Module A

Experience Through Language

Elective B: Distinctively Visual
Prose fiction: Lawson, Henry -`The Drover's Wife', `The Bush
Undertaker', `In a Dry Season', `The Loaded Dog'

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 2017 Year 12 Resource Booklet

Student Resource Booklet

Table of Contents
Resource Page #

Introduction to Module A Experience Through

Language Pg. 3
Elective B Distinctively Visual

Breaking Up the Module Pg. 4-5

Related Text #1- Richard Thomas ‘The Worker’ poem Pg. 6-7

Related Text #2- “The Water Diviner” film extract Pg. 8

Related Text #3- Nick Ut ‘Terror of War’- Photograph Pg. 9-13

Context- Henry Lawson Pg. 14

Timeline of Lawson’s Life Pg. 15

Lawson’s Stories and Style Pg. 16

Prescribed Text #1- ‘The Drovers Wife’ Pg. 17- 22

Prescribed Text #2- ‘The Bush Undertaker’ Pg. 23- 29

Prescribed Text # 3- ‘In a Dry Season’ Pg. 30- 35

Prescribed Text #4- ‘The Loaded Dog’ Pg. 36- 41

Past HSC Questions Pg. 42

Practice Essay Question and table scaffold Pg. 43- 51

Sample A-Range Responses Pg. 52-67

Preparing for your Half-Yearly Examination Pg. 68- 74

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Introduction to Module A

Module A: Experience Through Language

This module requires students to explore the uses of a particular aspect of language. It develops
students’ awareness of language
and helps them to understand
how our perceptions of and
relationships with others and the
world are shaped in written,
spoken and visual language.

Each elective in this module

requires study of a prescribed
text through a key aspect of language. This provides the basis for the study and use of this aspect
of language in other texts, including texts drawn from students’ own experience.

Students examine particular language structures and features used in the prescribed text and in a
range of situations that they encounter in their daily lives. They explore, examine and analyse how
the conventions of textual forms, language modes and media shape meaning. Composition
focuses on experimentation with variations of purpose, audience and form to achieve different
effects. These compositions may be realised in a variety of forms and media.

Elective 2: Distinctively Visual

In their responding and composing, students explore the ways the images we see and/or visualise
in texts are created. Students consider how the forms, features and language of different texts
create these images, affect interpretation and shape meaning. Students examine one prescribed
text, in addition to other related texts of their own choosing that provide examples of the
distinctively visual.

Activities:
1. Highlight/underline the key words from the syllabus.
2. Write in your own words what you believe the syllabus is asking of you.

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 Breaking up The Module
What does ‘distinctively’ mean?

 Distinguishing characteristics
 Something which serves as a mark of difference/separation-Peculiarity/ individuality
 Particularly noticeable
 Prominent
 Something which is typically classed as separate
 Strong enough, large enough, or definite enough to be noticed
 Unique

What does visual refer to?

 Something perceptible by sight (vision) or by the mind (perception)

 Able or intended to be seen by the eyes or be perceived as a picture in the mind

Defining Distinctively Visual

In the context of the rubric:

 Anything WITHIN THAT TEXT that provokes an image that you can physically see or imagine.
 It provokes an image WITHIN THAT TEXT which is connected to a CLEAR attitude/value/
perspective/idea.

Defining Image

 An actual or mental picture. Produced either physically by a sculptor, painter, or photographer,

or formed in the mind by auditory, written, or visual means
 A very typical or extreme example of something e.g. the very image of evil, greed, beauty
 A person or thing bearing a close likeness to somebody or something else. e.g. She’s the image
of her father
 Image is the idea behind what you see/visualise.

What provokes images?

Written Text: Visual Text:

 Figurative Language  Colour

 Descriptive language  Framing-included/ omitted?
 Imagery  Composition
 Word choice (Emotive language)  Character and object positioning
 Recount  Body Language, facial expressions,
 Narrative structure posture, gestures, hairstyle, clothing,
 Repetition of words and images etc
 Adjectives  Vectors-Focus/Placement
 Verbs  Lighting
 Punctuation –bold capital letters, ellipsis  Shot type, angle & distance

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 (….) , exclamations to show emotion (!),  Symbolism /icons (setting, object,
font. costume, make up)
 Direct speech / dialogue –where  Absence of written text
quotation marks are used (“ ”). When we  Subject choice-Who? What? Where?
hear someone speaking it makes the text What?
more engaging and authentic as we can
visualise the scene
 Compound words –connecting words to
make the description more powerful e.g.
sun-drenched, mud-splattered
 Formal language, informal language,
colloquial language, slang to create
authentic characters

What is the function of images?

 TO: Provoke, Confirm, Inform

 The function of an image could be to express ideas about:
 Characters (confident, submissive, determined)
 Relationships (animosity, friendship)
 The World-themes/views/ perceptions (horror of war, power of friendship etc.)

Analysing Distinctively Visual Texts

Step 1: Identify what you see

Step 2: What ideas are revealed by the image?

-Character (people)
-Relationships
-The World (place, event, perceptions, views)

Step 3: How are these images conveyed? TECHNIQUES

Related Text # 1- Richard Thomas ‘The Worker’- Poem

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My father lies black and hushed

Beneath white hospital sheets

He collapsed at work

His iron left him

Slow and quiet he sank

Meeting the wet concrete floor on his way

The wheels were still turning--they couldn't stop

Red and yellow lights flashing

Gloved hands twisting knobs--they couldn't stop

And as they carried him out

The whirring and buzzing and humming machines

Applauded him

Lapping up his dripping iron

They couldn't stop.

Techniques to focus on:

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-visual imagery
-kinetic imagery
-auditory imagery
-tactile imagery
-repetition

This poem by Richard W. Thomas is almost entirely image-based. Thomas uses visual,
kinetic, auditory, and tactile images to help illustrate his poem.

Questions:

1. Describe what is happening in this poem.

2. Find the visual images used in the poem. Find at least one quote from the text
and describe the image that you see as a result.
3. Find the auditory images used in this poem. Quote the lines that build this
auditory image and then explain the sound being described in your own words.
4. Find the line that uses a tactile reference i.e refers to the sense of touch and
quote this line. Quote these lines and explain the tactile sensation they describe
in your own words.
5. The poet also creates kinetic images i.e. images that help us to visualise
movement. Quote these lines and explain the movement being described in
your own words. How has the composer used repetition? Why has the
composer used repetition?

6. The poet is helping us to perceive the death of his father due to an industrial
accident. The images employed tell us a lot not only about the father's death
but also about the poet's relationship with his father and his feelings about his
death. What do you think the poet is saying?

7. What are the distinct images that you see within the poem?

8. Write at least ONE concept statement which links to the poem.

9. Construct a body paragraph that addresses ONE concept statement written in

question 8. Ensure you follow the TEEEL structure.

o T- Topic Sentence
o E- Explain/Expand
o E- Examples and technique/s
o E-Evaluate
o L- Link

Related Text #2- Film Extract “The Water Diviner” 2014- Dust Storm
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 The syllabus description of Module A, which requires you to study how language techniques
create an image, refers not only to written language and spoken word, but also the study of
visual language techniques.
After viewing the extract answer the following questions:
Dust Storm: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCjchkyE-YA

1. How does this clip present the Australian landscape? (Prepare a topic sentence to
answer this question - The Australian landscape is presented as...)
2. How have cinematic features/visual techniques been used to highlight this depiction of
the Australian landscape? Complete the following table.

Techniques Specific examples from text and what these tell us about the Australian landscape.
Camera
angles

Long shots,
POV, Close up
etc

Camera
movement

Panning,
Tracking etc

Diegetic and
non-diegetic
sound

Lighting

Low-key
lighting and
high-key
lighting
3. What are the distinct images that you see within the extract?

4. Write at least ONE concept statement which links to the film extract.

5. Construct a body paragraph that addresses ONE concept statement written in

question 4. Ensure you follow the TEEEL structure.

o T- Topic Sentence
o E- Explain/Expand
o E- Examples and technique/s
o E-Evaluate
o L- Link

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 Related Text #3- Nick Ut ‘Terror of War’/ ‘Napalm Girl’- Photograph 1972

The “Terror of War” photo was taken by photographer Nick Ut on June 8, 1972, near Trang
Bang in South Vietnam. The photo shows children fleeing in terror, with the focus on nine-year-
old Phan Thi Kim Phuc, in the center, who ripped off her burning clothes after she was
splashed by napalm. There was a brief editorial debate about whether to print a photo
involving nudity, but it was subsequently published all over the world the next day.
Nick Ut's photo was an extremely powerful and influential image as:
 it helped turn U.S. public opinion against America's ongoing involvement in the
Vietnam War
 it contradicted U.S. propaganda that America was helping the South Vietnamese
people and was not an aggressor

The 1972 photograph of nine year old South Vietnamese girl, Kim Phuc, fleeing her village of
Trang Bang after a napalm attack won the Canadian photographer, Nick Ut, a Pulitzer prize and
is one of the iconic images that helped turn US public opinion against US involvement in the war.
The photograph shows a group of terrorised South Vietnammese children running down the road
away from their burning village, being followed casually by several South Vietnamese soldiers
who appear to be casually indifferent to the children’s suffering.

