Gumtree in the city street,
Hard bitumen around your feet,
Rather you should be
In the cool world of leafy forest halls
And wild bird calls
Here you seems to me
Like that poor cart-horse
Castrated, broken, a thing wronged,
Strapped and buckled, its hell prolonged,
Whose hung head and listless mien express
Its hopelessness.
Municipal gum, it is dolorous
To see you thus
Set in your black grass of bitumen—
O fellow citizen,
What have they done to us?
"Reproduced with permission of John Wiley
and Sons, Australia".
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school
From guest panda (contact)
i have to do an essay about 3 poems of a particular poet this website is a great help -
But you might scroll down to what Vonny has to say.
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Student Assignment?
Don't be in such a hurry to interpret this poem. It could take a lifetime!
Charley Noble -
From guest daniel (contact)
heyy guys im doing a assignment on this and i need you guys help to figure out what this means and by the way im in yr 8 -
Help
From guest Tina (contact)
i'd like to know the meaning of this poem as i have to do an assignment on it. Anyone who can help me. -
From guest chris johnson (contact)
I love this poem, it is great and i love the author, here words just seem to speak to me -
WOW!!
From guest Ash (contact)
Wow!! i love this poem! I love the cantrast, the metaphores and the whole thing!! all i can think of is WOW!!! -
From guest gemma (contact)
Hi I have this poem for english my task is to deconstruct the poem and write 1 paragraph on why i chose the poem and also 1 paragraph what i think about the theme,tone or mood i love your website it is good thanks -
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oodgeroo
From guest jasmine (contact)
hi im jasmine and im in year 6 and we are doing a hero assignment if anyone can find a map of where she worked it would be appreciated. -
great
From guest ash (contact)
this poem is great... i really like it alot... to those that were asking for help analysing it... things to look into include the juxtaposition, the connotation and denotation of some of the words - castrated. and also the use of the word "us" at the end... any way cya... -
hello!
From guest kate (contact)
hi im ALSO in yr 9 and also studying oodgeroo 4 english. i just wanna say shes an amazing, inspiral women. -
oodgeroo
From guest Shauna (contact)
Hi I am in year 9 and we are study Oodgeroo in English and i was really interested in the work that she did and i really enjoy reading this poem Municipal Gum as she uses strong words to say how she is feeling. -
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oodgeroo
Hi!. Is that Shauna from Bello High? This is Shona...
Anyway. I need help finding the poem "No More Boomerang" Cause I lost my copy of it, and we have to analize it. So... does anyone have a link to it? -
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oop. Don't worry. I found it.
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Wonderful! I heard a New York City poem by one of the ABC Village Squatters, an ode to acanthus, or some such similar tree growing in a Manhattan Village alley.
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I am only 12 but I realy admire Kath Walker!
I am doing a project on Kath Walker for school and she has really touched me and I think her poems are awesome! -
This poem is spectacular! Oodgeroo never fails to amaze me. Rest in peace.
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im using this poem in a speech we have to do at school. It has a very defined metaphore which is why i chose it and because it actually means something.
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this is cool
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Back in the Dreamtime the Gum would have been in a natural environment, surrounds by the bush, sky and other trees - not so now; as it stands as a singular monument to the trees felled to make way for the modern roads, buildings etc. It is as a comparison to the Aboriginal people too who also had their 'Mother Earth' taken away and re-used for modern society I feel that this poem to the Gum Tree is seeing at it stands right now - surrounds by the modern generation of concrete and bitumen to how it used to be before white man came to Australia.
After the comparison Oodergoo is asking the Gum Tree 'What have they done to us?' both tree and Aboriginal being displaced and in a foreign, unnatural environment.
That's my take on this poem.
Vonny
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what is this poem about? i need help
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this poem is awesome!!!!
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I have Kath's great grand-daughter in England. And it's a pleasure to read that Kath is so well respected and liked. My daughter Hollie, is also clever with poetry and she's only 8! She learnt to read before she was 4, so her grandmother's literary legacy could live on..
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Im doing a year 12 text study on Kth Walkers poem No more boomerang, and i have to incorporate some of her other poems,Municipal gum is such a great poem i love it...
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the poets on the page helped me feel the inner warmth of what this country and how this country addapts to it's lifestyle. i think kath walker is very inspirational. her talent is absolutely professionalised in the way she wants her poems to be. thanks kath walker for giving me inspiration, for doing my aborigional speach (which is all about you), and thanks for giving me all the information i needed to allow me to get a good mark. hopefully i do get a fantastic mark for my speach, and i basically just wanted to say how greatfull i am to get help from a true aborigional australian poet!!!!!
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the poets on this page are very enthusiastic about their poems
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her poem is great. it is one of my favourites!!
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I think Kath Walker is very inspiring. Her detailed poetry is an amazing talent that I am also very passionate about. I am doing a set of aboriginal poems for my year 12 english application, and I just want to say thankyou Kath for your excellent poetry and help you have given me.
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kath has excellent poetry and her poetry has a lot of meaning i beleive it should be put in all school libraries throughout australia because at my school they dont have any books recognising and giving credit to an aboriginal poet.
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She is a pretty good writter and people should be infuenced by her.
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hey im doing an assignment on kath walker and i just wanted to say shes really good and wrote heaps good poetry.. if only everyone could see what she explains.. ive neva heard of her before this but shes heaps good
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A poet I've never heard of, so it's the first piece I've read by her. It, to me rests so much on the bleakness of society. Not so much the emptiness or even the fortitude but the bleakness. Perhaps only I get that view and perhaps not but it's my view just the same.
A good piece written by Noonuccal.
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Hi im in yr 9 and doin poetry and Oodgeroo Noonuccal aka Kath Walker is what our assignment is on. I love the poem Municipal Gum and thats the poem im doing for my assignment. If she was still alive i think she would even more help the aboriginal people.
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Her writings are inspiring. She captures the reader with her delicate writing power,reflecting upon issues which need to be taken into more account in society today!!
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I think that Oodgeroo is a great ambassador for Aborigiinal people.
The relationship between indigenous and white australians has benefited immensely fom her work. -
jst wanted to say im doing a project on kath walker and i just wanted to say that i think that she is a real legend she has great poetry and the best way of getting black and white rights accross I did not know much about her until now and im glad that i now do know more about her cause she is my hero!!!
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