BRUCE DAWE # Biographical Born in Geelong, Victoria —1930, - Son of a Labourer Sister had verse published Father sang ballads,- Mother recited poems of l9^(th) C. Brother & he read: Westerns, thrillers and sci-fi. Education: Left school early and worked at odd jobs, - farm hand, handyman, gardener and postman. Dawe joined the R.A.A.F for 9 YRS Later studied at University part-time, - gaining a B.A. M.A. & Ph D.
Introduction to Bruce Dawe # Bruce Dawe is an Australian Poet (1930 - 2020) born in Geelong Victoria as the son of a labourer. He left school (Northcote High) early and worked at odd jobs, - farm hand, handyman, gardener and postman. Dawe joined the R.A.A.F for 9 years and later studied at University part-time, gaining a B.A. M.A. & Ph D. He eventually became lecturer at University in Queensland.
Bruce Dawe: homo suburbensis # One constant in a world of variables A man alone in the evening in his patch of vegetables, and all the things he takes down with him there Where the easement runs along the back fence and the air smells of tomato-vines, and the hoarse rasping tendrils of pumpkin flourish clumsy whips and their foliage sprawls Over the compost-box, poising rampant upon the palings …
drifters # This is a carefree natural poem about an Australian phenomenon of transient or nomadic workers. Not quite as reviled as the gypsies of Europe, transient workers originated as shearers, rouseabouts or sundowners in early colonial times. Not willing to settle down in predictable settings, the transient workers preferred the adventure of new surroundings and meeting new people. Its attractions today extend to global citizens who regularly migrate to new continents.
Consumerism # We buy things hoping for greater comfort, ease, happiness, status and self fulfillment. Whenever we are down, we also buy things. Ruth Quibell in The Promise of Things, writes: “Into inanimate things we increasingly project the power to animate our idealisations, dreams, yearnings and cravings”. We need to find things that genuinely satisfy us. We no longer repair things, we dispose of them. Computers, printers, cell phones last about three years.
enter without so much as knocking - Bruce Dawe # From when we are born we go through a gradual process of change and development or periods of transition (stages, phases) from infancy, to adolescence, to youth, middle age and finally old age. Shakespeare, in As You Like It,* calls them the seven ages of Mankind. The changes in our impressionable and formative years occur in various aspects of our being: the physical, biological, emotional, mental, psychological and social development towards maturity.
life cycle by Bruce Dawe # Life Cycle (for Big Jim Phelan) When children are born in Victoria they are wrapped in club-colours, laid in beribboned cots, having already begun a lifetime’s barracking. Carn, they cry, Carn … feebly at first while parents playfully tussle with them for possession of a rusk: Ah, he’s a little Tiger! (And they are …) Hoisted shoulder-high at their first League game they are like innocent monsters who have been years swimming
weapons training # I. Subject Matter # This poem is an example of a sergeant (martinet) dressing down a squad of recently enlisted recruits, likely for the air force of an Asian Campaign (references to “mob of little yellows”, “a pack of Charlies” and “their rotten fish-sauce breath” suggest Vietnam War a distinctive brand of in-built war propaganda. In order to prepare young men to kill another human being you need to desensitise them.
Speeches to rouse Soldiers to fight # The following excerpts illustrate contrasting techniques to arouse soldiers to fight in battle. The first one is Henry V before the Battle of Agincourt while the second is a poem by Bruce Dawe about a Drill Sargeant addressing new recruits in training. KING Henry V: Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more; Or close the wall up with our English dead!