Outback Living
What does a person do for 18 months on the Great Australian Outback? Life is quiet and monotonous. The surroundings are barren save for a few stunted trees. Water is lacking. You would have to pump it out from the ground. The winds are strong and chilly by night. Predators abound.
The outback community does get together once in a while to trade stories and to share supper over a boiling billy-can. Otherwise, its sheer loneliness and you are mostly left to your own devices.
Henry Lawson, a deaf writer did just that. He stayed in the bush for 18 months and wrote short stories about life there in the early 20th Century; quietly admiring and championing the courage of the womenfolk, who oftentimes are left for long periods by their husbands when they go droving.
The Drover’s Wife is one of his famous short stories. A simple story, it tells about an unnamed wife of a drover who was confronted by a snake. She had four children and a snake dog, Alligator. The thoughts and concerns that went through her mind and the actions she subsequently took formed the main portion of the story. As expected, Henry Lawson gave this woman all the admirable qualities so that she can take on the adversity of nature. She is soft and yet had to be strong given the situational demands.
For a person who has been deaf since he was 14, I think Lawson has done quite a good job employing metaphors, similes, colour imagery and personification to add spice to his work which otherwise would be just another boring story no one will ever want to read, especially so today.
Quote of the Day:
“He who gives when he is asked has waited too long.’Sunshine Magazine
Heartsong
Outback Living
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