For years the US public had been fed propaganda that US forces were in Vietnam to help the
South Vietnamese fight off the threat from the Communist north. This photograph suggests the
propaganda was a lie; it shows the South Vietnamese people being dispossessed and horribly
injured by the US/South Vietnamese war machine, victims of collateral damage.

Although not staged, this photograph was carefully selected from thousands of others as the text
features of this image have the ability to sway the opinion of the responder regarding U.S.
9
involvement in the Vietnam war. The fact that the subjects are young children prevents the
responder from dismissing the image by saying they were probably Viet Cong and therefore
deserved their fate; the children are too young to be guilty of anything. The terrified expressions
on the children’s faces suggests that the US war effort was terrorising the South Vietnamese
people not helping them. The fact that the central figure of the photograph is naked symbolised
the concept that the US war effort is stripping people of their dignity while the casual attitude of
the soldiers who follow the children without trying to assist them portrays the US/South
Vietnamese war personnel as callous and uncaring about the suffering they inflict on the South
Vietnamese people. The smoke of the burning village in the background suggests that the
children have been deprived of their home by US/South Vietnamese war effort whilst the
absence of Vietnamese civilian adults in the photograph suggests that they have had their
parents taken from them as well.

This text demonstrates the power of images to shape public opinion through the careful selection
and/or manipulation of text features.

Consider the following:

 It has been claimed that the young, female, naked figure represents the victimized,
feminized country of Vietnam.
 There is a stark contrast between the soldiers and the children, the soldiers’ business as
usual attitude contrasts with the girl’s pain and terror. The soldiers show that this
seemingly rare event is not all that uncommon. The soldiers are supposed to be
protecting the children, but they are merely herding them down the road.
 Pain is the central frame of the photo. The photograph projects her pain into our world.
 The child that is closest to the camera, in the foreground, has a look of terror on his
face, resembling Eduard Munch’s famous drawing of “The Scream.”
 Her nudity represents innocence, an innocence that has been taken away from her by
the war.
 The children are running right at the camera, creating an intensity and haste.
 The photographer who took the photo was taller than the children, therefore shooting
from above the subjects and deeming them powerless.
 The boy who is in the foreground of the photo has a look of terror on his face. He is also
closest to the camera of all of the characters so the viewer is more emotionally
connected to him.
 The soldiers behind the children appear to be herding the children, moving them along
away from the danger. The authority of the soldiers over the children raises questions
about their parents. Where are their parents? Were they killed in the fighting? Are these
orphans?
 The soldiers’ actions create a notion that they are herding the children, and that the
Vietnamese are animals that need to be tamed and controlled by the Americans. In
the background of the photo, the smoke from the fire can be seen. The dark smoke
represents the dark, ominous, and dangerous situation that is occurring in Vietnam.

Uncropped Version of The Image

Although the photograph was not staged (as President Richard Nixon privately suggested at the
time of its publication), the uncropped version clearly demonstrates how images can be made
more powerful when publishers have a good understanding of how they work and publish them
to maximise their impact. The uncropped version clearly shows press photographers being as
callous as the American soldiers.

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Techniques to consider:
Salient Point
Foreground
Background
High Angle Shot
Appropriation

Activities:
1. Identify the salient point in the cropped image. What is the effect of this?
2. Who are in the foreground? What is the effect of this? What does it tell you about who holds
the power?
3. Who are in the background? What is the effect of this? What does it tell you about who holds
the power?
4. What is the effect of the slight high angle shot?
5. Which famous artwork does the young naked girl appropriate?
6. What is the effect of cropping the original image?
7. What are the distinct images that you see within the photograph?
8. Write at least ONE concept statement which links to the image.
9. Construct a body paragraph that addresses ONE concept statement written in question 8.
Ensure you follow the TEEEL structure.
o T- Topic Sentence
o E- Explain/Expand
o E- Examples and techniques
o E-Evaluate
o L- Link

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The Terror of War/Napalm Girl IEEL Table

Topic Sentence Explain/Expand (E) Examples and techniques (E) Evaluate (E) Link back to topic
(T) sentence or question (L)

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Sample essay segment for Napalm girl
The 1972 photograph of the nine year old South Vietnamese girl, Kim Phuc, fleeing her village of Trang Bang after a napalm attack won the Canadian
photographer, Nick Ut, a Pulitzer prize and is one of the iconic images that helped turn US public opinion against US involvement in the war. The photograph
shows a group of terrorised South Vietnamese children running down the road away from their burning village, being followed casually by several South
Vietnamese soldiers who appear to be casually indifferent to the children’s suffering.

For years the US public had been fed propaganda that US forces were in Vietnam to help the South Vietnamese fight off the threat from the Communist north.
This photograph suggests the propaganda was a lie; it shows the South Vietnamese people being dispossessed and horribly injured by the US/South Vietnamese
war machine, victims of collateral damage.

Although not staged, this photograph was carefully selected from thousands of others as the text features of this image have the ability to sway the opinion of the
responder regarding U.S. involvement in the Vietnam war. The fact that the subjects are young children prevents the responder from dismissing the image by
saying they were probably Viet Cong and therefore deserved their fate; the children are too young to be guilty of anything. The terrified expressions on the
children’s faces suggests that the US war effort was terrorising the South Vietnamese people not helping them. The fact that the central figure of the photograph
is naked symbolised the concept that the US war effort is stripping the South Vietnamese people of their dignity while the casual attitude of the soldiers who follow
the children without trying to assist them portrays the US/South Vietnamese war personnel as callous and uncaring about the suffering they inflict on the South
Vietnamese people. The smoke of the burning village in the background suggests that the children have been deprived of their home by the US/South
Vietnamese war effort whilst the absence of Vietnamese civilian adults in the photograph suggests that they have had their parents taken from them as well.

This text demonstrates the power of visual images to shape public opinion through the careful selection and/or manipulation of text features

13
Context- Henry Lawson

Henry Lawson was an Australian writer and poet. Along with his
contemporary Banjo Paterson, Lawson is among the best-known
Australian poets and fiction writers of the colonial period and is
often called Australia's "greatest writer". He was the son of the
poet, publisher and feminist Louisa Lawson. 


Henry Lawson was born in a town on the Grenfell goldfields of

New South Wales. His father was Niels Herzberg Larsen, a
Norwegian-born miner who went to sea at 21, arrived in
Melbourne in 1855 to join the gold rush. Lawson's parents met at
the goldfields and married on 7 July 1866; he was 32 and she, 18.

Henry Lawson attended school from 2 October 1876 but suffered

an ear infection around this time. It left him with partial deafness
and by the age of fourteen he had lost his hearing entirely. He
later attended a Catholic school at Mudgee, New South Wales
around 8 km away; the master there, Mr. Kevan, would teach
Lawson about poetry. Reading became a major source of his education because, due to his
deafness, he had trouble learning in the classroom. 
 


In 1883, after working on building jobs with his father and in the Blue Mountains, Lawson joined his
mother in Sydney at her request. At this time, Lawson was working during the day and studying at
night in the hopes of receiving a university education. However, he failed his exams. In 1896, he
married Bertha Bredt Jr., daughter of a prominent socialist. They had two children, son Jim
(Joseph) and daughter Bertha. However, the marriage ended unhappily. 
 


Lawson's first published poem was 'A Song of the Republic' which appeared in The Bulletin, 1
October 1887. In 1892 The Bulletin paid for an inland trip where he experiences the harsh realities
of drought-affected New South Wales. This became a source for many of his stories in subsequent
years. The trek Lawson took between Hungerford and Bourke was one of the most important treks
in Australian literary history and it confirmed all of his prejudices about the Australian bush.

Lawson uses short, sharp sentences, with language as raw as Ernest Hemingway or Raymond
Carver. With sparse adjectives and honed-to-the-bone description, Lawson created a style and
defined Australians as people of few words, passionately egalitarian and deeply humane.

Like the majority of Australians, Lawson lived in a city, but had had plenty of experience in
outback life, in fact, many of his stories reflected his experiences in real life. Despite his position as
the most celebrated Australian writer of the time, Lawson was deeply depressed and continually
poor. He lacked money due to deals with publishers and his ex-wife repeatedly reported him for
non-payment of child maintenance, resulting in gaol terms. He was gaoled at Darlinghurst Gaol
for drunkenness and non-payment of alimony, and recorded his experience in the haunting poem
"One Hundred and Three" - his prison number - which was published in 1908. At this time, Lawson
became withdrawn, alcoholic, and unable to carry on the usual routine of life. 
 
