Ideas - Quotes Flashcards
The Drover's Wife (24 cards)
Gender Expectations - Quote 1
“She put on an old pair of her husband’s trousers and beat out the flames… till great drops of sooty perspiration stood out on her forehead and ran in streaks down her blackened arms.”
How does the Drover’s Wife challenge gender roles?
By participating in actions typically seen as masculine.
In a time of thought, the bushwoman reminds herself of a time when she fought a bushfire while her husband was away.
How does Lawson challenge gender expectations?
Lawson challenges gender expectations using the characterisation of the Drover’s wife.
Portraying the life of a lonely mother, the Drover’s wife, living in rural Australia in a colonial context, defies traditional gender roles and expectations of women in a typical patriarchal society
Explain Gender Expectations - Quote 1
The bushwoman contradicts stereotypes and gender expectations that described women as soft/passive, remaining on sidelines during conflict.
Rejecting feminine qualities that highlighted importance of her appearance, this act of bravery highlights her determination to step into action and willingness to keep her kids and land safe, positioning readers to admire her strength and willpower.
Gender Expectations - Quote 2
The drover’s wife is described as a “gaunt, sun-browned bushwoman.”
Explain Gender Expectations - Quote 2
This emphasises her working-class status. Her “sun-browned” skin has negative connotations of poverty, painting her as unfeminine and undesirable. Her darker complexion as a result of a life outdoors and the harsh Australian sun opposes the ideal pale, unblemished skin associated with wealth, elegance, and a life of leisure indoors.
How does Lawson challenge traditional gender expectations of women in a colonial context?
Using the characterisation of the drover’s wife.
While she defies gender roles, the drover’s wife emphasises idea of resilience and hardship, as depicted through experiences living in harsh Australian outback and her physical appearance.
How does Lawson challenge the idolised Australian bush?
Lawson uses setting to challenge the dominant idea of the idolised Australian bush, instead painting it to be a harsh, hostile environment
How is the Aus bush often represented?
The portrayal of the Australian outback is often idealised and romanticised in Australian literature, however, in The Drover’s Wife, Lawson, exposes the cruel reality of life in the outback
Aus Bush - Quote 1
Lawson uses visual imagery to describe the setting of the Australian outback as “Bush all round – bush with no horizon, for the country is flat.”
Explain Aus Bush - Quote 1
Describes vast and tedious landscape of Australia bush, especially in outback, downplaying romanticised view of Australian bush.
Absence of horizon and monotonous nature of the bush emphasises lack of variety and the isolating nature of the environment.
- no visible escape
Aus Bush - Quote 2
Moreover, Lawson further reaffirms the harsh reality of life in the outback, describing how the only source of relief for the eye is the “narrow, almost waterless creek.”
Explain Aus Bush - Quote 2
Highlights scarcity of resources and struggle to survive in outback, evoking a sense of poverty.
This imagery emphasises harsh conditions faced in Australian bush.
Combination of “narrow’ and “almost waterless creek” symbolises harshness and challenges faced by the drover’s wife and family as they struggle to survive in a remote, unforgiving environment.
How does Lawson challenge the dominant idea of the Aus bush?
Using the setting and imagery of Australian bush, Lawson challenges the dominant idea that sentimentalised the Australian bush instead revealing the tough reality of life in the remote Australian outback.
How does Lawson represent Aboriginal people?
Lawson reinforces the representation of Aboriginal people in colonial Australia through their dramatic and discursive construction.
How are Aboriginal people represented through dramatic construction?
Aboriginal people appear twice in this story, in neither case is any physical description given meaning their dramatic construction lies solely on their actions.
How are Aboriginal people represented through discursive construction?
Through discursive construction, they have been constructed as ‘other’ or different from the norm.
Representation of Indigenous - Quote 1
Towards the end of the story, the drover’s wife had bargained with an Aboriginal man to bring her some wood, she was “astonished to see a good heap of wood by the chimney” and “praised him for not being lazy.”
Explain Representation of Indigenous - Quote 1
Bush woman’s astonishment has adverse implications, symbolising lack of trust towards Indigenous man, assuming he wouldn’t do a good job.
Reveals negative assumptions made about Aboriginal people in a colonial context where they were held to low standards and weren’t expected to work hard.
Representation of Indigenous - Quote 2
Drawing upon a time when she was giving birth to her last two children, the drover’s wife describes how “She prayed to God to send her assistance. God sent Black Mary…”
Explain Representation of Indigenous - Quote 2
Word “Black” is an example of racial nomination, labelling aboriginal people to distinguish them from white settlers.
Need to identify and make readers aware of colour of their skin creates a sense of segregation, where Aboriginal people were excluded from the norm in colonial Australia.
Black Mary was able to show up in her time of need, emphasising support and understanding which contrasts with the colonial view of Indigenous people.
How does Lawson use dramatic and discursive construction to represent aboriginal people?
Using dramatic and discursive construction, Lawson reinforces and challenges dominant representation of Indigenous people in colonial context, reaffirming while they were viewed negatively in society, they were also helpful and ready to give a hand.
How does Lawson reinforce colonial attitudes?
While he challenges certain social norms, Lawson also reinforces colonial attitudes through representation of Aboriginal people, depicting them through racial stereotypes and assumptions that reflect injustices of his time
The Drover’s Wife general comments
Overall, Lawson’s story is a complex reflection of colonial Australian society, revealing both progress and injustice in its portrayal of gender, environment, and race.
