Assessment 2 – Sample Response

Read the sample response below. This is not a perfect response, it provides you with ideas on how to go about producing your own response to a poem.

Explains topic of poem
Discusses particular representations
Identifies main poetic techniques
Discusses language used and gives specific examples / Sample response ‘The Man From SnowyRiver’ AB (Banjo) Patterson
The poem ‘The Man from SnowyRiver’ is the story of a search for a valuable horse that has escaped and joined a herd of brumbies. The poem focuses on the search for the horse and in particular the bravery, courage and skill of a young horseman who none of the other men, except Clancy, knew. This man, ‘the man from SnowyRiver’ was able to go where no one else could and brought the missing horse back to its owner.
The representations in the poem focus mainly on bushmen of the time. The men are depicted as being quite hard, unforgiving characters who mistrust those they do not know. They are shown to love horse riding and the bush. Clancy of the Overflow serves as a voice of reason and he is represented as someone who will give others a ‘fair go’. Clancy is shown to be an excellent horseman: ‘no better horseman ever held the reins’, who has the respect of the other men.
There are a range of poetic techniques used. Rhyme and rhythm are the two major techniques used by the poet. The way the poet used similes towards the end of the poem helps the reader develop a clear image of the events taking place. For example ‘He raced him down the mountain like a torrent down its bed’ helps us to develop the image of something happening quickly, even violently. After the man has rounded of the horses the pet says he was ‘like a bloodhound on their track’ which brings to mind someone relentless in his pursuit of his goal which helps the reader understand just what an amazing thing the man did.
The poem tells a clear story and the language is easy to read. The use of dialogue is important as it helps to develop a sense of the characters in the story. The poet also uses a large number of descriptive words and phrases that help us get a sense of the situation. We develop a sense of the environment the men were riding through the use of phrases like ‘gorges deep and black,’ and ‘through the stringybarks and saplings, on the rough and broken ground.’ As the poem tells a story these descriptive words are a really important part of developing the story and enabling the reader to see what an amazing feat it was for the man from SnowyRiver.
I liked the poem as it told an exciting story and appealed to the Australian value of fairness and the underdog getting a ‘fair go’. The man showed those who doubted him that they were wrong. You could argue that the young man was foolhardy in his actions, but you can’t doubt the excitement of the story. / Explains one technique in detail, giving examples
Describes own opinion and provides reasons