 


Lawson died in Sydney in 1922 and was given a state funeral. His funeral was attended by the
Prime Minister W. M. Hughes and the Premier of New South Wales Jack Lang, as well as thousands
of citizens. Lawson was the first person to be granted a state funeral. 


14
 Timeline of Lawson’s Life
-1867 Born 17 June at Grenfell, NSW to father Niels Larsen, Norwegian sailor-turned-digger, and Australian-
born Louisa (born Albury)
-1868 Parents move to New Pipeclay (later Eurunderee), near Mudgee
-1871 Family moves to goldfields at Gulgong
-1873 Lawsons return to Pipeclay
-1875-79 Attends school at Eurunderee,
Pipeclay Creek and Mudgee
-1880-83 Goes to work with father, now a
carpenter
-1883 Moves to Sydney to be with his mother –
parents separated
-1884-87 Apprenticed as a coach painter
-1887-88 Lawson's mother publishes political
paper The Republican, Lawson contributes to
it and to The Bulletin; visits Melbourne and
Ballarat
-1888-90 Lawson contributes to Town and
Country Journal, Freeman's Journal and Truth;
travels to Albany, WA for five months
-1891 On staff at The Boomerang, a Brisbane weekly
-1892-93 Travels to Bourke; writes for The Western Herald and sends work to The Bulletin; works as a house
painter in Bourke and a rouseabout at Toorale station; walks to Hungerford, on Queensland border, and
back
-1893 Travels to New Zealand
-1894 Returns to Sydney; works for papers Daily Worker and Worker; first book - Short Stories in Prose and
Verse - published by his mother
-1895 Meets his future wife, Bertha Bredt
-1896 In the Days When the World Was Wide published; marries Bertha Bredt, 18; travels to Perth; While the
Billy Boils published
-1897 Moves to New Zealand
-1898 Son Joseph Henry born; returns to Sydney
-1899-1900 On the Track and Over the Sliprails and Verses Popular and Humorous published; daughter
Bertha Marie Louise born; moves to England
-1901 The Country I Come From and Joe Wilson and His Mates published
-1902 Children of the Bush published; returns to Australia
-1903 Separates from Bertha; lives a vagrant's life in Sydney
-1904 Taken in by Isabel Byers, who will care for him for many of his remaining years
-1905 Jailed for not paying maintenance; When I Was King and Other Versespublished
-1906 Sells copyright of Children of the Bush to Angus & Robertson
-1908-09 First of a series of confinements in Darlinghurst Mental Hospital; jailed for defaulting on
maintenance
-1910 The Rising of the Court and The Skyline Riders and Other Versespublished
-1911 Again admitted to mental hospital; A Coronation Ode and Retrospectpublished
-1912-13 Living as an alcoholic vagabond in Sydney
-1914 Twice visits childhood area of Mudgee/Eurunderee
-1915 My Army, O My Army published; moves to Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area, NSW
-1918-19 Partly sustained by an allowance from his publishers but often seen with his hat out at Circular
Quay
-1920 Lawson's mother dies in Gladesville Mental Hospital
-1921 Three months in hospital after a cerebral haemorrhage
-1922 Dies on 2 September at Abbotsford, Sydney, aged 55; given state funeral and buried at Waverley
Cemetery.

Question:
Which events do believe would have affected Lawson’s writing the most? Why?

15
 Lawson’s Stories and Style

The short stories set for study were written by Henry Lawson during the 1890s. By this time,
Australia (although not yet federated), had been settled for over one hundred years.
This makes Henry Lawson one of the first Australian born writers with compositions
influenced by the unique Australian landscape and emerging culture. For this reason,
Lawson contributed significantly to the creation of a recognisable Australian identity.

By the late 1800s, most Australians lived in towns and cities, however it was the
Australian bush that captured their imagination. This, perhaps, was due to the harsh
and rugged bush environment, which was very much in contrast to the mild rose
gardens and green pastoral areas of the English landscape; a landscape firmly fixed in
the minds of a predominantly British population.

Lawson wrote primarily for The Bulletin – a publication known as the ‘bushman’s bible’
because of its appeal to the characteristics and beliefs of men in the 19 th Century:
mateship, egalitarianism, unionism and occasionally socialism and republicanism.

The Sketch

Lawson often wrote in a style known as the ‘sketch’. A sketch is a short story with very
little plot. As the name suggests, the focus is on ‘sketching’; similar to an artist, the writer
creates impressions of people and places – a picture in words. The most notable
examples of ‘sketches’ in the selection set for study are The Drover’s Wife and In a Dry
Season.

This style is more serious in nature and is often an attempt to show the tragedy in
people’s lives for its own sake. For this reason, the ‘sketch’ lends itself to powerful
observations concerning the human condition. In fact, the responder becomes a
voyeur watching as the sketch unfolds and reveals itself. Lawson himself said "I thought
the short story was a lazy man's game, second to 'free' verse, compared with the
sketch. The sketch, to be really good, must be good in every line. But the sketch- story is
best of all."2 Here, Lawson admits to combining two distinct writing styles – the sketch
and the short story. This blending of styles explains the tightly structured nature of his
short stories and his tendency to focus on characterisation and setting over plot in
creating a distinctively visual impression of life in the Australian bush.

16
Prescribed Text #1-‘The Drovers Wife’- Short Story

As the title suggests, this story is about a drover’s wife; a woman who is continually left to look
after the house and children whilst her husband is away for long 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 – a harsh and unforgiving environment.
The main complication of the story is the presence of a snake, which threatens the safety of her
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, thus protecting her family.

Purpose
Henry Lawson’s purpose in writing this story lies in his role as the ‘voice of the bush’ and his
assault on Australian writers writing in the Romantic tradition – namely Banjo Paterson. In The
Drover’s Wife, Lawson confronts his readers with the harsh realities of life in the Australian
outback, whilst also forcing them to reconsider their perception of the role of women.

Audience
Henry Lawson wrote for The
Bulletin, a popular Australian
magazine which ran from
1880 to 2008. It began as a
political and business journal,
with some literary content.
In its early years, The Bulletin
was known as the ‘bushman’s
bible’ because of its
nationalist, anti-imperialist,
‘radical’ political stance and
racist views. In fact, the
journal’s slogan was ‘Australia
for the White Man’. This
appealed to the male
dominated frontier (rural)
districts of late 19th Century
Australia.

The Drover’s Wife was first

published in The Bulletin on
23rd July 1892 and would
have appealed to this
audience given its depiction
of the harsh reality of life in the
bush and the portrayal of
resilient women in light of the
loneliness and dangers living
in the outback entailed.

17
 Glossary
The following words/phrases are listed in the DEFINITION
order in which they appear in the story. As you
read The Drover’s Wife highlight each of these
words/phases and make a note of the meaning.
WORD
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 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.
Gin An abbreviation of ‘Aborigine’ – only used in
reference to female Aborigines.
Bullock A castrated bull.
Pleuro-pneumonia An disease affecting the lungs of cattle.
Besieged Surrounded
“in the horrors” An informal expression for ‘delirium tremens’ – a
withdrawal syndrome in people who have developed
a dependence on alcohol, characterised by tremors,
hallucinations and visible instability.
Sundowner A homeless man who arrives at sunset so that he
cannot be asked to do odd jobs in exchange for a
place to stay.
Swagman A vagrant (wanderer) who carries his personal
belongings with him in a sack.
Prambulator A pram.
Monotony Wearisome uniformity or lack of variety.
“sense of the ridiculous” The ability to find humour in the seemingly absurd.

The Drover’s Wife – Questions

1. Consider the opening two paragraphs. How has Lawson enabled responders 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 conveys an image of the snake’s presence as threatening to the

drover’s wife and her children. Analyse the language devices Lawson has used to achieve
this image. 
 In your answer, consider the effect of: 


a) Dialogue (truncated sentences and exclamation)

18
 b) Action verbs


c) Characterisation of Tommy


d) Characterisation of the drover’s wife 


3. What is the effect of calling the family dog “Alligator”? What distinctively visual image of
the dog is conveyed to the responder? 


4. 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? 


5. Lawson uses a series of flashbacks to develop the character of the drover’s wife. Identify
these flashbacks in the story:

a) 1st flashback: Bushfire 


b) 2nd flashback: Flood 

c) 3rd flashback: Pleuro-pneumonia 

d) 4th flashback: Mad bullock 

Explain how Lawson has used each hardship to convey the distinctive characteristics of the
drover’s wife.

6. In what other ways does Lawson show that life in the bush is a day-to-day struggle? 


7. Identify TWO examples of humour. In what ways do these humorous incidents add to the

 distinctively visual image of life in the Australian bush? 


8. Read the story’s climatic scene – the ‘killing of the snake’. Analyse how Lawson has

 successfully enabled the responder to visualise this scene. In your answer, make reference
to: 


a) Variations in sentence length

b) Repetition
c) Onomatopoeia
d) Action verbs 

e) Biblical allusion 


9. Why do you think Tommy declares at the end of the story that he: “won’t never go
drovin’”? In what ways does his promise to his mother heighten the image of an
abandoned wife and mother? 


