Interpreting the Select Australian Aboriginal Poetry: A Critique

The Australian literature mainly includes the aboriginal songs, bush poetry, folk tales, desert narratives and ballads. The Australian literature is denoted by the Australian history, known for the many conflicts which include the tensions between the settlers and indigenous and the traumas of colonization and dominance. Prominent writers like Banjo Paterson, Henry Lawson, Judith Wright, Patrick White, Kath Walker, A.D.Hope, etc. have promoted the Australian literature. The Australian literature also showcases the struggles between native and British writings. This paper discusses four poems which explicate the colonial conundrum of the indigenous in Australia. The poems “Bora Ring” by Judith Wright, “We Are Going”, “The Unhappy Race” and “Namatjira” by Oodgeroo Noonuccal are chosen for the study. The poems depict the crisis of colonization and the loss of land and culture, along with indigenous concepts.