Oodgeroo Noonuccal

(Kath Walker)

Aboriginal poet, political activist,

artist and educator

Historical Context

The European and Aboriginal civilisations have lived side by side rather than mingling since the

arrival of Captain Cook in 1770. There is still little understanding of the history of initial contact and

also of the current state of affairs. At the time of arrival in 1770, there was a legal assumption that

Australia was terra nullius, meaning empty of inhabitants. At the moment of annexation the

Aborigines had become British subjects with the Europeans not of the view that they had invaded

Australia. It is this idea of invasion that has set the tone for the events up to the present day. It took

the Europeans over 100 years to penetrate through the whole country, setting up numerous colonies.

Cultural misunderstandings continually erupted, resulting in widespread hostility and violence.

Throughout the 1930’s, protests about worsening conditions for Aborigines were a frequent

occurrence. It wasn’t until 1967 that Aborigines were allowed full Australian citizenship and gain the

right to vote. In summary, throughout all of this hardship there were two main issues that were the

main cause of protests;

Civil rights- relief from assimilationist policies, right to attend white schools, own property,

buy land, drink in hotels and to integrate into white society

A revival of a separate cultural identity

Biographical Profile

Biographical Details of the Poet

Oodgeroo Noonuccal was an Australian poet, political activist, artist and educator. Noonuccal was

born on 3rd

November 1920 on Stradbroke Island, Queensland , Australia. Throughout her childhood

she remained on the island with her parents Ted and Lucy and the family of 6 children. At the height

of the depression in 1933, she left school. She started off working as a domestic servant for a number

of professional families in Brisbane. In December 1942, she married Bruce Walker who she had

known for some time. It was around this time that her career kicked off, beginning as campaigner for

aboriginal rights. This is displayed through her poetry for which she is best known for, becoming one

of Australia’s highest selling poets alongside C.J Dennis.

Contextual Information

Noonnucal contributed during the war as a member of the Australian Womens Army Service. During

the 1950’s, she became a member of the Communist Party, believing it offered the best opportunities

for Aboriginals, She was also involved in a number of other political organisations. She was

recognised for her contribution to politics through her role as the Queensland state secretary of the

Federal Council for the Advancement of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders. During this time,

Noonucal was a key figure in the campaign for the reform of the Australian constitution that brought

about the 1967 referendum that led to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders being allowed full

Australian citizenship.

Details on her poetry in general

There have been many different interpretations on Noonucals’s poetry by critics but she described it

herself as “sloganistic, civil-writerish, plain and simple”. Many critics have spoken of their

disturbance by the activism of the poems, classifying them as propaganda rather than real poetry, an

idea that Noonuccal has consequently embraced. Through writing poetry, Noonuccal aimed to convey

pride in her Aboriginal heritage to a wide readership and looked to popularise equality and Aboriginal

rights. She viewed poetry as potentially being a breakthrough for Aboriginal people due to their

strong cultural links with story-telling and song making. Noonuccal opposed the policy of

assimilation, but believed firmly in the cause of reconciliation between black and white Australia.

Responses to the Poet’s work by critics

Despite some of the criticism Noonuccal has received for some for her poetry, she has received wide

recognition, especially in the post-war years. The most serious of her criticisms were the allegations

as to whether she was the real author of some of her poems. One significant achievement was

publishing her first book We Are Going (1964) which was to be the first ever published by an

Aboriginal women. Noonuccal won several literacy awards in recognition of her poetry, some include

the Mary Gilmore Medal (1970), Jessie Litchfield Medal (1975) and a Fellowship of Australian

Writing Award. She was awarded an MBE in 1970, however returned it in 1987 in protest of the

Australian Bicentenary celebrations.

Examples of some of her poems

We Are Going (1964)

The Dawn is at Hand (1966)

My People: a Kath Walker collection (1970)

No more boomerang (1985)

Kath Walker in China (1988)

Kath Walker in China (1988), described in the Oxford Companion to

Twentieth-Century Literature in English as a collection of verse that

affirmed the author's "belief in the power of people to effect positive

change."

Feature Poem Analysis 1: We Are Going

They came in to the little town

A semi-naked band subdued and silent

All that remained of their tribe.

They came here to the place of their old bora ground

Where now the many white men hurry about like ants.

Notice of the estate agent reads: 'Rubbish May Be Tipped Here'.

Now it half covers the traces of the old bora ring.

'We are as strangers here now, but the white tribe are the strangers.

We belong here, we are of the old ways.

We are the corroboree and the bora ground,

We are the old ceremonies, the laws of the elders.

We are the wonder tales of Dream Time, the tribal legends told.

We are the past, the hunts and the laughing games, the wandering camp fires.

We are the lightening bolt over Gaphembah Hill

Quick and terrible,

And the Thunderer after him, that loud fellow.

We are the quiet daybreak paling the dark lagoon.

We are the shadow-ghosts creeping back as the camp fires burn low.

