New Year's Night by Henry Lawson
The story revolves around a group of people who gather at a hotel on New Year's Eve to celebrate the start of a new year. The atmosphere is tense and foreboding, with each character harboring secrets and unresolved conflicts. A young woman, struggling with her own personal demons, becomes embroiled in a complicated web of relationships and alliances among the group. As the night wears on, tensions escalate and the characters' true natures are revealed. The story explores themes of love, betrayal, and redemption, set against the backdrop of a festive holiday that masks the darker aspects of human nature.
By Henry Lawson · First published 1903 · Genre: Short Story, Realism, Romance · 3,075 words
First lines
It was dark enough for anything in Dead Man's Gap -- a round, warm, close darkness, in which retreating sounds seemed to be cut off suddenly at a distance of a hundred yards or so, instead of growing faint and fainter, and dying away, to strike the ear once or twice again -- and after minutes, it might seem -- with startling distinctness, before being finally lost in the distance, as it is on clear, frosty nights. So with the sounds of horses' hoofs, stumbling on the rough bridle-track through the "saddle", the clatter of hoof-clipped stones and scrape of gravel down the hidden "siding", and the low sound of men's voices, blurred and speaking in monosyllables and at intervals it seemed, and in hushed, awed tones, as though they carried a corpse.
What this Textopian page supports
New Year's Night is listed on Textopian as a short story by Henry Lawson, dated 1903 CE.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Short story
- Author: Henry Lawson
- Date: 1903 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Short Story, Realism, Romance, Drama, Australian Literature
- Length: 3,075 words
- Structure: 1 section, 55 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Easy (6th Grade)
Good citation fit
- Work identity for New Year's Night by Henry Lawson
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Discussion starters
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Similar titles
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Genres
- Short Story — The work is a concise narrative focusing on a specific event in the lives of the characters, typical of short stories.
- Realism — The story portrays everyday life and ordinary characters in a realistic manner, emphasizing authentic dialogue and settings.
- Romance — The narrative centers on the relationship between Johnny and Mary, highlighting themes of love and marriage.
- Drama — The story involves emotional and relational conflicts, particularly between the couple, which are resolved by the end.
Tags
Australian Literature · Short Story Collection · Realism · Social Commentary · Poverty · Working Class Life · Rural Australia · Outback · Isolation · Loneliness · Disillusionment · Critique of Society