10. Reflect on what is revealed about the drover throughout the story. How are we
encouraged to view him? 


11. What are the distinct images that you see within the text?

12. Write at least ONE concept statement which links to the text.

13. Construct a body paragraph that addresses ONE concept statement written in question 12.
Ensure you follow the TEEEL structure.

19
 Distinct Images in ‘The Drover’s Wife’

Distinct Image Techniques Evidence- quotes Effect

The Children

Climate/Climatic
events

Dog

House

20
Landscape

Snake

Woman

The Drover

21
Concept Statements for ‘The Drover’s Wife’

o Authors construct images of femininity to confront audiences on lost hopes and lost dreams.
o The representations of the children reinforce the poverty and remoteness of the bush
experience.
o The woman’s stoicism is a representation that has become synonymous with the country
woman building expectations across generations of resourcefulness and resilience.
o The woman’s aggression is presented as instinct to highlight and infer her frustration and anger
at the necessity of raising children alone in such isolation

o Historical images present the changing notions of an Australian image since the writing of this
text.
o Woman in nineteenth century Australia were often regarded as delicate creature with small,
two-dimensional roles within society.
o Authors confront their readers with the realities of the lives of the individuals and their need to
change to survive.
o The use of distinctively visual language depicts to the audience the harsh realities of life in the
bush and the constant threats to individuals.
o
o
o
o

Drover’s Wife: Sample Passage:

Question: “Henry Lawson uses Distinctively Visual images in ‘The Drover’s Wife’ to create a uniquely
Australian story.”

The Drover’s Wife is a tale told in flashbacks and reflection capturing the hardships and struggles
of an isolated bush-mother as a result of her choice to live in the Australian bush. In this tale
Lawson develops through distinctively visual images a sense of the bush-woman and her surrounds
which make the story uniquely Australian story.

The action and drama of ‘the drover’s wife’ is played out in a setting that is bleak and
inhospitable in a way that only the Australian bush can be. When describing the bush setting
Lawson emphasises a complete absence of physical features which creates an image of
seclusion and abject isolation for the drover’s wife and her family. “Bush all around – bush with no
horizon... No ranges in the distance…no undergrowth …nothing to relieve the eye …save a few
she-oaks…above a narrow waterless creek.” By describing the setting as a place that lacks
distinctive features Lawson creates a sense that the Australian bush is a location unlike any other
and as such holds challenges and adversaries one would not find anywhere else. The distinctive
image of the Australian bush setting opens the story as a uniquely Australian tale.

The values, beliefs and behaviours of characters in ‘The Drover’s Wife’ further characterise this
story as uniquely Australian. The image of the drover’s wife springing actively onto the scene at
the first sign of trouble portrays her as a complex and contradictory figure that could only be
Australian….

Through these various language and stylistic techniques Lawson creates distinctively visual images
that tell a story that is uniquely Australia.

22
In this story, we accompany the narrator on their train journey from Bathurst to Bourke. The
narrator relays to us a picture of the landscape “all along the New South Wales western line” and
the typical types of people encountered along the way. In many ways it is a ‘nightmare’ trip,
with the narrator encountering a number of people with ‘odd’ behaviour.

In this respect, Lawson is capitalising on the notion that people love to share and compare
‘horror’ trips and derive enjoyment from humorously discussing the people they saw and the
strange behaviours or incidents they observed.

Purpose

In a Dry Season is representative of Lawson’s typical ‘sketch’ style, rather than being a ‘sketch-
story’. The sketch shows us how the reality of the bush impacts upon and is reflected in those who
live there. Thus, the purpose of this sketch is to “draw” a picture of the bush landscape in the
heat of summer and compose portraits of the Australian people that can be found there.

Audience

First published in the in The Bulletin on 5th November 1892, the story is based on Lawson’s own
experience of travelling to Bourke in September 1892.

A sketch such as In a Dry Season enabled Lawson to present the ‘country’ to the ‘city’. In an
effort to maintain realism and avoid presenting the bush as a ‘rural paradise’, Lawson relies on a
number of stereotypes in this sketch. As a result, his characters are painted broadly, enabling the
sketch to convey a visually compelling picture of society in the bush.

The Bush Undertaker – Analysis of the Distinctly Visual

Henry Lawson uses many language devices to show that prolonged isolated living in the tough
and unrelenting Australian bush has an indelible effect on its occupants, often warping them
and making them “weird” or “eccentric”

Complete the following activities to analyse how Lawson creates these images of the harsh
environment, dangerous wildlife and isolation.

Harsh environment

1. In the opening paragraph Lawson creates an image of the harsh Australian environment.
Identify 4 different adjectives used to describe the environment that start with a plosive “b”
sound and explain how these words portray the environment.

2. The corpse represents the inherent danger posed by the dangerous environment. Write a line
from the text that describes this grotesque image and explain one language technique used
to help the reader visualise this disturbing scene.

Dangerous wildlife (Goannas)

3. Throughout the story, Lawson makes reference to the growing threat of the Goannas. Look at
the following sentences and explain how Lawson hints at their menace through describing
distinctly visual .
 “great greasy black goanna clambered up a sapling from under his feet and looked
fightable.
23
 “saw another goanna gliding off sideways, with its long snaky neck turned towards him.”
 ”there was a great black goanna in violent convulsions on the ground.”
 “wretch has a-follered me 'ome, an' has been a-havin' its Christmas dinner off of Brummy, an'
a-hauntin' o' me into the bargain, the jumpt-up tinker!"

Isolation (Loss of language skills)

4. Lawson purposely uses Australian Use of Australian colloquialism to represent the nationality of
the Bush Undertaker. Find 3 examples of Australian colloquialisms and explain what they
mean

5. All of the Bush Undertaker’s Dialogue is written phonetically, with incorrect grammar, syntax
and an informal register.

a) Read the following piece of dialogue and rewrite it in modern english

"I tole yer so, Brummy," he said impressively, addressing the corpse. "I allers told yer as how it
'ud be--an' here y'are, you thundering jumpt-up cuss-o'-God fool. Yer cud earn more'n any
man in the colony, but yer'd lush it all away. I allers sed as how it 'ud end, an' now yer kin see
fur y'self.

b) Why does he speak in this manner? What does it suggest about the impact of isolation on the
Bush Undertaker?
c) How does this auditory imagery affect the reader?

Isolation (The Undertaker’s humorous but odd activities)

The actions of the Bush Undertaker seem odd to the audience as they occur well outside the
social norms and etiquette of established civilisation. These events are depicted in a humorous
way to amuse the audience and highlight the effect bush living has on its occupants.

6. “Dinner proceeded very quietly, except when the carver paused to ask the dog how some
tasty morsel went with him, and Five Bob's tail declared that it went very well indeed” How
does Lawson use language here to make the image of man and dog having a formal dinner
humorous? (Make reference to this line and the line that follows directly after it)

7. For amusement, the undertaker decides to dig up some Aboriginal remains and analyse them.
By calling the character “The Bush Undertaker,” Lawson is already drawing attention to his
macabre hobby and pokes fun at his attempts at scientific experimentation. Write the line
that depicts this activity and explain how Lawson’s use of formal language and scientific
jargon makes the image comical.

8. When the Bush Undertaker returns to his home with Brummy’s corpse, he treats it as if it’s still
alive, which suggests his isolation and need for company. He is “used to the weird and dismal,
as one living alone in the bush must necessarily be.”

a) Identify a line from the text that personifies the corpse and explain how this affects the
reader’s visualisation of the corpse.

24
 b) This grotesque image is lightened by the Bush Undertaker’s threatening dialogue with the
vacant corpse. Read the following except and identify 2 different language devices Lawson
has used to depict this odd image explain how they produce humour.

"Now, look a-here, Brummy," said he, shaking his finger severely at the delinquent, "I don't want
to pick a row with yer; I'd do as much for yer an' more than any other man, an' well yer knows
it; but if yer starts playin' any of yer jumpt-up pranktical jokes on me, and a-scarin' of me after
a-humpin' of yer 'ome, by the 'oly frost I'll kick yer to jim-rags, so I will."

