An Analysis of 'The Drover's Wife'

Washington Irving described Tom Walker’s wife as a woman who “was a tall termagant, fierce of temper, loud of tongue, and strong of arm.” Also, he described Tom and his wife as miserly.

For this essay I have decided to analyse the role of the supernatural in the short stories ‘The Cameronian Preacher’s Tale’ by James Hogg and ‘The Two Drovers’ by Sir Walter Scott. I am going to discuss both the importance of this feature in the context of the Romantic period and the rise of nationalism in Scotland (as a consequence of the important events that took place in this particular moment); and also the role that the supernatural plays in the structure and themes of both short stories. Both of these short stories appeared at the time of Romanticism in Scotland, generally regarded as the period from 1780 to 1830; and considered by many political theorists as ‘the birthplace of modern nationality’ . As a part of Romanticism, the Scottish

Janie, the main character, marries three times throughout the novel. Her marriages do not contain unconditional love and because of this, do not last. Her first husband, Joe Starks, belittles Janie as a person including her intellect. "Somebody got to think for women and chillun and chickens and cows. I god, they sho don’t think none theirselves." (119). Joe shows his dominance over Janie by being the breadwinner in the relationship. Janie’s next marriage is with a man named Joe Starks. He tries to show his dominance over Janie by controlling her. “Janie! "Come help me move dis manure pile befo’ de sun gits hot. You don’t take a bit of interest in dis place. ‘Tain’t no use in foolin’ round in dat kitchen all day long…" (42). Joe belittles the

My visual depiction of the drover’s wife is one of a protective mother and a resilient, seasoned battler of the Australian bush along with the disasters it brings. “No undergrowth, nothing to relieve the eye… nineteen miles to the nearest…civilisation” the use of alliteration highlights the isolation and monotony of the mothers life. Our understanding of her isolation is shaped through her actions, “she rode nineteen miles for assistance, carrying the dead child”. Being so far from any civilisation she has no choice

In Flaming Iguanas the road is presented as a means of escape and reassertion. Tomato escapes domestication, common societal beliefs that are placed on women. As a bisexual, chicano woman on the road she is transgressing heteronormativity. In previous road novels the road is a place for white hetero-men having an adventure. Tomato exercises her new found identity when she consummates with the Canadian John, challenging double standards that are placed on women. She writes “if you’re a woman traveling alone people will instantly want to kill you”, she is not scared to challenge these myths and exercise her freedom, as a woman on the road (111). As a pioneer in heteronormativity, she has set a path in which she does not conform to society 's ideals, ultimately mending gender norms for others. The road novels are usually dominated by men and their adventures, causing havoc on everywhere they set foot. As a

The poem “My Son the Man” is a short poem written by Sharon Olds. Using allusion and simile Sharon tells about a mom watching her son mature, growing and escaping her grasp. The mother expresses sadness as she reflects on her maturing son watching him grow into a man; comparing it the magician Houdini performing his mesmerizing challenging escapes.

In Oliver Sacks’ book, The Man Who Mistook His Wife for A Hat, Sacks tells us about one man, Jimmie G, who has Korsakoff’s syndrome. “Korsakoff syndrome (KS) is characterized by dense anterograde and retrograde amnesia. There is often a temporal gradient to the retrograde amnesia, with earlier memories more readily recalled than recent memories. Executive functioning has also been found to be impaired in KS” (Maharasingam, et al., 2013, p. 501). Korsakoff syndrome is most often attributed to the deficiency of thiamin, which can happen in individuals who have, or have had a severe drinking problem.

Curley’s wife is probably one of the most misunderstood characters in the novel, often being looked down upon, or talked badly about. She is the only woman on the ranch, and who appears consistently throughout the novel. At one point, some of the workers are

The Seafarer, The Wanderer, and The Wife’s Lament all contains faith verses fate. The three poems are very similar and very different. The three poems ranging from a lonely man, to a lost soldier, to a wife’s bedrail. The medieval poems show hurt, confusion, and loneliness.

