Australian Literature Solved Assignment
Introduction
The IGNOU course MEG‑09 (Australian Literature) is a significant component of the MA English syllabus. For the session July 2025 – January 2026, a solved assignment (TMA / Tutor Marked Assignment) has to be completed by the students. This blog is for your assistance to know what the assignment entails, how to go about solving each question, important texts and themes, and some strategies to give high quality answers so that you can earn good marks. Whether you are new to this topic or revising, this guide is designed to make your assignment submission easier and more effective.
What is MEG‑09?
- Course Code: MEG‑09
- Title: Australian Literature
- Program: MA English (Indira Gandhi National Open University)
- Credit Weight & Year: Part of first‑year / semester of optional papers.
Purpose: To introduce students to the literature of Australia — its past, identity, colonial and post‑colonial concerns, poetry, prose, tales, novels, Indigenous perspectives, etc.
Assignment Deadline & Sessions
For July 2025 – January 2026 session:
- Submission deadlines: Generally, IGNOU releases fixed deadlines for every session. (Refer to your assignment notification or student portal for specific dates.)
If you are registered for July session, usually you need to submit by the end of March; for January session, by end of September. (These are general timeframes; check with the recent IGNOU guidelines.) ([IGNOU SOLVED ASSIGNMENT GURU]
Assignment Pattern for July 2025 – January 2026
The completed assignment for this session contains five questions, all of which are weighty. You must reply to all five. From texts that include MEG‑09 in Academic Vox / GullyBaba, etc., standard questions for this session are
- “Paterson’s poem ‘The Man from Snowy River’ recaptures the indomitable spirit of the early Australians fighting for survival on a heroic scale.” Comment on this statement.
- “The figure of the drover’s wife challenges the stereotype of woman as a clinging, helpless creature in need of protection by the powerful male.” Provide your observations on this statement on the basis of your reading of Henry Lawson’s ‘The Drover’s Wife’.
- Analyze critically how the relationship between land and identity emerges as a key theme in Patrick White’s novel Voss.
- Kath Walker’s poem “We are Going” “portrays the killing of a whole civilization and lifestyle.” Respond to this statement.
5. In Remembering Babylon, Malouf re‑imagines Australian colonial history as follows.
Core Texts, Authors & Themes to Concentrate On
Write effective answers using the following texts and themes very well:
Text / Author Key Themes What to Pay Attention To
Banjo Paterson – The Man from Snowy River Heroism, settler struggle early on, domesticating the land, identity from adversity How landscape/nature is used as a character; form of poetry; symbolism of the horse, snow, rider.
Henry Lawson – “The Drover’s Wife” Gender roles, isolation, survival, landscape as challenge How the female protagonist is described; bush & wilderness as menace or setting; comparison with male ideal. Patrick White – Voss Identity, journey, isolation, European / Indigenous tensions, spiritual & physical landscapes Character analysis; Voss’s expedition; how identity is forged by land; encounters with Indigenous peoples; dualities.
Kath Walker (Oodgeroo Noonuccal) – We Are Going Colonisation, loss, culture, arrival of white settlers, voice of Indigenous Australians Poetic style of the poem; imagery; what is lost; what remains.
David Malouf – Remembering Babylon | Colonial history, cultural memory, outsider / belonging, innocence and guilt, the frontier | How Malouf narrates colonial past; themes of prejudice, the outsider; how memory constructs identity.
Suggested Approach & Answer Writing Tips
To do well, remember these as you write every answer:
- Understand the Question Be certain to highlight important terms: critically examine, subverts, interrelation, re‑imagine. These words require analysis, not description.
- Structure Your Answer Properly
- Introduction: Define important terms and tell us what we will be discussing.
- Main Body: Break up into logical paragraphs, each covering one topic (theme, character, imagery etc.). Include quotation or examples from texts.
- Conclusion: Outline your arguments, bring back in the question, perhaps think about wider implications (why it matters today).
- Use Critical / Theoretical Perspectives
Although this is literature, introducing concepts of postcolonial theory, feminist thought, ecocriticism etc. can make your answer more secure — particularly when discussing Indigenous affairs, the land, gender roles.
- Engage with Context Historical, cultural, socio‑political contexts (colonization, Indigenous dispossession, settler society) matter a lot in Australian literature. Don’t analyze texts in isolation.
- Employ Clean, Fluent Language
Clarity is important. Use paragraphs, not long run-on sentences. Grammar, punctuation, spelling correct. Literary vocabulary (“imagery”, “symbolism”, “metaphor”, “tone”, etc.) used.
- Quotations & Examples
Whenever possible, use short quotations (with page numbers if you have the edition). Use textual examples to illustrate points.
- Balance / Word Limit
IGNOU TMAs don’t typically require unnecessarily long essays; reply within the word limit requested or restrict yourself so that you can cover all questions adequately. It’s best to write well-reasoned short answers rather than lengthy poor ones.