Isolation (Forgetting of societal norms)

9. Complete the following cloze passage

After saving Brummy from the hungry _________________, the Bush Undertaker decides to conduct

a ______________ for his friend. However he has difficulty remembering the _____________ and only

has his shepherding tools to carry it out. This leads to a comical and blundering ceremony which

demonstrates how isolated from _______________ society he has become. “He carried it to the

grave and dropped it into one corner like a______________. He arranged the bark so as to cover

the____________, and, by means of a piece of_________________ , lowered the body to a

horizontal position. Then he threw in an armful of________________ , and then, very reluctantly,

took the shovel and dropped in a few shovelfuls of earth” The ______________“like a post” both

makes reference to his ______________ fencing sheep, but also the ______________manner in

which he buries the body. When attempting the funeral rites, he “said with a

_________________that greatly disturbed Five Bob: "Hashes ter hashes, dus ter dus, Brummy--an'--

an' in hopes of a great an' gerlorious_________________!" His _____________________of the important

religious words reiterate how ____________ such ceremonies are from his day to day life, but also

______________that the rituals of urban civilisation are unnecessary in the harsh

Australian_____________. The image of this bush funeral helps the reader visualize how ___________

old traditions are in this environment

solemnity out of place funeral experience rassaraction Goannas

outback mispronunciation clumsy face clothes-line distant
highlights gum-leaves post ritual traditional simile

Survival

10. Lawson ends his story with the image of the Bush Undertaker after the funeral,

25
 “He sat down on a log near by, rested his elbows on his knees and passed his hand wearily
over his forehead--but only as one who was tired and felt the heat; and presently he rose, took
up the tools, and walked back to the hut. And the sun sank again on the grand Australian
bush--the nurse and tutor of eccentric minds, the home of the weird”

Why do you think he ends on this image? (Hint – what does it suggest about the Bush
Undertaker’s lifestyle)

1. The final line of the story resonates with the theme of the text itself; “the sun sank again on the
grand Australian bush--the nurse and tutor of eccentric minds, the home of the weird.” Explain
in your own words how the Bush Undertaker’s isolation and exposure to the landscape has
affected him, making reference to the events of this story.

The Bush Undertaker – Sample Extended Response

Henry Lawson’s short story “The Bush Undertaker” creates distinctive images which depict how prolonged
isolated living in the tough and unrelenting Australian bush has an indelible effect on its occupants, often
warping them and making them “weird” or “eccentric.” Lawson introduces the reader to the harsh
Australian environment by using alliterative words with negative connotations such as “broiling”, “barren”
and “bare, brown ridges” to describe the protagonist’s home. The plosive “b” sound of these words
creates a harsh and confronting tone, already suggesting that living in this environment is a battle. This
ongoing danger is reiterated when the Bush Undertaker discovers Brummy’s corpse. Lawson purposely
creates a grotesque image by describing its desperate and disturbing appearance in detail “shrivelled
eyes seemed to peer up at him from under the blackened wrists.” He adds sound to the image in “the
flesh sounded like leather.” This simile links the disturbing image to an everyday sound which highlights the
harsh reality of what happens if you don’t learn to adapt to the Australian environment.

The protagonist of this text has been clearly affected by living in isolation. He is no longer able to
communicate clearly and exhibits eccentric behaviours. Lawson ironically refers to the bushman as a
“soliloquizer,” then writes his dialogue phonetically which draws attention to his poor pronunciation,
grammar and syntax, “I aller’s told yer as how it ‘us be … you thundering jumpt-up cuss-o’-God fool.” This
contrast creates humour for the reader, but also demonstrates that his isolation has had a negative effect
on his communication skills. Further, the reader is alienated from the character as the dialogue is initially
difficult to read, however the auditory image it creates allows the reader to accurately hear him speaking.
His eccentric behaviours and hobbies are depicted humorously through contrast. Lawson uses formal
language and scientific jargon when describing the bushman’s examination of the bones, “speculating as
to whether they had belonged to black or white, male or female. Failing, however, to arrive at any
satisfactory conclusion, he dusted them with great care, put them in the bag” The protagonist is clearly not
a scientist and the careful action he is taking is different to his casual attitude toward his actual
occupation, shepherding. This image would appear humorous as his attempts to be scientific are ridiculous
in his situation. This incongruity between image and description draws attention to the odd way the
bushman amuses himself. A formal dinner with a dog, playing coroner with Aboriginal remains, conversing
with a corpse and conducting a funeral are all odd leisure activities, but in this desolate environment are
necessary to keep the bushman sane.

Lawson ends the story by portraying the bushman after the funeral. His gestures “he rested his elbows on his
knees and passed his hand wearily over his forehead--but only as one who was tired and felt the heat”
suggest that he is upset by the loss of his friend and is taking a minute to mourn. However the hyphens
show that he is in fact only hot and tired and must return to work, as he must to ensure physical and mental
survival. The final personified line “the sun sank again on the grand Australian bush--the nurse and tutor of
eccentric minds, the home of the weird” reiterates the effect living in the isolating and dangerous
Australian environment has had on the main character, making the Bush Undertaker “weird and
eccentric”

26
 Distinct Images in ‘The Bush Undertaker’

Distinct Techniques Evidence- quotes Effect

Image
Bush
Landscape

Dog

Brummy

27
Goannas

The old man

28
Concept Statements for ‘The Bush Undertaker’

o Lawson’s literal imagery is embedded with colonial notions of individualism.

o The literal imagery of the landscape is an anthropomorphic representation of the
protagonist‟s social angst.
o The imagery, distinctive in both the literal and philosophical sense, represents the
arrogance of white men believing they could dominate the landscape.

o Images of the dog reflect the intuitive notion of the bush as a place of fear and
misrepresentation.
o Lawson’s text reflects how images of bush stoicism as reduced to madness as a
consequence of the isolating imperatives of creating a national white history.

o Ironic representations of burial rites and ritual present opportunity to explore how the
images presented here are a reflection of the time in which the text was produced.
o

Constructing a body paragraph

1. What are the distinct images that you see within the text?

2. Write at least ONE concept statement which links to the text.

3. Construct a body paragraph that addresses ONE concept statement written in

question 2. Ensure you follow the TEEEL structure.

o T- Topic Sentence
o E- Explain/Expand
o E- Examples and technique/s
o E-Evaluate
o L- Link

29
 Prescribed Text # 3- ‘In a Dry Season’- Short Story

Analysis

In a Dry Season – Section 1

Draw a wire fence and a few ragged gums, and add some scattered sheep running away from
the train. Then you’ll have the bush all along the New South Wales western line from Bathurst on.

The railway towns consist of a public house and a general store, with a square tank and a school-
house on piles in the nearer distance. The tank stands at the end of the school and is not many
times smaller than the building itself. It is safe to call the pub "The Railway Hotel," and the store
"The Railway Stores," with an "s." A couple of patient, ungroomed hacks are probably standing
outside the pub, while their masters are inside having a drink--several drinks. Also it's safe to draw
a sundowner sitting listlessly on a bench on the veranda, reading “the Bulletin”. The Railway
Stores seem to exist only in the shadow of the pub, and it is impossible to conceive either as
being independent of the other. There is sometimes a small, oblong weather-board building--
unpainted, and generally leaning in one of the eight possible directions, and perhaps with a twist
in another--which, from its half-obliterated sign, seems to have started as a rival to the Railway
Stores; but the shutters are up and the place empty.

The only town I saw that differed much from the above consisted of a box-bark humpy with a
clay chimney, and a woman standing at the door throwing out the wash-up water.

By way of variety, the artist might make a water-colour sketch of a fettler's tent on the line, with a
billy hanging over the fire in front, and three fettlers standing round filling their pipes.

From the extract above, find examples of each of the following techniques:

1. Negative adjectives: few, ragged and scattered suggests empty expanse of landscape, and
that it is unchanging

2. High modality words and hyperboles: suggesting little variation in landscape

3 Australian Colloquialisms: Depict an image of men working on the railway using Australian
colloquialism

4. Imperative voice: gives command to audience to sketch the repetitive images he is seeing
from his train window. Invites reader to participate in the story and witness the journey at close
hand.

5. Stereotypical Descriptions: Lawson suggests the stereotypical inhabitants of outback bush

towns are also to be found everywhere. Shows effect living in these monotonous towns has had
on inhabitants “ungroomed” “listless” and most likely drunk.

30
In a Dry Season – Section 2

Slop sac suits, red faces, and old-fashioned, flat-brimmed hats, with wire round the brims, begin
to drop into the train on the other side of Bathurst; and here and there a hat with three inches of
crape round the crown, which perhaps signifies death in the family at some remote date, and
perhaps doesn't. Sometimes, I believe, it only means grease under the band. I notice that when
a bushman puts crape round his hat he generally leaves it there till the hat wears out, or another
friend dies. In the latter case, he buys a new piece of crape. This outward sign of bereavement
usually has a jolly red face beneath it. Death is about the only cheerful thing in the bush.

We crossed the Macquarie--a narrow, muddy gutter with a dog swimming across, and three
goats interested.

A little farther on we saw the first sundowner. He carried a Royal Alfred, and had a billy in one
hand and a stick in the other. He was dressed in a tail-coat turned yellow, a print shirt, and a pair
of moleskin trousers, with big square calico patches on the knees; and his old straw hat was
covered with calico. Suddenly he slipped his swag, dropped his billy, and ran forward, boldly
flourishing the stick. I thought that he was mad, and was about to attack the train, but he wasn't;
he was only killing a snake. I didn't have time to see whether he cooked the snake or not--
perhaps he only thought of Adam.

