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Storm on the Island by Seamus Heaney - Coggle Diagram
Storm on the Island
by Seamus Heaney
CONTEXT
Seamus Heaney
he lived in Northern Ireland - lived through a period of history in Northern Ireland know and 'the troubles'.
he lived on a farm and had a rural upbringing
his upbringing in the countryside and nature are key factors in Heaney's poetry
this poem is from Heaney's collection of poems called Death of a Naturalists.
Ireland
the country was divided because of some wanting independence from England whereas others had contrasting opinions.
Ireland faced much unrest with the issues around politics and religion
a rival between the Protestants and Catholics were often which also added up on the problems within the communities.
this poem is symbolic to the struggles faced by Ireland especially in Stormont.
this is set in the Arun Islands
TITLE
the first 8 letters of the title refers to the name of the Irish government which is Stormont - the noun 'Storm' implies the troubles that Ireland faced - the noun 'Island' also sounds like Ireland
STRUCTURE
it is a blank verse and has 19 lines.
the significance of 19 lines is to implicitly suggest how the problems and the conditions at that time was no even and how that led to an imbalance of opinions within the community.
is is written in iambic pentameter and has a conversational tone.
POEM SUMMARY
this is a blank verse poem, which means that the poem itself is one whole stanza. it explains how a powerful storm attacks an isolated cottage that is located next to the sea. the occupants of that cottage struggle to cope with this harsh weather despite the preparedness which shows the strength of the storm.
KEY QUOTES
First Line
:
'We are prepared: we build our houses squat'
they are prepared as if they were prepared for this - naive (they don't know about nature) - house is submerged with nature
Last Line
:
'Strange, it is a huge nothing we fear'
oxymoron -total opposite -they just leave their fate to the hand of nature -they don't know what is going to happen which suggests how unpredictable nature is -irrational (they(nature?) are not actually going to do anything)
Line 3
:
'This wizened earth has never troubled us'
metaphor suggests how they believe nature is more wiser than humans/ the earth is old ; time has took a toll -acceptance if defeat against nature -nature is innocent -people causing troubles
Line 4-5
:
'With hay, so, as you see, there are no stacks/Or stocks that can be lost. Nor there are trees'
farming -a faith that nature won't destroy it's own -no need to worry, nothing to lose -there is no natural shelter; feel exposed and alone (personification)
Line 11
:
'But there are no trees, no natural shelter'
repetition of 'no' suggests that nature is gone; especially its mercy and kindness -alliteration sound of 'no natural' is soft and contradicts the previous point -'no' control over their country, IRA taking over/ 'no' control over the situation shows the immense power of nature.
Line 15-16
:
'...spits like a tame cat/Turned savage'
simile suggests how the true colours of nature are revealing (the change of attitude of nature) -it has turned wild, 'spits' implies how they think one half of Ireland is better than the other as they believe it is something invaluable ad filthy.
THEMES
Power of humans
the IRA and their dominance over Ireland
Power of nature
the powerful storm is near to impossible to handle with despite the people have prepared for these types of situations
War
the conflict between the two pairs of oppositions: those who want independence vs those who don't & Protestants vs Catholics these conflicts are clearly presented in the poem through militaristic words e.g. salvo -the IRA an ideological war
Politics
the IRA had control over the country which caused many problems and left politicians powerless.
Religion
the conflict between Protestants and Catholics was a major thing in Ireland at the time of the IRA.