How Do Heaney and Sheers Use Language and Imagery to Communicate Their Ideas About Relationships?

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How do Heaney and Sheers use language and imagery to communicate their ideas about relationships? Heaney and Sheers demonstrate similar and alternative recurring themes within the relationships in their poems. Heaney often discusses the distance from his father within their relationship, due to their differences with careers, ability and age. Alternatively Sheers often represents his parents with a positive outlook, referring back to the strength of their relationships within the family. Heaney looks up to his father with pride at his ability within his work and the skill in what he does, this is a recurring theme and can be seen within ‘Digging’, “By God, the old man could handle a spade”. By claiming this statement in ‘Gods’ name Heaney’s awe is suggested and the incredibility at his father. The verb to ‘handle’ further shows his father’s skill as he is able to manipulate the soil into his will, the effectiveness of his movements is also apparent as ‘handle’ is associated with gentle movements, suggesting the ease of motions to which his father has. This is also present for ‘Follower’ with the constant nautical references in the description of his father’s motion “full sail strung” “rolled over without breaking” “Mapping the furrow” “rode me” and “Dipping and rising”. These quotes show his father’s power and control over his environment, with the metaphorical imagery of the taming of the sea. However it again suggests the fluency of these motions as the sea is portrayed as its calm state, further showing his father’s skill. The physical strength associated with his work could also suggest the dominance within the relationship, that with the admiration towards him also comes fear and disregard as he can be seen to be overpowering for young Heaney as he is incapable of comprehending the work his father does. The admiration shown throughout both poems suggests the

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