Over the years, there have been many interpretations of who the speaker of The Wife’s Lament could be. These range from very interesting ideas to ones that seem a little rough around the edges. It is obvious that no sure answer can be found due to the fact that whoever wrote this poem is dead and that the answer will always be in speculation even if it is correct. Hopefully, at the end of this quest I will be slightly more enlightened as to who the true speaker may really be.

The matter of sexuality very often is how women seem to express the way they perceive men in many Irish poems. Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill and Vona Groarke seem to display sexuality in a somewhat similar fashion, but at the same time they consider it in various ways. The poems ‘The Unfaithful Wife’ and ‘Nude’, written in Irish by Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill and translated into English by Paul Muldoon in Pharoah's Daughter, are easy to comprehend and understand exactly how men are being perceived by these women. On the other hand, ‘Folderol’ by Vona Groarke, in Flight and Earlier Poems, is harder to figure out, but still has that sexual meaning behind what’s being said. Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill expresses sexuality between the men and women, though Vona Groarke’s contains hidden sexual meanings.

The Man I Killed is the story of the man that Tim O’Brien killed. However, this story is not true. He later mentions that he did not in fact kill the man, yet he was present and that was enough. This story, according to him, is told to show the reader how he feels, because O’Brien feels as though the truth is that by doing nothing, he killed the man, so in his story, he does kill the man. Imagery is the biggest literary device seen in this story, but diction also helps make the story seem more true, it helps the reader to truly believe that O’Brien did in fact throw the grenade that killed the man. This story is told from O’Brien’s point of view, which would be first person, despite the fact that the word “I” is

Author and Beat literary movement pioneer Jack Kerouac adopts what he calls “spontaneous prose” as his own unique style in On the Road. Otherwise known as “stream of consciousness,” this is a method of writing that essentially captures the nebulous and unrelated thoughts that cross the narrator’s mind at any given moment, without break for explanation. Critics are quick to point out that this concept is materialized in the premise of Kerouac’s novel On the Road itself, citing the cross-country trek that is the center around which the novel revolves. It is one of confusion, calamity, and carelessness, as well as fast-paced, unpredictable change of direction and complete emancipation of personal responsibility that is the self-proclaimed

Drover finds a letter addressed to her, “the letter, which bore no stamp,” (Bowen 1084) that must have been recently placed on the table, as other objects “wore a film of another kind; and the only ventilation being the chimney,” (Bowen 1084). All the objects in the house were covered in dust, yet this letter had none on it. She begins to wonder how did the letter appeared on the table; the caretaker is away and the letter should have been forwarded to her residence in the country. Mrs. Drover reads the letter in her old bedroom, which she discovers the letter was from her fiance that was presumed dead during the first World War. In terror she remembers what he left her, “that cut of the button on her palm of hand was, principally, what she was to carry away,” (Bowen 1085). Her fiance was aggressive and physically hurt Mrs. Drover to leave a memory of him.. In panic, Mrs. Drover rushes to finish her tasks in the house as she wonders how he knows she is there and when will he come. These thoughts are running through her head, as well as the reader’s head. Mrs. Drover becomes haunted with memories she has of him. The letter is signed with by “K” so the reader is unaware of who the fiance is and his past; however, based upon Mrs. Drover’s reaction, the reader can conclude that this man is someone to be feared. More and more panic sets in as time passes, Mrs. Drover not knowing the set time they are to meet. The rain and the damaged, dark house aids her paranoia as she begins to believe she is not alone, and is concerned when hearing noises. Mrs. Drover wants to escape back to the country as soon as possible to be with her family, in safety away from the dead

traditional gender constructs cast men as dominant and women as submissive, and the narrator certainly is bound by these constructs (81). Her husband sees her as a tool by which his needs are met, and line 1 shows that he is pleased with her cooking ability, as he “gives… an A” for the dinner she prepared the previous night. However, she also receives “an incomplete” because she did not finish the ironing (3). Should she modify her performance according to her husbands desires? If she wants the elusive praise that he grudgingly doles out, then the answer is to the affirmative. The wife is little more than hired help at this point, which is another form of objectification she is subjected to.