Possible Answer Outlines (Short Descriptions) for The Five Questions
Here are outlines (not complete answers) of how one could deal with each question:
Q1: “Paterson’s poem ‘The Man from Snowy River’ recaptures the indomitable spirit of the early Australians battling for survival on a heroic scale.” Comment.
- Introduction: place the poem in its historical context; what ‘indomitable spirit’ could entail.
- Analysis of Heroism: figure of the rider; qualities of courage, endurance.
- Nature & Landscape: how nature is both obstacle and setting; Snowy River’s landscape, weather difficulties.
- Identity & National Myth: how the poem helps to create national identity or myth-making.
- Stylistic Features: imagery, action, rhythm, diction.
- Counterpoints: Are there places where hardship or vulnerability breaks down?
- Conclusion: summarize how the poem confirms that heroic spirit, but also what subtleties or contradictions.
Q2: “The image of the drover’s wife subverts the stereotype.”
Let’s see.
- Introduction: gender stereotypes’ role in bush literature; what “the drover’s wife” is in Australian myth.
- Character of the wife: her bravery, resilience, agency, at times invisibility.
- Bush as setting: isolation, ruggedness, danger; how she survives.
- Contrast with male expectation: contrast with drovers, male characters; hero culture.
- Subversion: how the story subverts stereotypical helplessness.
Conclusion: the broader message about women, survival, identity.
Q3: Land and identity in Voss.
- Introduction: Voss as a journey / quest; why land matters.
- Character & identity of Voss: European heritage, dreams, ambitions.
- Meeting with Australian land: challenge, beauty, risk.
- Indigenous perspective: how land is not vacant; spiritual, cultural claims.
- Change: how identity changes or is challenged.
Conclusion: land as character; identity defined by conflict, boundary-crossing.
Q4: “We are Going” by Kath Walker”
- Introduction: Who is Kath Walker (Oodgeroo Noonuccal), historical context of the poem.
- Theme of loss / dispossession: what is being lost — land, language, culture.
- Imagery & tone: how the poem evokes mourning, memory.
- Civilization & identity: what it means to lose whole ways of life.
- Hope or resilience? Does poem offer possibility of continuity?
Conclusion: the importance of remembering, giving voice.
Q5: Malouf’s Remembering Babylon: Re‑imagining colonial history
- Introduction: summary of colonial history in Australia; who is “Babylon” here.
- Narrative perspective: how Malouf employs outsider / insider, memory.
- Characters bridging divisions: Gemmy, local white colonists, Indigenous.
- Themes of prejudice, otherness, belonging: community dynamics, suspicion.
- Landscape, memory & time: history of the land, memory, myth.
Conclusion: how the novel challenges simplistic colonial accounts, provides nuanced perspective.
Common Errors to Eliminate
- Providing plot summaries instead of analysis.
- Omitting consideration of the Indigenous point of view or colonial history.
- Not establishing links back to the question phrase.
- Generic statement without textual support.
- Poor organization or grammar.
Failure to engage other critical or theoretical perspectives where appropriate.
Why This Solved Assignment Counts
- Assists you in consolidating your knowledge of Australian literature — its distinct character, tensions surrounding colonial & postcolonial, Indigenous voices.
- Enhances critical thinking and comparison — understanding themes in poetry, prose, short stories, novels.
- Well-written assignments benefit your grades as well as establish confidence for your term exams.
The understanding is not only relevant for IGNOU but also for larger literary studies, writing, teaching, etc.
AcademicVox Can Assist You
With AcademicVox, you can obtain:
- Example solved assignments that are formatted, structured and written in plain English.
- TAN (Tutor advice / feedback) / support for clarifying themes, selecting quotations, etc.
- Templates and checklists to ensure your answer covers all parts of the question.
Study materials / summaries for major texts in MEG‑09.
Suggested Study Plan & Timeline
Here is a plan to complete your assignment efficiently
Week 1 Read all texts thoroughly. Note major themes, characters, significant quotes.
Week 2 Read again important passages for each text; make outlines for each question.
Week 3 Rough answers: write introduction + body + conclusion for all.
Week 4 Revise: check structure, language, coherence; proofread; ensure references/quotations. Submit before deadline.
Final Tips
- Start early; panic can give you poor arguments.
- Interpret the text; do not just take the obvious meaning.
- Write in your own words whenever possible; originality is valued. IGNOU sometimes verifies similarity.
- If you get stuck in any question, concentrate on what you do know (themes, characters, examples) and construct around it.
- Seek help: peer discussions, academic forums, or platforms like AcademicVox for clarifications.
By following the strategies above, you’ll be well‐prepared to submit a strong and thoughtful solved assignment for MEG‑09: Australian Literature, for the July‑2025 to January‑2026 session. Best of luck with your writing and your results!