The Poets of the Tomb

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The Poets of the Tomb is a poem by Australian writer and poet Henry Lawson. It was first published in The Bulletin magazine on 8 October 1892 in reply to fellow poet Andrew Barton "Banjo" Paterson's poem, In Answer to Various Bards.

Australia Country in Oceania

Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and numerous smaller islands. It is the largest country in Oceania and the world's sixth-largest country by total area. The neighbouring countries are Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and East Timor to the north; the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu to the north-east; and New Zealand to the south-east. The population of 25 million is highly urbanised and heavily concentrated on the eastern seaboard. Australia's capital is Canberra, and its largest city is Sydney. The country's other major metropolitan areas are Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide.

Henry Lawson Australian writer and poet

Henry Archibald Hertzberg Lawson was an Australian writer and bush 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 short story writer".

Contents

In Up The Country, Lawson had criticised "The City Bushman" such as Banjo Paterson who tended to romanticise bush life. Paterson, in turn, accused Lawson of representing bush life as nothing but doom and gloom, [1] famously ending with the line "For the bush will never suit you, and you'll never suit the bush." [2]

The City Bushman is a poem by iconic Australian writer and poet Henry Lawson. It was first published in The Bulletin magazine on 6 August 1892, under the title In Answer to "Banjo", and Otherwise. It was the fourth work in the Bulletin Debate, a series of poems by both Lawson and Andrew Barton "Banjo" Paterson, and others, about the true nature of life in the Australian bush.

This exchange sparked what is known as the Bulletin Debate, mainly between Paterson and Lawson, but also including Edward Dyson and Francis Kenna.

Bulletin Debate

The "Bulletin Debate" was a famous dispute in The Bulletin magazine from 1892–93 between two of Australia's most iconic writers and poets: Henry Lawson and Andrew Barton "Banjo" Paterson.

Edward Dyson Australian poet, journalist and short story writer

Edward George Dyson was an Australian journalist, poet, playwright and short story writer. He was the elder brother of illustrators Will Dyson and Ambrose Dyson.

Francis Kenna Australian politician

Francis Kenna, was an Australian poet, journalist, and Labor Member of the Legislative Assembly in Queensland. He edited the "Brisbane Worker".

This poem ended the first phase of the debate because, as Paterson observed in 1939, the poets "...ran out of material."

Reception

The Oxford Companion to Australian Literature said of the poem that it "...widened the discussion to include the role of literature in reforming the total Australian society..." [3]

Further publications

In the Days When the World Was Wide and Other Verses (1896) is the first collection of poems by Australian poet and author Henry Lawson. It was released in hardback by Angus and Robertson in 1896, and features the poet's widely anthologised poems "The Free Selector's Daughter", "Andy's Gone with Cattle", "Middleton's Rouseabout" and the best of Lawson's contributions to The Bulletin Debate, a famous dispute in The Bulletin magazine from 1892-93 between Lawson and Banjo Paterson.

See also

Nationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature.

This article presents lists of the literary events and publications in 1892.

Australian literature is the written or literary work produced in the area or by the people of the Commonwealth of Australia and its preceding colonies. During its early Western history, Australia was a collection of British colonies, therefore, its literary tradition begins with and is linked to the broader tradition of English literature. However, the narrative art of Australian writers has, since 1788, introduced the character of a new continent into literature—exploring such themes as Aboriginality, mateship, egalitarianism, democracy, national identity, migration, Australia's unique location and geography, the complexities of urban living, and "the beauty and the terror" of life in the Australian bush.

Related Research Articles

Banjo Paterson Australian journalist, author and poet

Andrew Barton "Banjo" Paterson, was an Australian bush poet, journalist and author. He wrote many ballads and poems about Australian life, focusing particularly on the rural and outback areas, including the district around Binalong, New South Wales, where he spent much of his childhood. Paterson's more notable poems include "Clancy of the Overflow" (1889), "The Man from Snowy River" (1890) and "Waltzing Matilda" (1895), regarded widely as Australia's unofficial national anthem.