Somebody told me that the country was very dry on the other side of Nevertire. It is. I wouldn't
like to sit down on it any where. The least horrible spot in the bush, in a dry season, is where the
bush isn't--where it has been cleared away and a green crop is trying to grow. They talk of
settling people on the land! Better settle in it. I'd rather settle on the water; at least, until some
gigantic system of irrigation is perfected in the West.

From the extract above, find examples of each of the following techniques:

1. Stereotypical Descriptions: Detailed description of a stereotypical swagman, again his clothes

symbolize his struggle, old damaged, falling apart material.

2. Symbolism: Clothes symbolize low income and struggle, also suggests that people are only
differentiated by their clothes. They are not characterized, and are left anonymous.

3. Third person: suggesting “government,” demonstrates Lawson believes social injustice is

evident here.

4. First person narration: directly showing Lawson’s opinion.

31
 In a Dry Season – Section 3

Along about Byrock we saw the first shearers. They dress like the unemployed, but differ from
that body in their looks of independence. They sat on trucks and wool-bales and the fence,
watching the train, and hailed Bill, and Jim, and Tom, and asked how those individuals were
getting on.

Here we came across soft felt hats with straps round the crowns, and full-bearded faces under
them. Also a splendid-looking black tracker in a masher uniform and a pair of Wellington boots.

One or two square-cuts and stand-up collars struggle dismally through to the bitter end. Often a
member of the unemployed starts cheerfully out, with a letter from the Government Labour
Bureau in his pocket, and nothing else. He has an idea that the station where he has the job will
be within easy walking distance of Bourke. Perhaps he thinks there'll be a cart or a buggy waiting
for him. He travels for a night and day without a bite to eat, and, on arrival, he finds that the
station is eighty or a hundred miles away. Then he has to explain matters to a publican and a
coach-driver. God bless the publican and the coach-driver! God forgive our social system!

Native industry was represented at one place along the line by three tiles, a chimney-pot, and a
length of piping on a slab.

Somebody said to me, "Yer wanter go out back, young man, if yer wanter see the country. Yer
wanter get away from the line." I don't wanter; I've been there.

You could go to the brink of eternity so far as Australia is concerned and yet meet an animated
mummy of a swagman who will talk of going "out back." Out upon the out-back fiend!

From the extract above, find examples of each of the following techniques:

1: Simile: suggests despite having money, they still dress scruffily and blend in with the vagrants
and drunks.

2. Hyperbole: About the wide expanse of environment. Negative image of “mummy” swagman
suggests the impact of the dry climate

3. Exclamation and insults: Lawson’s anger at romanticised idea of the cruel “outback”

___

In a Dry Season – Season 4

About Byrock we met the bush liar in all his glory. He was dressed like--like a bush larrikin. His
name was Jim. He had been to a ball where some blank had "touched" his blanky overcoat. The
overcoat had a cheque for ten "quid" in the pocket. He didn't seem to feel the loss much. "Wot's
ten quid?" He'd been everywhere, including the Gulf country. He still had three or four sheds to
go to. He had telegrams in his pocket from half a dozen squatters and supers offering him pens
on any terms. He didn't give a blank whether he took them or no. He thought at first he had the
telegrams on him but found that he had left them in the pocket of the overcoat aforesaid. He
had learned butchering in a day. He was a bit of a scrapper himself and talked a lot about the
32
 ring. At the last station where he shore he gave the super the father of a hiding. The super was a
big chap, about six-foot-three, and had knocked out Paddy Somebody in one round. He worked
with a man who shore four hundred sheep in nine hours.

Here a quiet-looking bushman in a corner of the carriage grew restless, and presently he opened
his mouth and took the liar down in about three minutes.

At 5.30 we saw a long line of camels moving out across the sunset. There's something snaky
about camels. They remind me of turtles and goannas.

Somebody said, "Here's Bourke."

From the extract above, find examples of each of the following techniques:

1. Imagery: of sameness and Lawson’s general dislike for Australian animals as being “snakey”
suggests they are deceitful or untrustworthy

2. Short and simple sentences: cumulate to represent the liar’s extensive deception. This
helps the reader imagine being present.

3. Short direct dialogue: showing they have reached their destination that lacks any
description shows Lawson’s disinterest in the outback and suggests it is no different to the
rest of the inhospitable environment he has described throughout the story.

Concept Statements for ‘In A Dry Season’

o The artistic representation is a deliberate construct that evokes a reaction to the

distinctive lack of a single Australian persona.
o The Australian outback was romanticised and once believed to be an exciting place
of adventure and opportunity.
o Author’s represent the monotony and sameness of outback Australian towns.
o Lawson suggests that individuals living in outback towns have similar experiences and
struggles.
o

Constructing a body paragraph

1. What are the distinct images that you see within the text?

2. Write at least ONE concept statement which links to the text.

3. Construct a body paragraph that addresses ONE concept statement written in question 2.
Ensure you follow the TEEEL structure.

33
 Distinct Images in ‘In A Dry Season’

Distinct Techniques Evidence- quotes Effect

Image
Landscape

Personalities

Buildings

Clothing

34
 In a Dry Season – Sample Extended Response

Lawson’s “In a Dry Season” depicts the harsh reality of living in the inhospitable Australian
Outback and the affect it has on its occupants through the homodiegetic narration of Lawson’s
real life journey to Bourke from Sydney in 1982. He begins the sketch using imperative voice to
direct the reader to “Draw a wire fence and a few ragged gums, and add some scattered
sheep running away from the train. Then you'll have the bush all along the New South Wales
western line from Bathurst on.” The responder is invited to visualize the uniform desolation of the
landscape through negative adjectives. Lawson’s description remain economical and refers to
the features of most country towns in general plural terms using indefinite articles, reiterating the
monotony Lawson and the reader is experiencing.

Lawson instead focuses on the individuals who struggle with adversity in this environment by using
their clothing to symbolise their stereotypical characters. “Slop sac suits, red faces, and old-
fashioned, flat-brimmed hats, with wire round the brims, begin to drop into the train on the other
side of Bathurst” These Australian hats signify that their wearers are poor and uncomfortable and
also allude to their position in society. Lawson’s description of another stereotype “the bush liar –
like a larrikin” and his use of the bush vernacular spelt phonetically, “wots ten quid” and
censored cuss words “blanky” allow the reader to access this auditory imagery and visualize his
eccentric behaviour.

Throughout the text, Lawson’s dry and cynical attitude is salient. He recognises the struggle
experienced by those living in the outback and attempts to subvert romantic imagery of the
outback, made popular by his contemporaries. This is shown through his authorial comments
such as “Death is about the only cheerful thing in the bush” which is a sarcastic paradox that
alludes to the danger posed in the bush, but also the complete boredom experienced within it.
Lawson uses a vivid image of “an animated mummy of a swagman who will talk of going "out
back." And then responds “Out upon the out-back fiend!” which depicts the physical affect the
hot and dry climate have upon the human body. The swagman’s love for the “outback” is
countered by Lawson’s insult and exclamation, which reiterates his need to portray the
Australian outback realistically. Thus, through the use of realistic and harsh imagery, Lawson
shows that The harsh conditions of the Australian outback has a negative impact on its
occupants

35
 Prescribed Text #4- ‘The Loaded Dog’- Short Story

This story is one of Lawson’s most

popular stories and if often
found in anthologies (a
collection of short stories),
including those designed for
children. What makes it so
effective is the humorous way in
which Lawson treats a
potentially dangerous situation.
Readers laugh at the many
close calls that are described
but there is a sense of black
humour about how fraught with
danger everyday life could be.
The story is sometimes described
as a “grim rural comedy”.

Purpose:

Entertains with the dog chasing

the men and blowing up the
other dog and it informs with
the idea of the importance of
mateship in the bush.

Plot:

A group of men (Dave, Jim and

Andy) are camping and use
cartridges to blow up ground searching for gold. They get sick of fishing the normal way,
so they decide to blow up the fish in the waterhole. When the cartridge is built, the dog
steals it and accidentally lights it. Tommy (the dog) chases the men with it, and in the
end blows up this other yellow dog that nobody likes.

Themes:

 Human interaction with the environment and associated consequences of manipulating

it.
 Human and dog relationship, importance of mateship in the bush. No discrimination
amongst characters; dog is an important friend

36
Narrative Structure:

Orientation: The three men are camping on a riverbank searching for gold. They invent a
way of using blasting powder to catch fish since the conventional way is ineffective.

Complication: Tommy lights the fuse in the fire and chases the men.

Middle: The tale is crafted to describe the humorous details of Tommy chasing the men
who desperately try to avoid him. Tommy eventually has a whole town running from him,
while he is enjoying all the excitement and attention.

Climax: Tommy is confronted by a vicious yellow mongrel cattle-dog who chases Tommy
and steals the cartridge from him.

