
-chosen to be alone, not for the praise and glory of others, but for his own self satisfaction
-chosen to be alone in his garden as a way of thinking about and dealing with his busy work and family life

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‘Men of the open spaces’ is a poem that shows aspects of the theme ‘The Great Australian Loneliness.’
This theme is usually viewed as depressing and lonely; however this is not the case for this poem.
It shows these men as independent, strong and free.

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Instead of being forced into a life of loneliness, these men have chosen their own path - they have chosen to be alone. Being alone gives them their own sense of strength and power, they have glory from being independent.

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This poem gives you a good idea of what the Australian outback is like. It endorses the discourse of the typical ‘Australian Cowboy.’ The freedom of the men and their horses, out in the desert, enjoying and ruling their world

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‘Keen far sighted eyes’ shows the men as determined and excited.
The poem refers to
-the heroic things these men have achieved including fighting fire, drought and flood, many of Australia’s greatest dangers.
-that although alone, these men are fighting together and share the strength of friendship.

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-poetic devices such as metaphors and rhythm reinforce this discourse.
-metaphor :‘where every saddle is a throne’ ,saddles are not the socially accepted idea of a throne but these men accept their saddles as royal thrones, on which they can ride and ‘rule the world as they ride.’

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-very strong sense of rhythm, the upbeat, rhythmic feel the poem conveys the strength and independence that these men have.
It is a typical rhyming poem that is easy to read and appealing and enjoyable to listen to.

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By contrast, 'Homo Suburbiensis' also depicts the great Australian loneliness in a very different way.
The poem depicts a man, living in a suburban house with a family, who feels the need to be alone and to escape

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It describes a man who gets self satisfaction from being alone. He goes down to the garden to escape and think about his life and everything around him. He is confused and needs this time alone to rethink how he is going to approach and take control of his life

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This poem follows the discourse of an average suburban man -that of a content man, with a happy family, a stressful job yet a relaxed lifestyle.
This poem shows a man that has all of this, and who has chosen to be out in his garden alone, embracing and thinking about life.

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'hearing vaguely the clatter of a disk in a sink that could be his’ is a way of showing that he does have a life outside of his garden.
He prefers to stay in his garden and sit there and think about ‘time, pain, love, hate, age, war, death, laughter, fever’ which are normal aspects of a person’s life.

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He is alone in a crowded place, ‘one constant in a world of variables'. Phrases such as ‘lost in a green confusion’ and ‘a man alone’ are used to emphasise the man’s loneliness, surrounded by living things.

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In the garden there is reference made about a pumpkin. The way it is described makes the pumpkin seem very life like with lines such as ‘hoarse rasping tendrils of pumpkin’. Dawe has made the pumpkin seem alive and moving.

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Going to his garden is his escape from his family and work life and that is where he would prefer to be. The ‘patch of vegetables’ refers to the vegetable garden as his own territory.

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‘All the things he takes down there’ with him to his veggie patch does not specify exactly what it is that he takes with him. It could be something as literal as gardening tools or it could have a greater meaning - perhaps he has taken down with him his thoughts and his feelings.

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Image and word order are important devices used in this poem.
The way in which this poem is written gives you a clear picture of what is happening.

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This poem more than paints a picture, the words create different senses - of sight, touch, hearing and smell. It also strongly relays the emotions of the man in the poem.

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This poem is one long sentence. Without the spacing and order of the words, the poem would not have the same impact that it does.
The way it is written links each idea to the next and enhances the entire image.

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The image and word order gives this poem the ability to make its readers see through the man's eyes and see his point of view on the world, how it feels have a garden to escape to, to be alone

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These two poems both link to greater issues within the wider Australian community.
‘Men of the open spaces’ make reference to floods, fires and droughts. Most Australians have encountered these natural disasters over the years, the most recent being the Victorian Bushfires.

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‘Homo Suburbiensis’ refers to events in life such as love, friendship, illness, health and pain. Perhaps the fever could be related to a severe flu illness.
These two poems fit the theme of the Great Australian Loneliness in different but similar ways.

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-very strong sense of rhythm, the upbeat, rhythmic feel the poem has makes the men seem strong and independent.
It is a typical rhyming poem that is easy to read and appealing and enjoyable to listen to.

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These two poems both link to greater issues within the wider Australian community.
‘Men of the open spaces’ make reference to floods, fires and droughts. Most Australians have encountered these natural disasters over the years, the most recent being the Victorian Bushfires.