Romantic Fiction Meets Brutal Reality in “River Bend”

This poem by Banjo Paterson adopts an ironic tone to poke fun at sentimental folk songs through parody. On the surface, “River Bend” mimics the nostalgic language and repetitive refrain of a typical romantic pastoral ballad.

However, the speaker undercuts this by describing the brutal reality of pioneering in the harsh Australian wilderness. References to backbreaking work, searing heat, dangerous wildlife and Indigenous people depict an alien, unforgiving landscape far from idyllic.

By juxtaposing a maudlin lyrical style against the jarringly stark setting, Paterson humorously unravels popular idealism about the bush. The absurdity of calling the land “sweet” and “beloved” when it is so hostile and bizarre highlights the gap between perception and truth.

While exaggerated in its descriptions, the poem conveys an insightful message about looking beyond surface romanticism. Paterson suggests much pioneering was actually about grappling with isolation and adversity more than realizing lofty dreams.

So through ironic humor, “River Bend” pokes holes in mythologized, unrealistic visions of the Australian frontier. Beneath the parody, Paterson insightfully unpacks the gulf between lyrical fictions and the pragmatic struggles of outback life.

RIVER BEND

(Air: “Belle Mahone.”)

At River Bend, in New South Wales,
All alone among the whales,
Busting up some post and rails,
Sweet Belle Mahone.
In the blazing sun we stand,
Cabbage-tree hat, black velvet band,
Moleskins stiff with sweat and sand,
Sweet Belle Mahone.

    Chorus: Sweet Belle Mahone, &c.

In the burning sand we pine,
No one asks us to have a wine,
‘Tis a jolly crooked line,
Sweet Belle Mahone.
When I am sitting on a log,
Looking like a great big frog,
Waiting for a Murray cod,
Sweet Belle Mahone.

Land of snakes and cockatoos,
Native bears and big emus,
Ugly blacks and kangaroos,
Sweet Belle Mahone.
Paddymelons by the score,
Wild bulls, you should hear them roar,
They all belong to Johnny Dore,
Sweet Belle Mahone.

“River Bend.” This song certainly cannot boast of
antiquity, as it is a parody on a recent sentimental song, but
so many correspondents sent it in that it was decided to include
it. Perhaps it is to its obvious sincerity of sentiment
that it owes its popularity.