Resolution: The yellow dog is blown up and other pack dogs suffer burns. The Bushmen
laugh in hysterics. Dave apologizes but it is remembered for years afterward.

Language Techniques to consider:

 Use of humour throughout. The descriptions are embellished to excite the audience.
 Detailed descriptions of how the cartridge is made, where the dog chases them,
their reactions and the consequences all appeal strongly to the audience. The story
is comical and hilarious since we emotionally connect to the group.
 Limited presence of an authorial voice makes a more unified tone and is told by an
observer who exaggerates comic detail.
 Strong tension crisis and dramatic imagery dog grinned, legs started before his brain.
 Action words eg swooped, bound round (assonance), spluttering, dive, flung, burst,
jolt, wedged, etc
 Short paragraphs build tension
 Descriptive language
 Humorous tone
 Sardonic humour, bitterly mocking, cynical, negative look at the world.

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The Loaded Dog Questions

1. Consider the characters in the story:

a) Dave Regan 


b) Andy Page

c) Jim Bently 


Explain, with detailed reference to language forms and features, how Lawson has
successfully established each as a distinctive character in the story.

2. Lawson describes the construction of the explosive in great detail. What language
devices has he used to enable responders to clearly visualise the cartridge itself and
the danger it poses? 

3. As responders, we are positioned to accept Tommy as a loveable “overgrown pup”.
How does Lawson successfully persuade us to view Tommy as a harmless, fun-loving
companion to 
 Dave, Andy and Jim?
 In your answer, make specific reference to
the following: 

a) Diction used to describe Tommy

b) Anthropomorphism

c) Contrast with the “vicious yellow mongrel cattle-dog”

4. Once the chase scene begins, the story increases in pace. How has Lawson
achieved this increase in pace? What is the effect? 

5. Lawson uses unfinished or ‘hanging’ sentences as a way of heightening suspense.
Find TWO examples of ‘hanging sentences’ in The Loaded Dog and quote them
below, explaining how the use of this type of sentence encourages the responder to
infer/visualise what has happened. 

6. Read the ending of the story. Find examples of TWO different types of humour that
Lawson has used to convey the death of the yellow dog as humorous occurrence. 

7. Reflect on the characterisation of the yellow dog. Why do we feel that he is
deserving of his death? 

8. What are the distinct images that you see within the text?
9. Write at least ONE concept statement which links to the text.
10. Construct a body paragraph that addresses ONE concept statement written in
question 9. Ensure you follow the TEEEL structure.

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 Distinct Images in ‘The Loaded Dog’

Distinct Techniques Evidence- quotes Effect

Image
Landscape

Tommy- dog

Other dogs

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Dave Regan

Jim Bentley

Andy

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 Concept Statements for ‘The Loaded Dog’

o The Loaded Dog‟ constructs visuals that are both humourous and satirical in an attempt
to paint a picture of the range of archetypal Australian bush identities.

o Pace and tension are used as literary devices in ‘The Loaded Dog’ to engage readers
in the chaos of the usual image of isolation and boredom of the Australian bush.

o Insight into mateship is a focus of ‘The Loaded Dog’ reinforcing Lawson’s expressions of
the idealistic Australian identity.
o The dogs are representations of society and its inhabitants. Lawson is highlighting the
loss of integrity and the disparate nature of intent and motive in the Australian bush.

o

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 Past HSC Questions

2016:

Analyse how experiences and attitudes are conveyed by the use of distinctive images in the texts you
have studied. In your response, make detailed reference to your prescribed text, including the extract
provided below, and ONE other related text.

‘The railway town consists of a public house and a general store, with a square tank and a schoolhouse on
piles in the nearer distance. The tank stands at the end of the school and is not many times smaller than
the building itself. It is safe to call the pub ‘The Railway Hotel’, and the store ‘The Railway Stores’, with an
‘s’. A couple of patient, ungroomed hacks are probably standing outside the pub, while their masters are
inside having a drink – several drinks. Also it’s safe to draw a sundowner sitting listlessly on a bench on the
verandah, reading The Bulletin.’ (from In a Dry Season)

2015:

Distinctive images offer a variety of perspectives on the world. Compare how this is achieved in your
prescribed text and ONE other related text of your own choosing.

2014:

How do the qualities of distinctive images create interest and draw us into the experiences of others? In
your response, refer to your prescribed text and ONE other related text of your own choosing.

2013:

How does the use of the distinctively visual emphasise the ways that individuals resond to
significant aspects of life?
In your response, make detailed reference to your prescribed text and ONE other related text
of your own choosing.

2012:

Interesting views on society are conveyed by the distinctively visual. Explore how this is achieved in your
prescribed text and ONE other related text of your own choosing.

2011:

In what ways are people and their experiences brought to life through the distinctively visual? In your
response, make detailed reference to your prescribed text and at least ONE other related text of your own
choosing.

2010:

Compare the ways the distinctively visual is created in your prescribed text and ONE other related text of
your own choosing.

2009:

Discuss how the distinctively visual conveys distinctive experiences in your related text and ONE other
related text of your own choosing.

Other:

Distinctive images are created for different purposes. How is this shown in your prescribed text and at least
ONE other text of your own choosing? (2010 CSSA Trial)

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Practice Essay Question

In what ways are people and their experiences brought to life through the distinctively visual? In your response, make detailed
reference to your prescribed text and at least ONE other related text of your own choosing.

Essay Planning Scaffold

Introduction
Re-worded question:
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Thesis statement:
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Text names/author/form/year:
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Distinctly visual definition:
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Chosen texts and techniques:
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

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 Sample Introduction:

Distinctively visual images within texts bring people and their experiences to life. This is evident in Henry Lawson’s 1892 short stories ‘The Drover’s
Wife’ and ‘In A Dry Season.’ Lawson effectively utilises language techniques such as symbolism, exclamation marks and onomatopoeia to
depict the survival of characters within a harsh and threatening environment. He also makes use of plurals and stereotypical characters within
‘In A Dry Season’ to suggest that individuals living in outback towns have similar experiences and struggles. Nick Ut’s 1972 photograph ‘Terror of
War’ effectively projects the individual’s pain into the world through the deliberate use of a powerful salient image, as well as contrasting
images in the foreground and background.

Paragraph 1 – Henry Lawson_________________________________________(Title of text) First Short Story

Topic Sentence

Expand/Explain

Examples/techniques

44
 Evaluate

Link back to question

and topic sentence

Paragraph 2 – Henry Lawson_________________________________________(Title of text) First Short Story

Topic Sentence

Expand/Explain

45
 Examples/techniques

Evaluate

Link back to question

and topic sentence

Paragraph 3 – Henry Lawson_________________________________________(Title of text) Second Short Story

Topic Sentence

Expand/Explain

46
Examples/techniques

Evaluate

Link back to question

and topic sentence

47
Paragraph 4 – Henry Lawson_________________________________________(Title of text) Second Short Story

Topic Sentence

Expand/Explain

Examples/techniques

Evaluate

Link back to question

and topic sentence

48
Paragraph 5 – Related Text_________________________________________(Title of text) _________________________________ (Composer and year)

Topic Sentence

Expand/Explain

Examples/techniques

Evaluate

Link back to question

and topic sentence

49
Paragraph 6 – Related Text_________________________________________(Title of text) _________________________________ (Composer and year)

Topic Sentence

Expand/Explain

Examples/techniques

Evaluate

Link back to question

and topic sentence

50
Conclusion
Reiteration of Thesis statement/point of view:
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Restate title/composer of the texts discussed:
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Restate the techniques discussed:
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Final statement:
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Things to remember
1.Write in
3rd person unless asked specifically for YOUR opinion
2.Use formal language
3.Don’t use contractions
4.Write numbers using words (two, not 2)
5.Underline the texts’ titles
6.Refer to the author by surname
7.Use speech marks for all quotes
8.Don’t retell the story
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Sample A-Range Response

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55
56
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Sample A-Range Response

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Sample A-Range Response

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67
 Preparing for your Half-Yearly Examination

Paper 1, Section 1, is worth 15 marks and you have 40 minutes to complete it. That means that you
have just over 2 and a half minutes per mark!

Remember that the core concepts of Paper One, Area of Study are:

Representation: How techniques shape meaning and influence the responses to text.

How composers and therefore responders see the world. Context shapes this
Perceptions: understanding. Characters may be given a voice, marginalised or omitted
from the text.

Interrelationships: Connections between your texts through the concept of Discovery.

How = Techniques

‘How’ is one word, which can be expanded to read explain what language techniques the
composer uses to represent belonging in the text. ‘How’ does not, in any way, translate to just
copy out something from the included text/s as your response to each section.

To successfully demonstrate your knowledge of how discovery is represented in and through the
included texts you will be expected to:

1. Know and identify the form (letter, poem, lyrics, web page, extract, and so on)
2. Through reading, identify the techniques in written, spoken and visual texts. Identify the
one/s which most effectively addresses the question.
3. use quotations succinctly, with relevance to the question and to support candidates own
analysis
4. make detailed reference to the texts including quotations , language forms and features
and representations of Discovery.

