Land Rights: Margaret Brusnahan
Poem Analysis
Structure: Margaret Brusnahan’s poem ‘Land Rights’ is organised into five stanzas with four lines in each. Each stanza follows the rhyming scheme AABB and the ideas progress in order of what happened. It starts talking about the way things used to be, then it talks about how things are for Aboriginals now, and finally about what it will be like in the future, and what Aboriginals should do about it. The average line length in syllables is 10. The only word which is repeated throughout the poem is ‘our’.
Meaning: The title of Margaret Brusnahan’s poem ‘Land Rights’ tells us that even though Aboriginals had been living in Australia for many years before the first fleet arrived, they weren’t thought to have land rights, and they had to fight to gain them. The message of the poem is that Australia is the traditional land of the Aboriginals and that they had to fight to regain it.
Imagery: The visual picture which the poem ‘Land Rights’ by Margaret Brusnahan paints for the reader is what happened. An example of this imagery is when it says ‘Pushed into backblocks where they couldn’t exist’ the reader imagines the Aboriginals being made to leave their land and forced into towns or other places where they didn’t want to go. Some examples of metaphors in this poem include ‘a lost human race’ and ‘pushed into backblocks’. There are no similes, personification or alliteration in this poem.
Language: The style of language used in the poem ‘Land Rights’ is lyrical, and flowing. If there was no rhyming in the poem, it wouldn’t flow as much.
Effect: The bias and opinion presented in the poem ‘Land Rights’ is that the Europeans have done many harmful things to both Australia and the Aboriginals. If Aboriginals don’t take action, their situation will only worsen. This opinion is achieved by firstly showing what it used to be like, then what is happening now, and finally what the future will be like. The tone used is slightly sad and angry. It’s also urgent as it’s saying something must change soon. When I read it I feel sad, and I can understand the Aboriginals argument. My response is to be supportive and to support their case.
Sound: When the poem ‘Land Rights’ is read out loud, it flows easily because of the rhyming, and it sounds like a story. As it is written in everyday words, it is easy to understand. It does not have any sound effects such as onomatopoeia.
Structure: Margaret Brusnahan’s poem ‘Land Rights’ is organised into five stanzas with four lines in each. Each stanza follows the rhyming scheme AABB and the ideas progress in order of what happened. It starts talking about the way things used to be, then it talks about how things are for Aboriginals now, and finally about what it will be like in the future, and what Aboriginals should do about it. The average line length in syllables is 10. The only word which is repeated throughout the poem is ‘our’.
Meaning: The title of Margaret Brusnahan’s poem ‘Land Rights’ tells us that even though Aboriginals had been living in Australia for many years before the first fleet arrived, they weren’t thought to have land rights, and they had to fight to gain them. The message of the poem is that Australia is the traditional land of the Aboriginals and that they had to fight to regain it.
Imagery: The visual picture which the poem ‘Land Rights’ by Margaret Brusnahan paints for the reader is what happened. An example of this imagery is when it says ‘Pushed into backblocks where they couldn’t exist’ the reader imagines the Aboriginals being made to leave their land and forced into towns or other places where they didn’t want to go. Some examples of metaphors in this poem include ‘a lost human race’ and ‘pushed into backblocks’. There are no similes, personification or alliteration in this poem.
Language: The style of language used in the poem ‘Land Rights’ is lyrical, and flowing. If there was no rhyming in the poem, it wouldn’t flow as much.
Effect: The bias and opinion presented in the poem ‘Land Rights’ is that the Europeans have done many harmful things to both Australia and the Aboriginals. If Aboriginals don’t take action, their situation will only worsen. This opinion is achieved by firstly showing what it used to be like, then what is happening now, and finally what the future will be like. The tone used is slightly sad and angry. It’s also urgent as it’s saying something must change soon. When I read it I feel sad, and I can understand the Aboriginals argument. My response is to be supportive and to support their case.
Sound: When the poem ‘Land Rights’ is read out loud, it flows easily because of the rhyming, and it sounds like a story. As it is written in everyday words, it is easy to understand. It does not have any sound effects such as onomatopoeia.