We are nature and the past, all the old ways

Gone now and scattered.

The scrubs are gone, the hunting and the laughter.

The eagle is gone, the emu and the kangaroo are gone from this place.

The bora ring is gone.

The corroboree is gone.

And we are going.'

Main Ideas (Contextual)

The poem ‘We Are Going’ presents an Aboriginal perspective on colonisation in Australia and

comments on the fears of the Aborigines. The poem can be viewed as a readily transmissible version

of history, lamenting the effect of colonisation on traditional aboriginal ways but also confirming the

continuance of Aboriginal culture. The poem creates a voice that presents the struggles of

dispossession and through this has managed to reach a wide readership. It asserts that because nature

will never be destroyed, the Aboriginals won’t either due to their strong connection with the land.

Noonuccal described the poem as “a warning to the white people: we can go out of existence, or with

proper help we could also go on and live in this world in peace and harmony, the Aboriginal will not

go out of existence, the whites will”.

Poetic Techniques (Technical)

Structurally the poem is technically imperfect however the clear strong message that it

contains makes up for this. It can be said that the message is held in higher regard then the

aesthetics. Due to the flowing nature of the poem it is easy to recite, pleasing the reader but

also a common point of dismay for the critic.

Throughout the poem, Noonuccal uses the collective term ‘we’ in reference to the Aboriginal

Australians. Noonuccal has chosen to do this because she is a part of this group and is using

the poem to speak on behalf of them as a whole.

Due to her indigenous background Noonuccal has incorporated many cultural terms and

words and that may not be otherwise known to all readers. This gives the poem its indigenous

classification and also an insight into the various aspects of the indigenous culture. An

example of this being ‘bora ground’ which in Aboriginal culture is a significant site where

initiation ceremonies are performed and a meeting place for a tribe.

Repetition is a key component that is used to great effect by Noonuccal to cement the main

message to the reader. Loss is major topic in this poem and this has been established through

the use of repetition. The word ‘gone’ is used a total of six times which cements the idea of

loss to the reader and especially the fact it is not ‘lost’ it is ‘gone’ shows that it can’t be

recovered.

Unusually there is an absence of metaphors and similes, a unique feature when it comes to

poetry. This I think can be contributed to the Aboriginal writing style and maybe the lesser

knowledge and experience with the English language. This poem and a large majority of

Aboriginal literature have a strong focus on telling the story itself, meaning descriptive

language does not play as big a role as you would usually find in a poem.

I believe the choice of title is critical in developing the main message of the poem. I found

that when read as just the title the main message grasped is the idea of mobilisation while

when read in context in the last line it presents the emotional feeling of despair.

Personal Response

Personally, I really enjoyed reading this poem and found the concepts and ideas really interesting

when considered through this format. Despite not being a part of the Aboriginal culture I was still able

to understand the feelings and main ideas that were being presented. I learnt a couple of new words

and phrases that are an integral part of the Aboriginal language and their respective role in the culture

of the Aboriginal race. I really enjoyed the clear description of their emotions and their opinion on a

situation from a point of view I would never really consider.

Feature Poem Analysis 2: Integration-Yes!

Gratefully we learn from you,

The advanced race,

You with long centuries of lore behind you.

We who were Australians long before

You who came yesterday,

Eagerly we must learn to change,

Learn new needs we never wanted.

New compulsions never needed,

The price of survival.

Much that we loved is gone and had to go,

But not the deep indigenous things.

The past is still so much a part of us,

Still about us, still within us.

We are happiest

Among our own people. We would like to see

Our own customs kept, our old

Dances and songs, crafts and corroborees.

Why change our sacred myths

for your sacred myths?

No, not assimilation but integration,

Not submergence but our uplifting,

So black and white may go forward together

In harmony and brotherhood.

Main Ideas (Contextual)

Through the choice of title and themes presented throughout the poem the main idea that we can

identify is integration. Integration can be defined as the intermixing of people or groups previously

segregated. In this case, the two groups are the European Australian and the Aboriginals, the latter

being the perspective from which Noonuccal was speaking from. Noonuccal speaks of integration in a

positive light and supports the prospect, shown by the title in which her views could not be more

clearly presented. Other ideas used by Noonuccal to work in conjunction with integration were

brotherhood and harmony. She also contrasted integration with the idea of assimilation, which despite

seeming to have similar definitions present two opposite situations. Integration is the intermixing of

groups while assimilation is the uniting of groups which would in this situation result in a loss of

culture and heritage. She states her disapproval marginally in this poem but in more detail in a

separate poem similar to this one titled Assimilation-No!

Poetic Techniques (Technical)

Structurally, the poem is classified as free verse as it doesn’t contain rhyme and there isn’t a

regular meter. This type of structure is very common for writing originating from the

Aboriginal culture due to their story-telling backgrounds.