The technique must be identified in relation to the terminology of the question; describe, explain,
compare and contrast, to what extent etc. It is important to correctly address the question.

Text Forms

The texts included in Paper 1: Section I can be in any form. It is important to be familiar with the
elements that go together to produce each text. Some forms in past papers have included:

 poems  cartoons/paintings
 song lyrics  comic strips
 speeches  excerpts from fiction and non-fiction
 articles texts
 websites  reports
Students need to have an understanding of a
variety of texts forms, which is in keeping with
the spirit of the syllabus.
There is no way of predicting which textual
forms will be included in the paper this year.

68
Key Techniques Commonly Found in Most salient object, vectors,
Particular Text Format contrast, body language,
facial expressions, lighting,
Photographs
Language and Visual camera shots, camera
Text format Techniques commonly found angles, gaze, frontal/ oblique
in these types of texts body angles

Similes, metaphor, Most salient object, layout,

personification, alliteration, vectors, hyperlinks,
Poems interactive features (games,
assonance, rhyme, repetition, Websites
onomatopoeia videos), first person plural
("we"), second person
("you\")
As for poems. Repetition and
Song lyrics assonance in particular are
common techniques

As for poems. First ("I"),

Novels/
second ("you") or third
autobiographies
("he/she/it")

Repetition, quotations,
statistics, alliteration,
rhetorical questions,
Speeches
cumulation (lists), imperatives
(commands), second person
("you")

Statistics, quotations, passive

voice, short paragraphs,
Feature articles
words with positive/ negative
connotations

Most salient object, vectors,

layout, imperative
(command), first person
plural ("we"), second person
Advertisements/ ("you"), cumulation (list),
posters words with positive/ negative
connotations, contrast,
lighting, camera shots,
camera angles, gaze,
frontal/ oblique body angles

Exaggeration/ caricature,
Cartoons/
contrast, body language,
comic strips
facial expressions

69
The Last Question in Paper 1 Section I

The final question in Paper 1 Section 1 expects your responses to synthesise the included texts and
the knowledge gained as this section is being completed. Recounting responses to earlier
questions does not bring together the various elements of the texts.

This final response should have a balance between the number of texts stipulated by the question,
historically two. If the weighting of your response is imbalanced this may affect the final mark. Your
reponse needs to be 50/50.

To successfully synthesise, compare and contrast between the texts, don’t simply retell or recount.
Choose the texts that you are most comfortable with, don’t try and choose one because it might
be ‘harder’ and ‘get more marks’ if you do that text.

Direct reference to the texts is essential. Quotations should be appropriate and support the overall
response. The common link between the texts is the concept of Discovery. Don’t simply make a
brief link at end, almost as an afterthought. Integrate your connections throughout your response.

This question MUST be written as a mini-extended response. An introduction, two body pargraphs
and a conclusion.

Past Section I Questions

2016

Text 1: Feature article extract

a) How is the pleasure of discovery revealed in the article? (3 marks)
Text 2: Fiction extract
b) Explain how contrast is used in the text to highlight the child’s discoveries in the museum (3 marks)
Text 3: Poem
c) Explore how imagery is used in the poem to convey the wonder of discovery (3 marks)
Text 4: Fiction extract and Text 1, Text 2 and Text 3
d) Compare the ways unique personal insights into discovery are revealed in Text 4 and ONE other text (6
marks)

2015

Text 1: Short story extract

(a) In what ways is dialogue used to capture the young couple’s reactions to the items they find? (2 marks)

Text 2: Image

(b) How does the image represent an individual who values discovered objects? (2 marks)

Text 3: Poem

(c) Explain how the poem conveys the personal response of the father to his discoveries. (3 marks) Text 4:
Nonfiction extract

(d) Analyse how the text portrays the difficulties of discovering ‘what is true and what is false’. (3 marks)

Text 1, Text 2, Text 3 and Text 4: Short story extract, Image, Poem and Nonfiction extract

(e) Compare how TWO of the texts represent the significance of curiosity in the process of discovering. (5
marks)
70
 POETRY- SPAAAMOH
A simile is when you indirectly compare two unlike things using the
words ‘like’ or ‘as’.

Simile The sun looked like a ball of yellow butter.

The snow was as white as cotton wool.

Personification is when you give an inanimate (non-living) object,

human qualities.

Personification The wave’s icy fingers grabbed the surfer.

The alarm clock screamed in my ear.

Adjective An adjective
Alliteration is a repetition
is the describingofword.
a consonant sound in words with
close connection.
Alliteration The glowing orange sunset fell over the spiky green mountains.
The slimy snake slithered down the smooth slope.

Assonance is the repetition of a vowel sound in words with close

connection.

Assonance The sound of the hound in the pound upset me.

A word naming an attribute of a noun.

Adjective
It was a sweet, red apple.

A figure of speech in which two things are directly compared.

Metaphor Her bedroom was a dumpsite.

Metaphor A metaphor is when

Onomatopoeia youan
is when directly
actioncompare twosound
mimics the unlikeit things,
makes.
Onomatopoeia sometimes using ‘is’ or ‘are’. More powerful than a simile.
“Bang” “Hiss” “Splash” “Buzz”

Hyperbole is a form of exaggeration used to highlight a point.

Hyperbole The sun is an oven.
Your bedroom looks like a cyclone’s been through it!

The ocean is a giant washing machine.

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 Prose Techniques- LOST FEEJIPS
Level of usage- register Slang, colloquial (conversational), informal or formal.

Oxymoron The contradiction between two words in close connection. For example,

“parting is such sweet sorrow”.

“Sometimes we cherish things of little value.”

“
 He possessed a cold fire in his eyes.”

Sensory Imagery Language that is appealing to the senses of the responder.

(SSSTT) Sight = visual imagery, smell = olfactory imagery, sound = aural

imagery, touch = tactile imagery, taste = gustatory imagery.

Tone Tone gives shape and life to literature, because it is through tone that the
attitude and mood of a work are created and presented.

Fractured or truncated Fractured: incomplete sentences that increase tension or urgency or

reflect the way people speak to each other.
sentences

Truncated sentences: short sentences that increase tension or urgency.

Ellipsis… A dramatic pause (…). It can create tension or even suggest that there
are some words that cannot be spoken.

Emotive Language Words and phrases that stir the reader’s emotions.

Juxtaposition The placement of two images (ideas) next to each other to highlight
their differences.

Imagery Vivid pictures are created by words. The reader can be transported to
another place and time or visualise a character clearly.

Person 1st (I or we), 2nd (you) or 3rd (he, she or they)

Symbolism An object or image that represents something beyond the literal. For
example, winter trees might symbolize death, a crucifix might mean
sacrifice or a door might be a symbol of entering new worlds. Colour can
be used to symbolise love or sadness, happiness or fear.

72
 Visual Techniques- TV FV SCG
Text The words and phrases that are used.

Vector lines This refers to the line that our eyes take when we
look at a visual. Composers deliberately direct our
reading path through the vectors.

The vector lines usually take our eyes to the salient

point in the image.

Foreground Images, text and objects in the front half of the

picture.

Background Images, text and objects in the back half of the

picture.

Salient point The part that your eyes are first drawn to in the
visual – visual weighting. Colour, image and layout
determine what the salient image is in a visual.

Colour In a black and white image examine the use of

contrast, light and darkness. In a colour image,
colours are used to signify feelings and evoke a
response. E.g. Red conveys passion, anger, hell,
vitality, etc whereas blue conveys peace,
harmony or even coldness.

Gaze Demand Gaze: Where the individuals in the image

are looking directly at the audience.

Offer Gaze: Where the individuals in the image are

looking away from the audience.

73
 Checklist for your Half-Yearly Examination

 You have written a summary of your own personal definition on the concept of
Discovery. You will need this for Section I

 Learn the three acronyms that outline poetry techniques, prose techniques and
visual techniques. You can also compile your own list of additional literary and
visual techniques to further support your analysis.

 You have completed and marked (with teacher feedback) at least THREE
practice reading sections from past paper.

 Complete at least TWO reading section in examination conditions.

 You have written a summary of your own personal definition on the concept of
distinctively visual. Ensure that this definition reflects how the distinctively visual is
applied in your prescribed and chosen related texts.

 You have completed at least TWO extended response practice questions

incorporating your prescribed text and at least one related text. Your responses
should analyse the techniques that highlight the distinctively visual in each of
your texts. You also need to synthesise between the texts.

 Create summarised study notes on all FOUR short stories and TWO related texts.

 Read through the past HSC questions and write out practice introductions and
plans so you feel confident attempting a range of questions. The basic analysis
for each response will remain the same, but you MUST shape your response to fit
the question. Do not compose a completely prepared answer during your exam
– you must specifically and clearly address the question.

 Create study cards on all FOUR short stories and TWO related texts.

74