Comparing The Child Wife And Gifts By Oodgeroo Noonuccal

The two poems The Child Wife, and Gifts, written by Oodgeroo Noonuccal, are quite different but similar in a certain extent. As both texts focuses on young love but in different perspectives, as one is the perspective of a young girl who dreams about her future partner, and the other poem is about how miserable forced marriage is. The Child Wife is about an Aboriginal girl who was forced to marry an old man who she thinks is very miserable. Whilst in the Gifts, is also about an Aboriginal girl, who has the power to think about her dream partner and has higher standards when choosing a perfect man in her life. Although both of the poems are written by the same author, but they have many differences as Gifts focuses on the theme of love, desire

This can be seen at the end of the poem which states, “No,’ she said, ‘bring me tree-grubs”. This young girl wants a functional, practical love, simple love where her dream husband is providing for her the basics and necessities of life, where love is not represented through materialistic objects. On the contrary, the second line of stanza one, from The Child wife, states, “Life’s smile of promise, so soon to frown.” This is evident that the young girl who is present in this poem, is talking about her life which is now miserable, by being chosen to marry an old man. It enables the reader to feel guilty and sorrow for this young girl as she did not get a chance to have her say but rather was forced to marry the old man when she got chosen by him. Although there are many differences there are some similarities as both texts focuses on a young Aboriginal girl who is either devastated with her current life and is moaning about her partner or being happy and asking to her lover that she only wants true love. Another similarity is that both of the texts are related the Aboriginal culture how both of the girls had used the aboriginal words to describe their