A Close Look at Language,

Identity and Culture in

Henry Lawson’s Short Stories
Now that you are familiar with the course descriptor, the context in which Henry Lawson was
writing, the distinctive features of the short stories, and have spent time learning about how
to best read them, it is time to begin your detailed study of each story!

As there are five short stories in your collection, this section of the student book has been
organised into a series of activities for each of the stories.

‘The Drover’s Wife’…

Summary
Publication details
As the title of the short story suggests, this story is about a ‘The Drover’s Wife’ was first
drover’s wife – a woman who is frequently left to look after published in The Bulletin on
the house and children while her husband is away for long 23rd July 1892.
periods droving sheep or cattle. As she is left alone, the
drover’s wife must deal with the many hardships of living in
the bush, which Lawson’s depicts as a harsh and unforgiving
environment.

The main complication of the story is the presence of a snake, which threatens the safety of
the children. The drover’s wife must wait patiently all night for the snake to come out from
under the house so that she can kill it.

Into English: Henry Lawson Short Stories Student Book

ISBN 978 1 925771 44 2 37
Glossary
The following words and phrases are listed in the order in which they appear in ‘The Drover’s
Wife’. As you read story highlight each of these expressions and make a note of the meaning.

WORD DEFINITION
Shanty A small, roughly built house, usually made of wood.
(Ex)squatter A person who settles on land without right or title or payment of rent.
Gaunt Extremely thin and bony; haggard.
Urchin A mischievous boy; rascal.
Earthen (floor) A floor made of dirt.
Blinded An expletive of the time.
Skeezed Jacky means ‘squeezed’ by the other children in the bed.
Blanky An expletive of the time.
Extricate To free.
Partition An interior wall.
Remnant Remaining quantity of sheep.
Provisions Supplies of food and other necessities.
Fashion-plates Illustrations showing the latest fashion in clothes.
Buggy A light two-wheeled open carriage.
An abbreviation of ‘Aborigine’ – only used in reference to female
Gin
Aborigines.
Bullock A castrated bull.
Pleuro-
A disease affecting the lungs of cattle.
pneumonia
Besieged Surrounded.
An informal expression for delirium tremens – a withdrawal syndrome
In the horrors in people who have developed a dependence on alcohol, characterised
by tremors, hallucinations and visible instability.
A homeless man who arrives at sunset so that he cannot be asked to do
Sundowner
odd jobs in exchange for a place to stay.
A vagrant (wanderer) who carries his personal belongings with him in a
Swagman
sack.
Perambulator A pram or stroller.

Monotony Wearisome uniformity or lack of variety.

Sense of the
The ability to find humour in the seemingly absurd.
ridiculous

Into English: Henry Lawson Short Stories Student Book

ISBN 978 1 925771 44 2 38
A Close Look at the Influence of Language
on Identity and Culture
The questions in this section help you to think about how Henry Lawson has used language to
reveal aspects of individual identity and shape our perception of bush culture. Be sure to
respond to each question in detail so that this information can be used during revision and in
support of essay questions at the end of the study.

1. Consider the opening two paragraphs. How has Lawson enabled readers to visualise the
isolated and infertile Australian landscape? In your answer, consider the effect of:

a. Visual imagery

b. Symbolism

c. Personification

2. Lawson effectively uses the snake’s presence to communicate the vulnerability of the
drover’s wife and her children. Analyse the language devices Lawson has used to shape an
identity for this family that reveals both their vulnerability, but also their commitment to
resilience and survival in the face of danger. In your answer, consider the effect of:

a. Dialogue (truncated sentences and exclamation)

b. Action verbs

c. The characterisation of Tommy

d. The characterisation of the drover’s wife

3. What is the role of the family dog, Alligator? What characteristics of identity and culture
does Alligator represent and reinforce?

4. Lawson uses a series of flashbacks to develop the character of the drover’s wife.

a. Identify these flashbacks in the story:

i. 1st flashback: Bushfire

ii. 2nd flashback: Flood

iii. 3rd flashback: Pleuro-pneumonia

iv. 4th flashback: Mad bullock

Into English: Henry Lawson Short Stories Student Book

ISBN 978 1 925771 44 2 46
 b. Explain how Lawson has used each hardship to reveal and affirm the distinctive
characteristics of her identity.

5. In what other ways does Henry Lawson show that struggle and hardship are cultural
elements of life in the bush?

6. Identify two examples of humour. In what ways do these humorous incidents add to
Lawson’s perception of life in the Australian bush?

7. Explain the purpose of the temporal (time) shifts as a feature of the narrative structure.
What is the impact of moving the story from sunset to sunrise?

8. Read the story’s climatic scene: the killing of the snake. Analyse how Lawson uses this scene
to reveal both strength and vulnerability. In your answer, make reference to:

a. Variations in sentence length

b. Repetition

c. Onomatopoeia

d. Action verbs

e. Biblical allusion

f. The characterisation of the drover’s wife, Alligator, and Tommy

g. The image of the woman’s “worn-out breast” and the “sickly daylight” that ushers
in a new day.

9. Why do you think Tommy declares at the end of the story that he “won’t never go drovin’”?
In what ways does this manly promise to his mother heighten the image of an abandoned
wife and mother, whilst also revealing Tommy’s helplessness as a child?

10. Reflect on what is revealed about the drover throughout the story. How are we encouraged
to view him? What is Lawson suggesting about the identity of men in bush during the late
19th century?

Don’t forget to consolidate your understanding of ‘The Drover’s

Wife’ by completing a Layers analysis and OPTIC Organiser using
the tables on pages 35-36!

Into English: Henry Lawson Short Stories Student Book

ISBN 978 1 925771 44 2 47