SETTLING ON THE LAND

PHOEBE DRAKE

SHI SHI QIAN

SUMMARY

• Tom Hopkins, a young man, decides to take his chances in the Australian outback.

• He is not very experienced in farming but decides to attempt 'grubbing' on his own.

• Tom is extraordinarily unfortunate.

• '…robbed several times, and his hut burnt down twice. Then he was charged for killing some sheep…'

• Tom attempted to sow wheat, to breed dairy, to plough more wheat, to sell sheep, to fence.

• Eventually he is admitted into a lunatic asylum.

LAWSON’S CONCERNS

• Lawson condemns the idealistic outlook on the Australian outback

• Reality is brutal and harsh

• Tom suffers a barrage of hardships

• e.g. getting robbed, having infertile land, catching a disease from his cows

VIEWS AND VALUES

• Lawson admires resilience and perseverance

• 'Tom persevered' & 'Tom didn't give up - he was energetic'

• Tom is pragmatic and not self-indulgent

• Lawson condemns those who romanticise the Australian country (Patterson)

• He commends those who can endure hardships and also see it in a positive way

• e.g. black humour in the final line

• “He [Tom] says his one great regret is that he wasn't found to be of unsound mind before he went up-country.”

CONTEXT

• Personal

• Lawson’s father was absent for most of his childhood, forcing him to became the 'man of the house' from an early age

• Contributing factor to Lawson’s pragmatic view of life

• Social

• Lawson acquired an ear infection which led to his partial deafness

• He became an 'outsider' due to his inability to fully interact with his peers

• Lawson valued independence, resilience and ability to withstand challenges

• Cultural

• Lawson was writing during the late 1800’s, when most writers wrote about Australia in a British manner

• First writer to be faithful to the Australian landscape

LITERARY FEATURES

"Even then Tom didn't give in--there was grit in that man. He borrowed a broken-down dray-horse in return for its keep, coupled it with his own old riding hack, and started to finish ploughing. The team wasn't a success. Whenever the draught horse's knees gave way and he stumbled forward, he jerked the lighter horse back into the plough, and something would break. Then Tom would blaspheme till he was refreshed, mend up things with wire and bits of clothes-line, fill his pockets with stones to throw at the team, and start again. Finally he hired a dummy's child to drive the horses. The brat did his best he tugged at the head of the team, prodded it behind, heaved rocks at it, cut a sapling, got up his enthusiasm, and wildly whacked the light horse whenever the other showed signs of moving--but he never succeeded in starting both horses at one and the same time. Moreover the youth was cheeky, and the selector's temper had been soured: he cursed the boy along with the horses, the plough, the selection, the squatter, and Australia. Yes, he cursed Australia. The boy cursed back, was chastised, and immediately went home and brought his father."

COMPARISON

• The Drover’s Wife

• Independence - both Tom and the drover’s wife are essentially left to fend for themselves in Australia’s harsh environment.

• Resilience - despite their endless misfortunes with nature, they persevere, never even contemplating surrender.

• Realistic outlook - Australia is portrayed as a cruel and hostile land which relentlessly presents challenges to inhabitants.

• Dark humour - the drover’s wife finds humour in her desperate situation and dark humour is created in the last line of Settling on the Land.

THANK YOU ☺