He is a cotton mill worker 2) He (the father) had “worked and lived in the shadows.” (Paragraph 2) (What causes shadows? What is meant by “the shadows” in the context of this sentence? )Not being educated. Being poor (What do you think is meant by “working and living in the shadows?”) Him being a cotton mill worker and being poor 3) What kind of father do you imagine based on what you read in paragraph 3? A caring father that wanted his sons to succeed in life.
Creating a grave and planting a tree requires the same action, digging a hole. The first stanza of the poem introduces a person, the narrator, digging “hole, laying you into it, carefully packing the soil”. This refers to both planting a tree, and burying a man. The weather is dark and cold which introduces a sad and harsh tone to the poem. The narrator than continues describes a tradition in Sicily, where planting of a tree represents the birth of a child, because the earth has "one more life to bear".
The men do sometimes reveal their emotions, in heartfelt or comical ways. Tim O'Brien, the narrator, writes stories about his friends in his platoon. Mitchell Sanders mails lice he removes from his body to his draft board in Ohio. But there are many terrible memories
Titling the piece Digging immediately highlights for the reader the verbal connotation of the work, and puts the theme of work, and of manual labor into the limelight. As well, Heaneys use of the word gun to describe his “squat pen” in line 2 places the emphasis on machinery allowing a comparison of the human condition to present technology. This theme continues throughout the poem, as Heaney likens his fathers act of digging to that of a machine, “as his father nestled on the lug, the shaft/Against the inside knee was levered
I then found out that “digging” in the poem symbolizing for the spirit of hardworking. Although Heaney didn’t follow his family’s path as an expert at digging in farms, he still worked hard using his pen as the tool. Speaking of the simile, Heaney used simile to compare the pen to the gun, which would make readers think that the pen is Heaney’s mighty but very peaceful weapon. Heaney also used the spade as a metaphor, trying to inform readers that his grandfather is good at gigging as well. How does it shift your understanding of the story to look at the story from this particular lens?
Letter From the Trench January, 23, 1916 Dear Mother, I am writing to you from the trenches, a place that’s nothing like home. I know that you’re terribly worried about me but know that your son is working inside and is healthy, just trying to deal with any situations, battles and tasks that may come my way, as well as trying to be brave about it all. Sorry if this letter is in any way repulsive, from the smell to the texture. It is sort of like a sample of my life here on the trenches. You will not believe the conditions I have been living in.
Heaney would have been familiar with farms and outbuildings so ‘the Barn is relevant to his childhood and may have been written about an experience Heaney had in a barn as a child. ‘Follower’ is also from this collection and is about a Father and son working together on the land and the son aspires to be like his father. This poem is also about Heaney’s childhood and how he has watched his father ploughing the land and how he watched him and wished to be like him but he was always falling and could not plough unlike his father who was an expert. ‘Follower also looks at Role Reversal between the father and son today. Heaney’s poem ‘The Barn’ is set in a barn, most likely one on the farm where Heaney grew up.
Imagery in Seamus Heaney’s “Digging” Heany uses a great amount of imagery in this poem to make the reader feel what the speaker feels. He describes the “clean, rasping sound’ of the spade as well as the “cool hardness” of the potatoes. These positive descriptions of things connected to his ancestors reveal the speaker’s admiration, and even a bit of envy, towards his father’s achievements. The title of the poem refers to the act of hard labour and also makes one think of a funeral. Yet the digging it refers to is straightforward as Heaney is explaining the work that his father and grandfather did.
Heaney, both the author and the narrator of “Digging”, critically compares his pen to a working tool, such as a shovel or spade, when trying to determine if his line of work is as influential as the work surrounding him. At the opening of the poem, however, this comparison finds Heaney undermining his abilities as a poet to effectively use his pen, something he believes to be a relatively insignificant implement, for purposes that would be considered of equal impact to that of a gardening tool’s. Heaney finds his limited talents fruitless, especially after he introduces his father and grandfather as successful and dedicated potato farmers who were known for their high contributions with only the use of a spade, framing Heaney to appear inferior to the accomplishments of his ancestors. Nevertheless, as the course of the poem unravels, he begins to perceive that just as his father’s and grandfather’s spade represented a key to unearthing the hidden prize of a potato, his pen could also be viewed as a key to unlocking intricate ideas and messages through the use of poetry. This profound comparison leads Heaney to embracing his pen to its full
However this also reminds us that life is always ticking away, just like the clocks. This is similar to the reference to time in “A Call”. As Heaney waits for his father we are given a detailed description of this man, through the use of a metaphor comparing them to the weeds he feels “rueful” at having to destroy. The weeds are described as “frail”, like Heaney’s father himself in old age. It is this clever use of language that allows us to visualise Heaney’s father.