Kenneth Slessor is considered to be one of the first truly Australian poets, largely because he was a first-generation Australian, rather than a settler, or a transported prisoner, from England, as most of the well-known poets that went before him had been. His poetry was first published in a publication called Vision in the 1920s. His early poetry has a pagan, rustic air about it that is reminiscent of bush poetry, but he became more stylized in his later years. His themes were still essentially Australian, but he began to experiment more with dramatic imagery and layered descriptions.
Slessor's poems were, in general, paradoxical; there is a definite melancholy about them, but there is also a discernible appreciation for life and the world around him. He writes often about sea travel and also about the way in which memory and the passing of time can make events appear different to how they actually were.
Slessor's poetic career was interrupted by World War Two and he became a war correspondent for The Sun newspaper. He sent reports back to the home front from Greece, Libya, Egypt and Syria. He was a passionate supporter of rugby league football and also wrote a rugby column for Smith's Weekly.
In 1959, Slessor was awarded an OBE in the New Year's Honors List. He passed away in June 1971, at the age of seventy.
