Old Man Platypus
Old Man Platypus - meaning Summary
A Curious River Loner
The poem fondly depicts a solitary platypus living quietly in reed beds and riverbanks. It follows Old Man Platypus as he drifts, dives, and shelters in a hidden burrow with his family, emphasizing his secretive, almost playful habits. The narrator notes the animal’s odd, solitary status—neither fish nor bird nor typical mammal—highlighting its uniqueness and elusiveness while offering a simple, affectionate portrait of a mysterious creature in its watery home.
Read Complete AnalysesFar from the trouble and toil of town, Where the reed beds sweep and shiver, Look at a fragment of velvet brown– Old Man Platypus drifting down, Drifting along the river. And he plays and dives in the river bends In a style that is most elusive; With few relations and fewer friends, For Old Man Platypus descends From a family most exclusive. He shares his burrow beneath the bank With his wife and his son and daughter At the roots of the reeds and the grasses rank; And the bubbles show where our hero sank To its entrance under water. Safe in their burrow below the falls They live in a world of wonder, Where no one visits and no one calls, They sleep like little brown billiard balls With their beaks tucked neatly under. And he talks in a deep unfriendly growl As he goes on his journey lonely; For he’s no relation to fish nor fowl, Nor to bird nor beast, nor to horned owl; In fact, he’s the one and only!
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