Bruce Dawe - Americanized :: essays research papers

Bruce Dawe is strongly unconnected to consumerism, as shown through his poem, Americanized. The poem is written in a preponderantly bitter and ironic tone. The title itself is ironic. Bruce Dawe is Australian and has spelled the title using American spelling sort of than Australian spelling, with the s being replaced by a z. Stanza one is set in the morning at breakfast time. It involves the pay back and her churl. Instead of the usual loving mother, we limit a cold mother and one that is doubtful of her lover for her own peasant. Dawe uses cold wording such as beneficence, beamed and laminex as well has the pause by and by she loves him to signify this. The pair are also conveyed to be separate from from each one other, symbolised by them being on opposite sides of the breakfast table. Stanza two shows us how the baby is well looked after, yet is lacking the affection that small fryren need. The child experiences a vague passing spasm of loss. The mother blocks out her c hilds cries. There is a lack of contact and warmth betwixt the pair. Stanza three again shows doubtfulness about the mothers love. We see how the mother locks her child in because she fears the modern world. She sees the world as dangers and in particular fears men. Her fear of men is emphasized by the italics used. In the final stress of the stanza, the mother puts her son on a plastic pot. This is somewhat emblematical of the consumeristic golf-club i.e. manufactured and cheap. Stanza four is a metaphor. The mother trying to tail train her son is a metaphor for people learning the rules of connection and trying to conform to societys ways. In this stanza, the mother is society and the child is someone trying to learn societys values. It is against the childs natural instinct, yet the mother still tries to force it. In stanza five, the mother leaves the house and leaves her son at home alone. The mother is tell to be off to nurse and invalid called the world. This is to do with the theory of consumption. The mother has gone out to consume materialistic items that will in stoop keep the consumer-based delivery healthy. If she and the millions of other members of the consumer society fail to do this, the consumer economy will sicken. Stanza six shows how toys and presents mark the childs life rather than love and affection.