The Wattle
The Wattle - meaning Summary
Patriotism and Personal Claim
The poem is a first‑person assertion of patriotic belonging. The speaker recalls placing wattle on a dead girl and uses that memory to claim a personal right to wear the wattle as Australia’s emblem. He presents a life of commitment—witnessing death, fighting, writing—and insists that his service and love for the land justify his claim. The recurring question emphasizes ownership of national identity through sacrifice and long devotion.
Read Complete AnalysesI saw it in the days gone by, When the dead girl lay at rest, And the wattle and the native rose We placed upon her breast. I saw it in the long ago (And I’ve seen strong men die), And who, to wear the wattle, Hath better right than I? I’ve fought it through the world since then, And seen the best and worst, But always in the lands of men I held Australia first. I wrote for her, I fought for her, And when at last I lie, Then who, to wear the wattle, has A better right than I?
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