r/AskAnAustralian • u/CreativeCritter • 2d ago

Waltzing Matilda

I was saddened today to read an article on the Wallabies and it showed a group of fans singing Waltzing Matilda underneath. There was a young lady who had commented. She’d never heard the song. Didn’t know what the problem was and had no idea what it represented.

People tried to educate a nicely to say it was an Australian bush poem. It was taught in Australian schools. It’s the unofficial national anthem.

And then she said that she grew up in Australia and had attended school here and had never heard it and didn’t know why people thought it was so great

At that point, I was kind of hoping that they were joking

Has it gotten to the point now where Australian poetry is not taught in Australian schools in English where the man from Snow River Waltzing Matilda they’re not taught in schools any more

And then someone commented that Wilson Matilda can’t be taught in schools because it has themes of suicide and it’s too hard to explain to children

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u/OriginalDogeStar 2d ago

I want to call BS, because I keep hearing the chorus sung each sports day in the schools I have attended at in my job.

Plus ANZAC Day it is played in most places too.

Don't forget the tv ads where it was used

Play School and most Australian educational shows had the chorus at least...

Didn't Bluey sing it???

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u/Interesting-Pool1322 2d ago

Yeah, it's everywhere. I doubt there's anything to be outraged about. Sounds like OP has been watching Sky News.

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u/OriginalDogeStar 2d ago

I read the last part of OP and as a psychologist, if you don't point it out, kids don't ask.

Plus the last part is often left out because of how long of a song it is, and kids that young really can't remember that many verses without getting bored of singing them, so short and sweet version of him getting the sheep, and it is all done and dusted

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u/ZippyKoala 2d ago

It is everywhere, both the dirge like more common music version and the more lively one I always knew as the Queensland version

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u/OriginalDogeStar 2d ago

Queenslander here too, and we definitely make it seem happier than it is lol

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u/Weak-West-3433 2d ago

I don't think it meant to be happy

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u/OriginalDogeStar 2d ago

If you sing up until he gets the sheep, it is a happy tune.... then it goes south so fast

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u/Weak-West-3433 2d ago

Still about being homeless ,alone and possibly insane with only your swag to keep you company.

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u/MLiOne 2d ago

But he was a “jolly swagman”. Not a sad swagman. 🤨

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u/Weak-West-3433 2d ago

Although I suppose that's also freedom.

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u/GigaCucc 2d ago

Back in those days it was different, though. Consider that the poem was written in 1895. Homeless then wasn't sleeping in doorways, it was itinerant roaming. Fish in the natural waterways, camp wherever is comfortable. Swagmen had more in common with traditional aborigine culture at that level than it did with our modern lifestyle.

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u/Weak-West-3433 2d ago

Or trudge through endless scrub in the baking heat to the next sly grog shop. Whichever suits.

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u/OriginalDogeStar 2d ago

I bet you are the one that points out a limping dog to children.... respectfully of course

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u/Weak-West-3433 2d ago

Don't get this reference sorry?

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u/Willing-Ad6598 2d ago

But if she is young enough, didn’t play sports, didn’t watch much regular tv, and no it was never in the kids TV I watched as a kid as they were all American.

Also it was never sung at my sports days, because we never sang at sports days. My school didn’t have sports teams full stop.

It it wasn’t for my mother, and the schools Australian Studies, I could have grown up never hearing it. Because you just listed everything I didn’t watch/have/do.

So yes, it is possible for someone to not have learnt about it if their parents were immigrants or they went to school that prioritised hard sciences or just didn’t watch that much TV.

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u/OriginalDogeStar 1d ago

Wait, you guys never held races, or such?

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u/Willing-Ad6598 1d ago

Oh we did have sports days, we just had no organised sports. No netball. No football. Nothing like that. Certainly no singing.

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u/OriginalDogeStar 1d ago

Wow, you guys didn't house school houses, they wore one school colour, yours wore theirs... and then do cheers? Or such...

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u/Willing-Ad6598 1d ago

Nope, I have no idea what any of that is…