호주 오지의 목소리

From the early phase of his literary career, Henry Lawson has been called `the voice of Australia.` One of the reasons of his being the representative writer of Australia is that he depicted realistically the typical Australian surroundings…bush and people suffering in that land. The bush was considered as the heart of Australia, and Lawson as the representative writer of Australia has been problematic since some critics praised his glorification of the bush while others censured his negative portrait of it. Both parties, however, tend to regard him not so much a literary man as a public relations man. Lawson has tried to represent not the voice of bush itself but rather that of the people who has suffered in it. Lawson`s bush is not merely a geographical place but a psychological one. He revolted against the comtemporary literary trend which romanticized the bush and bush people`s hard living. The voice Lawson renders through his realistic depiction of the Australian bush is neigher pleasant nor beautiful; in general its tone is minor of the tired and distressful people. It is partly because of his personal background and inclination, but mostly because of his mission as writer to comfort the suffered by rendering their voice as it is.