Much like We Are Going the collective terms ‘we, us and our’ are used regularly throughout

the poem. This shows that the views displayed in the poem are mutual across the Aboriginal

culture and not just an individual opinion presented by just the poet. It also presents a sense of

ownership and pride. In contrast, the term ‘your’ is used when addressing the European

Australians reflecting the state of the two segregated groups and the lack of connection

between the parties

In the poem there is an example of a hyperbole. In describing the arrival of the Europeans on

Australian shores it says ‘You who came yesterday’. This is obviously an exaggeration by

Noonuccal as the Europeans actually arrived more than 200 years ago. However the term

‘yesterday’ can be understood when considered historically, as the Aborigines themselves

were known to be living in Australia between 40,000 and 60,000 years ago.

The rhetorical question ‘Why change our sacred myths for your sacred myths?’ is very

effective in the context of this poem. This makes the reader consider what the poet is trying to

say and is also an outlet in which the poet can question the other side of the topic.

There is an example of symbolism in the poem when it gives the phrase “the price of

survival”. The ‘price’ is symbolizing the amount of effort and the extent to which the

Aboriginals will go to in the hope of integration.

Personal Response

I really enjoyed ready this poem, especially viewing the topic of integration from an Aboriginal

perspective. Usually when it comes to a topic of a racial nature, habitually I look at it from a European

Australian perspective but in this case due to the Aboriginal background of the poet I got to listen to

their perspective. I really liked the concepts of brotherhood and harmony and believe they portrayed a

really strong message compounded by their location in the final line of the poem. I grew a respect for

the Aboriginal culture and progressively learnt about the sacred aspects that are a part of it. Finally, I

found the contrast between integration and assimilation really interesting and effective. Though

seeming to have similar meanings, Noonuccal pointed out just how different they were in this

situation and also how they could be in others of a racial nature.

Feature Poem Comparison

Main Ideas (Contextual)

Similarities- The main contextual similarity between the two poems is they both portray the

emotional feelings of the Aboriginals. Similarly, the main issue behind these feelings is the arrival of

the Europeans on to Australian shores and the issues that they have confronted sparked by the arrival.

Both of the poems speak of the Aboriginal culture in great detail and Noonuccal’s does this in great

detail and a strong sense of pride and ownership. In both of the poems, the Aboriginals are in search

of an ideal situation, one of them being to gain back some of their traditional land and the other being

the state of integration. Both of the poems reach a wide readership and create a voice displaying the

pain of dispossession to the reader .

Differences- Contextually there is a couple of differences between the two poems especially the way

in which the reader is meant to interpret the main ideas. Both of the two poems take a different

approach when it comes to speaking of the Europeans. We Are Going doesn’t appreciate the arrival of

the Europeans and there is no sense of respect while Integration-Yes displays an opinion that the

Europeans can have a role in Aboriginal society however there are a number of critical barriers that

will need to be crossed first. In finishing reading the poems, both leave with contrasting final

statements. We Are Going finishes with a concrete statement where it appears that a final decision has

already been reached amongst the Aboriginals however Integration-Yes finishes with a sense of hope

where you feel as if there is more to come in the story, in this case being the push towards integration.

Poetic Techniques (Technical)

Similarities- Structurally both poems could be considered technically imperfect with neither

containing a regular meter nor any rhyme and rhythm. Consequently both poems are classified as free

verse and or propaganda. In both poems, Noonuccal decides to use the collective term ‘we’ to show

she is speaking on behalf of the Aboriginals and also to show a sense of pride and ownership. ‘Us’

and ‘our’ are other terms that serve the same purpose. Both poems display traditional language which

individually holds great importance in the Aboriginal culture. Words like ‘bora ground’ and

‘corroboree’ are examples of this with the latter being used in both poems. Repetition of certain words

and phrases were also evident in both poems.

Differences- Technically the differences in poetic techniques between the two poems are very minor.

It is only single literary techniques that can be identified as structurally they are both the same format.

Each of the following techniques was found in only one of the poems so could therefore not be

classified as a similarity;

Rhetorical question

Symbolism

Hyperbole

Jargon

Experimenting with the poet’s style

Below is a poem that has been written by myself in the style of my poet Oodgeroo Noonuccal. It

addresses the topic of aboriginal rights and incorporates some of the techniques that are evident in

Noonuccal’s poems. I have used the ideas addressed in We Are Going as a template and have tried to

emulate many of the concepts. Listed below are some of the concepts and techniques that I

incorporated in my poem;

Collective terms like ‘we’, ‘our’, etc

Rhetorical questions

Free verse, no rhythm or rhyme

Repetition

No metaphors or similes

A strong final statement that summarises the main message

More of storyline then deep description

We stood as one

What would he grace us with today?

Our hero

Our saviour

The uplifting spirit

Who saved our souls

Pushed for our rights

And gave us a presence

Leading for freedom

Prepare yourself Australia

Lead by one, arm in arm

We are coming