The poem
Our Andy's gone to battle now 'Gainst Drought, the red marauder; Our Andy's gone with cattle now Across the Queensland border.
He's left us in dejection now; Our hearts with him are roving. It's dull on this selection now, Since Andy went a-droving.
Who now shall wear the cheerful face In times when things are slackest? And who shall whistle round the place When Fortune frowns her blackest?
Oh, who shall cheek the squatter now When he comes round us snarling? His tongue is growing hotter now Since Andy cross'd the Darling.
The gates are out of order now, In storms the 'riders' rattle; For far across the border now Our Andy's gone with cattle.
Poor Aunty's looking thin and white; And Uncle's cross with worry; And poor old Blucher howls all night Since Andy left Macquarie.
Oh, may the showers in torrents fall, And all the tanks run over; And may the grass grow green and tall In pathways of the drover;
And may good angels send the rain On desert stretches sandy; And when the summer comes again God grant 'twill bring us Andy.
This poem is yet another 1 of my favs. It gives a true outlook of how lifeworks out here in the bush. You can't win if its drought u mant rain and if its flooding u've normally planted drought crops. Its just how it is and this poem shows the ins and outs of Aussie bush life.
what does he mean in this poem? is it about going to battle, or losing someone?
John i think from my interpretatoin that it is actually the ins and outs of andy having to leave his home and family for greener pastures for the cattle he is droving
Its odd to look at this poem and consider how tough it still for the Aussie farmer. My dads under fifty and he tells us about droving cattle when he was a teenager because of drought. Henry Lawson's poems still mean as much today as they did last century.
this poem describes how tough it was and still is for the aussie farmer battling with the drought and the emotions that andy had to deal with when leaving his family.
this poem is my fav poem from year 4
analysis
would someone be able to tell me what type of poem this is?? eg. ode, lyrical... and also what is this poem about? how does it relate to Lawson?