113450723 Essay The Drover S Wife
VVVB 2483
LITERATURE IN ENGLISH FOR
MALAYSIAN SCHOOLS
THE DROVER’S WIFE by Henry Lawson
LECTURER:
MR. NACKEERAN SIVAPUNNIAM
LISA KWAN SU LI
A 123040
The Drover‟s Wife
The Drover’s Wife is a story that many people can identify with. I, for one, can relate to the main character – „the drover‟s wife‟. The most interesting and thought-provoking aspect in the short story is the fact that the drover‟s wife‟s name is never mentioned throughout the text. Her identity is nothing but that which is linked to another character – her husband, the drover. Why was she not given a name? Was she an insignificant character? On the contrary, she is the main character; she brings life and meaning to the short story. Her character as a person is what makes her special despite her not having a name. And it is her character, and her emotions that one can relate to.
The reason why the author, Henry Lawson, chose to leave her nameless cannot be certain.
However, I believe that he had a message to convey to his readers. He was telling a story common of all bushwomen in Australia; a story of a young mother who, due to her circumstances, has to shoulder the heavy burden of caring for four young ones on her own. In spite of the fact that her husband was still alive and well, she was practically raising her children like a single mother – in the absence of a father figure.
The story begins with a description of the little house the bushwoman lives in with her four children, surrounded by bush from all sides. Her husband is away droving again, leaving them alone.
They are isolated from any other human company with nineteen miles to the nearest house. The children then spot a snake and the young mother jumps to action, her first instinct to grab her youngest baby. Alligator, their dog, pounces on the snake but comes away disappointed.
She takes measures to protect her children and defend themselves against the snake should it attack them. She keeps an eye on the crack in the wall where the
LITERATURE IN ENGLISH FOR
MALAYSIAN SCHOOLS
THE DROVER’S WIFE by Henry Lawson
LECTURER:
MR. NACKEERAN SIVAPUNNIAM
LISA KWAN SU LI
A 123040
The Drover‟s Wife
The Drover’s Wife is a story that many people can identify with. I, for one, can relate to the main character – „the drover‟s wife‟. The most interesting and thought-provoking aspect in the short story is the fact that the drover‟s wife‟s name is never mentioned throughout the text. Her identity is nothing but that which is linked to another character – her husband, the drover. Why was she not given a name? Was she an insignificant character? On the contrary, she is the main character; she brings life and meaning to the short story. Her character as a person is what makes her special despite her not having a name. And it is her character, and her emotions that one can relate to.
The reason why the author, Henry Lawson, chose to leave her nameless cannot be certain.
However, I believe that he had a message to convey to his readers. He was telling a story common of all bushwomen in Australia; a story of a young mother who, due to her circumstances, has to shoulder the heavy burden of caring for four young ones on her own. In spite of the fact that her husband was still alive and well, she was practically raising her children like a single mother – in the absence of a father figure.
The story begins with a description of the little house the bushwoman lives in with her four children, surrounded by bush from all sides. Her husband is away droving again, leaving them alone.
They are isolated from any other human company with nineteen miles to the nearest house. The children then spot a snake and the young mother jumps to action, her first instinct to grab her youngest baby. Alligator, their dog, pounces on the snake but comes away disappointed.
She takes measures to protect her children and defend themselves against the snake should it attack them. She keeps an eye on the crack in the wall where the