Bush Poetry - or Rhyming Verse?
Posted: Wed May 03, 2017 5:20 pm
Hi All
This thread is prompted by a report on last night's TV news. They were interviewing footballer Sam Thaiday, who spoke about how he used poetry to overcome learning difficulties at school. He then talked about the poem he has composed ("Rise"), which is in praise of the NRL Kangaroos.
His comments were very interesting. He said it is essentially a bush poem, but he decided to call it an "ode" because he knew that would make it more marketable than calling it bush poetry.
The reporter said, "Shakespeare, Frost, Wilde - now Thaiday", as pictures of each filled the screen. I am not questioning the ability of these famous dead poets - but why not "Paterson, Lawson, Dennis ..." or "Kendall, Gordon, Ogilvie ..." ???
So, apart from the disappointment that bush poetry is perceived as less marketable than an "ode", with the implication that we are somewhat down-market ... this news report raises interesting points that we have at times discussed in the past on this Forum.
Let's assume that I write a poem that is definitively Australian in content. That fulfills one criteria of bush poetry. Now let's look at the consistency of rhyme and metre. Let's say I write a sonnet on an Australian subject (Henry Kendall did!) What is it? Is it a sonnet, or is it a bush poem? If I entered it into a bush poetry competition, would it meet the criteria?
What about a villanelle? I have written one on an Australian theme. Would it be an acceptable entry in a bush poetry competition?
These forms (sonnet and villanelle) have their origins in Europe. Odes began with the ancient Greeks. I doubt that few (if any) forms of metric structure were entirely invented by Australians - rhymed and metred verse has been around for centuries. But just as Australian art developed its own unique character, our writers honed and developed rhymed and metred poetic structures to include elements of the Australian way of life. As you read through the development of bush poetry, you can see it moving further away from the "Englishness" that characterised the first Australian poets, as gradually the Australian voice began to emerge.
So - what about Sam Thaiday's "Rise"? Is it a bush poem - an ode - or both??
http://www.smh.com.au/video/video-sport ... 4ti7e.html
Cheers
Shelley
This thread is prompted by a report on last night's TV news. They were interviewing footballer Sam Thaiday, who spoke about how he used poetry to overcome learning difficulties at school. He then talked about the poem he has composed ("Rise"), which is in praise of the NRL Kangaroos.
His comments were very interesting. He said it is essentially a bush poem, but he decided to call it an "ode" because he knew that would make it more marketable than calling it bush poetry.
The reporter said, "Shakespeare, Frost, Wilde - now Thaiday", as pictures of each filled the screen. I am not questioning the ability of these famous dead poets - but why not "Paterson, Lawson, Dennis ..." or "Kendall, Gordon, Ogilvie ..." ???
So, apart from the disappointment that bush poetry is perceived as less marketable than an "ode", with the implication that we are somewhat down-market ... this news report raises interesting points that we have at times discussed in the past on this Forum.
Let's assume that I write a poem that is definitively Australian in content. That fulfills one criteria of bush poetry. Now let's look at the consistency of rhyme and metre. Let's say I write a sonnet on an Australian subject (Henry Kendall did!) What is it? Is it a sonnet, or is it a bush poem? If I entered it into a bush poetry competition, would it meet the criteria?
What about a villanelle? I have written one on an Australian theme. Would it be an acceptable entry in a bush poetry competition?
These forms (sonnet and villanelle) have their origins in Europe. Odes began with the ancient Greeks. I doubt that few (if any) forms of metric structure were entirely invented by Australians - rhymed and metred verse has been around for centuries. But just as Australian art developed its own unique character, our writers honed and developed rhymed and metred poetic structures to include elements of the Australian way of life. As you read through the development of bush poetry, you can see it moving further away from the "Englishness" that characterised the first Australian poets, as gradually the Australian voice began to emerge.
So - what about Sam Thaiday's "Rise"? Is it a bush poem - an ode - or both??
http://www.smh.com.au/video/video-sport ... 4ti7e.html
Cheers
Shelley