Les_Murray_-_Rollover

Les Murray speaks for an imagined and idealised Australia, concentrating on the takeover of farms by the bankers in the poem ‘The Rollover’. When Les Murray writes his poems he tends to refer them to his personal experience in life (like ‘The Blowfly Grass’). His personal experiences mainly came from his hometown Bunyah, which is a small community in the mid north coast of NSW. In the poem it presents the fear and powerless farmers against the concept of capitalism. Les Murray also contrasts the roles of both ‘city’ and ‘country’ in the ‘The Rollover’, which involves the poetic tool juxtaposition and the political powers that have destroyed the land, this action has been classified as cruelty and violent. ‘The Rollover’ is blatantly about bankers evicting farmers from their homes/farms. In the first stanza, Les Murray talks about the challenging of constitutional laws, as stated ‘Murray is against big economics, big government, big media and especially against the city-slickers who work on their behalf. He is fro Catholicism, Aboriginals, Rednecks, farming, deserts, water-gardening, eccentric learning, and cows. He is fiercely territorial, always talking about coming into his own kingdom, returning to a place from which he draws physical and spiritual sustenance’ (from: Redmond 1997). The quote: ‘Some of us’ the poetic term satire is used in a subtle manner. The following quote shows no feelings or bitterness towards the bankers: ‘toddlers and wives are out beside the fence, crying, and the big kids (referring to fathers and young adults) wear that thousand-yard stare (referring to war) common in all refugees’, this quote from the poem means that the toddlers and wives were greatly upset and depressed as they saw their older brother or fathers fighting for Australia as they head off to war. In the second stanza, Les Murray states the differences between farmers and bankers. The quote: ‘faithful VDU’ defines a dog shot dead, but also shows the easiness of a dog to be murdered. The following quote: ‘there’s the faithful VDU (Visual Display Unit), shot dead, still on its lead’ this quotes carries a definition that a VDU is similar to the faithful dog to a farmer, the definition also carries that being a banker and relying on a VDU is better than being a farmer and relying on a faithful dog, as they can die quite easily compared to a VDU. Also the quote: ‘this fellow’s dad and grandad were bankers before him, they sweated through the old hard inspections, had years of brimming foreclosure’ this quote has the poetic technique ironic humour as it defines that once a fellow is a banker then he shall always be a banker for life, along with their following generations. The last sentence of stanza two proceeds onto the start of stanza three acting as an enjambment to generate the flow evident in the quote: ‘But you have to – line the drawer somewhere’. In the third stanza, Les Murray talks in a bad attitude towards bankers and mocking them along the way. The quote: ‘Who buys the Legend of the Bank anymore' The laconic teller, the salt-of-the-earth branch accountant’, laconic teller meaning, useless teller and salt-on-the-earth branch accountant, is intense satire, meaning giving life a reason, which states a role reversal to enable empathy to be felt by bankers. So this defines that whether the laconic teller or salt-on-the-earth branch accountant is working for the bank. The quote: ‘Sydney’ & ‘it’s all an Owned boys’ (a novel about teenage homosexuality), basically idolises the Australian lifestyle. Another quote: ‘Queer talk from a bank-Johnny!’ shows neither mercy nor care. In the last stanza, Les Murray talks negatively about the bankers to summarise and conclude his poem. The quote: ‘here to back him up’ shows the heroicness and loyalty towards farmers and presented in a subtle manner. The following quote: ‘Troublemakers’ meaning that bankers always keep bad friends. Another quote: ‘Their turn is coming’ meaning that his friends are next. Another quote: ‘land-despoiling white trash.’ Les Murray releases a vulgar attitude towards the bankers. Les Murray also adds something of his own, quote: ‘No land rights for bankers’ this is Les Murray’s personal opinion, on what he believes about bankers, in addition also referring to the Aboriginal ideology. ‘The Rollover’ upholds Australian values and perceives farmers (country side) as the positive role. He heavily criticises bankers (city side) and negatively opinionated the power of the political society and compares their powerful lifestyle to the conservative natural world. Murray pictured his ideal Australia to be as mentioned, ‘its laconic ‘quality of sprawl’, the importance of the land to a spiritual country and the dignity and wisdom of the ordinary person’.