Wade+Pedersen

Darwin, 1967 - 1992

1. Summarise what the poem is about.

The poem is about a man who after travelling for 25 years, decides to return to his hometown Darwin. For many years he has avoided coming back to Darwin to avoid confronting his old self. When he arrives, he finds that Darwin has been dramatically changed after being hit by devastating cyclone. While travelling through the new Darwin he starts to recognise familiar scents of his past. He comes across one last remaining piece of the old Darwin, a still standing, stilt-house that survived the destruction of the cyclone. Through this house he finds warm memories of his childhood and his life before travel. He starts to have feelings of nostalgia as he prepares to leave once more, but he is lured into the plane by the fragrance of travel and something new. Once again he forgets about his past as he looks to the present and the future.

2. Identify and explain the tone and mood of the poem (with examples).

The tone changes as the poem progresses, at first the writer feels that it is a struggle for this man to return home to Darwin, “dragging my body behind”, and that when he does return he is disappointed with what he sees. As the poem moves on the writer’s attitude is one of happiness and hope as the man starts to find remnants of his past and warm memories, “like a home: a beacon, a ribbed and shining lantern”. The poem makes you feel sad for the man as he finds fond memories of his hometown but cannot hold on to them as he leaves his past behind him and moves on.

3. How does the poem relate to and explore, the concept of change? Use evidence from the poem to support your response.

The poem relates to change as the man returns home to find that nearly everything has transformed. What he once knew as home has been completely modified, “redecorated by a famous cyclone”. The poem explores how the recreation of his hometown affects this man and how he reacts to the change.

4. Identify and examine two poetic techniques that are used by the poet to represent change. Use examples.

Simile – “It fills the nose like a childhood dunked in scented tea” This technique is used to allow the reader to get a better sense of what the character is experiencing.

Metaphor – “a ribbed and shining lantern, held above the dark and above the green” This metaphor gives the stilt-house another representation of what it means to the man.

5. How does the form of a poem help convey the ideas?

The form of the poem is free verse, which allows the writer to express his thoughts and ideas much easier as he is not restricted by rhyme or to a certain number of syllables per line. The poem is broken up into stanzas, which separates the different thoughts and feelings shown in the poem. This helps convey the man’s changing thoughts on home and as it makes it easier for the reader to pick up on.

6. Do you connect with the experience of change represented? Does the text invite you in, or does it exclude you?

Yes, the text invites you in, allowing you to experience the change represented in the poem. He does this by using the sense of smell, describing different fragrances throughout the poem, eg. “smelling only of the absence of smell” and “ It fills the nose like a childhood dunked in scented tea,”. By doing this he is using contrast to represent the change and using scents to allow you to experience the change represented.

7. How does the poem position you to respond? What are we positioned to believe about what it is to be male, female, working class/middle class, of a certain ethnicity.

He has returned home to find a sense of closure about his past. He is able to forget about his past and move on which he could not do before. He has a new fresh start without the past being a burden on his thoughts. There is a positive vibe as he can do what he loves, travelling and looking to the future.