Our Country's Good: style

Our Country’s Good: style

Style of ‘Our Country’s Good’

Verse versus Prose

  • Our Country’s Good is primarily written in prose. This technique reflects the informal, ordinary conversation that aids in the development of realistic characters.
  • However, the characters occasionally switch to verse. Verse, often used to express heightened emotions or complex ideas, serves to symbolise the transformative power of theatre on the convicts.

Realistic Dialogue

  • Wertenbaker uses realistic dialogue to create believable characters and to give voice to those often marginalised in historical accounts, such as the convicts.
  • The variation in linguistic styles between characters and classes also brings the social hierarchy of the colony to life, reinforcing prevalent class differences and power imbalances.

Symbolic Staging

  • Wertenbaker’s indications for stage props and settings are not ornate. Rather, she uses symbolic settings and minimal props to focus the audience’s attention on the characters’ development.
  • For instance, the sparse harshness of the Australian landscape directly mirrors the austerity and difficulty of the convicts’ lives.

Metatheatrical Play-within-a-Play

  • A significant stylistic feature is the metatheatrical element. The incorporation of ‘The Recruiting Officer’ within the main play creates another layer of complexity.
  • This allows Wertenbaker to explore the nature of performance itself, amplify her themes, and draw parallels between the convicts’ experiences and their roles in the play.

Use of Monologues and Soliloquies

  • Wertenbaker uses monologues and soliloquies as a way for characters to communicate directly with the audience or to verbalise their inner thoughts and struggles.
  • This technique not only enhances characterisation, but also creates dramatic tension and highlights pivotal moments in the narrative.

Historical and Cultural References

  • The play is rich in historical and cultural references, including Aboriginal language, quotations from ‘The Recruiting Officer’, and references to real historical individuals.
  • These references not only ground the piece in its historical context but also explore the cultural collision between the British and the Indigenous Australians.