The Man from Snowy River (poem)
The Man from Snowy River | |
---|---|
by Victoria, Australia | |
Written | 1890 |
First published in | The Bulletin |
Country | Australia |
Language | English |
Publication date | 26 April 1890 |
Full text | |
The Man from Snowy River at Wikisource |
"The Man from Snowy River" is a
The poem tells the story of a horseback pursuit to recapture the colt of a prizewinning racehorse that escaped from its paddock and is living with the brumbies (wild horses) of the mountain ranges. Eventually the brumbies descend a seemingly impassable steep slope, at which point the assembled riders give up the pursuit, except the young protagonist, who spurs his "pony" (small horse) down the "terrible descent" and catches the mob.
Two characters mentioned in the early part of the poem are featured in previous Paterson poems: "Clancy of the Overflow" and Harrison from "Old Pardon, Son of Reprieve".
Setting of the poem
It is recorded in the selected works of "Banjo" Paterson that the location of the ride fictionalised in the poem was in the region of today's Burrinjuck Dam, north-west of Canberra in Australian Capital Territory. Paterson had helped round up brumbies as a child and later owned property in this region.
The
"The Man"
The inspiration for "The Man" was claimed by Banjo himself to be not one person but a number of people, one of which was Owen Cummins. Cummins was born in Dargo and was well known for being a great horseman. He worked around the area before making his way up to Wave Hill, Northern Territory, where a monument has been erected to reflect his role in inspiring the poem. Owen Cummins is also recognised in the Stockmen's Hall of Fame in Longreach.
There is a possibility that another exceptional and fearless rider,
Other historians point to the claims of Jim Troy, who died aged 33. Troy was related by marriage to Thomas McNamara, said to be “Clancy”, subject of another famous Paterson poem, Clancy of the Overflow. “Clancy” also had a second claim to absolute knowledge of the “man” having been included in the Snowy River poem as “no better horseman ever held the reins”. McNamara gave an interview to the Brisbane Courier-Mail newspaper in 1938 in which he recalled the actual details of that terrific chase in the hills beside Wagga Wagga.[6]
Another possibility is J.R. Battye from Walgett. In a report [7] in the papers in 1877, likely to have been seen by Paterson, Battye while Brumby shooting spurs his horse on when it slips its bridle and, powerless over the animal's actions trusts it to follow the wild ones, which it does, catching them after several miles through country thickly timbered and full of holes.
Historical context of the poem
The poem was written at a time in the 1880s and 1890s when
Currency commemoration and tribute
A. B. "Banjo" Paterson and "The Man From Snowy River" poem are commemorated on the
Recordings of the poem
- In 1972, Slim Dusty recorded the poem with new music, to call attention to the "old bush ballads".
- A reading of the poem by actor and narrator Leonard Teale was named to the National Film and Sound Archive's registry of culturally significant audio recordings, Sounds of Australia, in 2019.
- Steve Bisley narrated the poem, in his role as Banjo Paterson, during the re-enactment of the poem in the 2002 musical theatre production The Man from Snowy River: Arena Spectacular.
- Jack Thompson has released recordings of a number of Banjo Paterson poems including "The Man from Snowy River" and "Clancy of the Overflow" on the album The Bush Poems of A.B. (Banjo) Paterson.[9]
- The Australian folk band Wallis and Matilda set the poem to music on their album Pioneers.
- The Concert Band of the 2nd Military District (Australia) made a recording with the poem narrated by Tim Elliott, accompanied by an arrangement of the music from the 1982 film. (Reference YPRX2097)
Adaptations of the poem
Three films, a television series and an arena spectacular musical have been based on the poem.
Films:
- The Man from Snowy River (1920 film)– a silent black & white film
- starring Cyril Mackay as "Jim Conroy" (the Man) and Stella Southern as "Kitty Carewe"
- The Man from Snowy River (1982 film)– film
- starring Tom Burlinson as "Jim Craig" (the Man) and Sigrid Thornton as "Jessica Harrison"
- The Man from Snowy River II – the 1988 sequel to the 1982 film
- (US title: Return to Snowy River / UK title: The Untamed)
- starring Tom Burlinson as "Jim Craig" (the Man) and Sigrid Thornton as "Jessica Harrison"
Television:
- The Man from Snowy River (TV series) — (set 25 years after the famous ride)
- starring Andrew Clarke as "Matt McGregor" (the Man)
Stage musical:
- The Man from Snowy River: Arena Spectacular
- starring Martin Crewes as "Jim Ryan" (the Man) and Georgie Parker as "Kate Conroy"
See also
References
- ^ Semmler, Clement. "Paterson, Andrew Barton (Banjo) (1864–1941)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Australian National University. Retrieved 3 April 2014.
- ^ "The Man from Snowy River, 1895". State Library of NSW. Retrieved 3 April 2014.
- ^ "Charlie McKeahnie". Boake. Archived from the original on 29 May 2010. Retrieved 7 January 2013.
- ^ Charlie McKeahnie (history pages — Hsnowyman) Archived 2006-07-21 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Tim Holt. "The Man from Snowy River revealed," ABC Southeast New South Wales, 23 March 2004
- ^ "Stockman of whom Poet Sang"- Brisbane Courier-Mail 21/12/1938
- ^ "Walgett". Australian Town and Country Journal. Vol. XVI, no. 401. New South Wales, Australia. 8 September 1877. p. 21. Retrieved 9 November 2018 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ Smith, Roff (April 2008). "Australia's Bard". National Geographic. Archived from the original on 28 December 2007. Retrieved 2 September 2012.
- ^ "The Bush Poems of A.B. (Banjo) Paterson at Fine Poets"
External links
- The Man from Snowy River at Project Gutenberg
- A. B. "Banjo" Paterson Biographical Summary—Reserve Bank of Australia website
- About "The Man from Snowy River"—Australian Government website
- "The Man from Snowy River"—National Treasures—National Library of Australia (includes photo of a draft version of the poem)
- "The Man from Snowy River"—Mountain Man Graphics, Australia website