Up The Country is a popular poem by iconic Australian writer and poet Henry Lawson. It was first published in The Bulletin magazine on 9 July 1892, under the title Borderland, and started the Bulletin Debate, a series of poems by both Lawson and Andrew Barton "Banjo" Paterson about the true nature of life in the Australian bush.

In Defence of the Bush is a popular poem by Australian writer and poet Andrew Barton "Banjo" Paterson. It was first published in The Bulletin magazine on 23 July 1892 in reply to fellow poet Henry Lawson's poem, Up The Country. Paterson's rebuttal sparked the Bulletin Debate, a series of poems by both Lawson and Paterson about the true nature of life in the Australian bush.

The Fact of the Matter is a poem by prolific Australian writer and poet Edward Dyson. It was first published in The Bulletin magazine on 30 July 1892 in reply to fellow poets Henry Lawson and Banjo Paterson. This poem formed part of the Bulletin Debate, a series of poems by Lawson, Paterson, and others, about the true nature of life in the Australian bush.

The Overflow of Clancy is a poem written by Herbert Humphrey Cripps Clark under the pseudonym "H.H.C.C". It was first published in The Bulletin magazine on 20 August 1892 as part of the Bulletin Debate, a series of poems by Lawson, Paterson, and others, about the true nature of life in the Australian bush. The poem is a parody of Paterson's Clancy of the Overflow.

Banjo, of the Overflow is a poem by Australian poet Francis Kenna. It was first published in The Bulletin magazine on 27 August 1892 in reply to fellow poets Henry Lawson, Banjo Paterson and Edward Dyson. This poem formed part of the Bulletin Debate, a series of works by Lawson, Paterson, and others, about the true nature of life in the Australian bush.

This article presents a list of the historical events and publications of Australian literature during 1892.

In Answer to Various Bards is a poem by Australian writer and poet Andrew Barton "Banjo" Paterson. It was first published in The Bulletin magazine on 1 October 1892 in reply to fellow poet Henry Lawson's poem, In Answer to "Banjo", and Otherwise.

A Voice from the Town is a poem by Australian writer and poet Andrew Barton "Banjo" Paterson. It was first published in The Bulletin magazine on 20 October 1894.

Saltbush Bill is a humorous poem by Australian writer and poet Andrew Barton "Banjo" Paterson. It was first published in The Bulletin magazine on 15 December 1894, the Christmas issue of that publication.

Saltbush Bill, J.P. is a humorous poem by Australian writer and poet Andrew Barton "Banjo" Paterson. It was first published in The Evening News on 16 December 1905.

"The Last of His Tribe" is a poem by Australian writer Henry Kendall that was first published in The Sydney Morning Herald on 30 September 1864, under the title "Woonoona: The Last of His Tribe".

Andy's Gone With Cattle is a poem by Australian writer and poet Henry Lawson. It was first published in The Australian Town & Country Journal on 13 October 1888.

The Man from Snowy River and Other Verses (1895) is the first collection of poems by Australian poet Banjo Paterson. It was released in hardback by Angus and Robertson in 1895, and features the poet's widely anthologised poems "The Man from Snowy River", "Clancy of the Overflow", "Saltbush Bill" and "The Man from Ironbark". It also contains the poet's first two poems that featured in The Bulletin Debate, a famous dispute in The Bulletin magazine from 1892-93 between Paterson and Henry Lawson.

A Bush Christening is a humorous poem by Australian writer and poet Andrew Barton "Banjo" Paterson. It was first published in The Bulletin magazine on 16 December 1893, the Christmas issue of that publication. It has been called "a rollicking account of how the traditional pre-occupations, whisky and religion, come together".

Rio Grande's Last Race is a racing poem by Australian writer and poet Andrew Barton "Banjo" Paterson. It was first published in the London Sketch magazine on 16 December 1896. It was later published as the title poem for Paterson's second poetry collection, Rio Grande's Last Race and Other Verses, in 1902.

References

  1. ↑ Henry Lawson: Australian Writer Australian Government Culture and Recreation Portal
  2. ↑ Wikisource article - In Defence of the Bush by Banjo Paterson
  3. ↑ The Oxford Companion to Australian Literature, 2nd edition, p131
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