The Drover’s wife, by Henry Lawson, is a story describing a woman whose husband was a drover. The story mainly tells the readers about the problems the drover’s wife encountered. One day, there was a snake in the house. In order to protect her children, she stayed awake all night to guard her children who were sleeping on the table in the kitchen. She and her snake-dog killed the snake and burnt it in the next morning.
Among all characters represented in the story, I am interested in the drover’s wife the most for three main reasons. First, she was a strong and clever woman, for the fact that she had fought all the difficult tasks without her husband’s assistance; she tackled them accordingly. Second, she was a protective mother and also a good wife. All night long, she kept her eyes wide open to make sure the snake would not bite her children. Staying and taking care of the children alone, she neither complained about her living condition nor her husband’s absence. She did not care about herself when she fought the flood that devastated the dam; she still thought of her husband’s feeling after realizing this disaster. I believe that not many women would do such a thing; not many women would devote herself in dealing with dangerous situations like the drover’s wife did. Third, this character has given me an idea that women should not always depend on men; women are not as weak as what other people said; women have the strength to protect themselves as well as their beloved persons. Physically, the drover’s wife appears to be a weak person, but interestingly throughout the story, she managed to cope with many difficulties.
What I have learnt from this story is that in life, we will not always get what we want, but we should learn to satisfy what we have. I believe that the drover’s wife’s life was not the life she wanted; however, she did not complain, yet she learnt to enjoy her life; she made herself happy although she could only take a pleasure in the Young Lady’s Journal and use the handkerchief which was full of holes. I have also learnt that there are many obstacles in life; those obstacles are meant to be overcome, and each time they make us stronger. When the drover’s wife saw the snake, she would have been very frightened if she had not fought any problems before; however, the snake could not threaten her at all.
Having read the story, I am not only impressed by how well the story was written, but also by how the author put the great emphasize on women’s role in marriage life. I enjoy reading this story; I would strongly recommend it to my friends and to those bookworms so that we all can learn something from this story.Labels: Essays