Storm On The Island By Seamus Heaney Theme

Storm On The Island By Seamus Heaney

Theme The theme of this poem is Nature’s Power and Destructive side.

Structure • • • 19 Lines 3 parts but no separate stanza’s 1 st Part: Preparation for the storm 2 nd Part: Attack of the storm 3 rd Part: The affect of the storm

Storm On The Island We are prepared: we build our houses squat, Sink walls in rock and roof them with good slate. The wizened earth had never troubled us With hay, so as you can see, there are no stacks Or stooks that can be lost. Nor are there trees Which might prove company when it blows full Blast: you know what i mean - leaves and branches Can raise a chorus in a gale So that you can listen to the thing you fear Forgetting that it pummels your house too. But there are no trees, no natural shelter. You might think that the sea is company, Exploding comfortably down on the cliffs But no: when it begins, the flung spray hits The very windows, spits like a tame cat Turned savage. We just sit tight while wind dives And strafes invisibly. Space is a salvo. We are bombarded by the empty air. Strange, it is a huge nothing that we fear.

This is the section of the poem where it tells you that they are preparing for the storm. 1 st Person They are prepared for a storm. Low and sturdy We are prepared: we build our houses squat, Sink walls in rock and roof them with good slate. Nothing to be lost. The wizened earth had never troubled us With hay, so as you can see, there are no stacks Or stooks that can be lost. Nor are there trees Which might prove company when it blows full Blast: you know what I mean - leaves and branches Colloquial (conversational) language Tells us the Island is barren

This section of the poem is where the storm hits the Island. Wind creates a sad song Can raise a tragic chorus in a gale So that you can listen to the thing you fear Forgetting that it pummels your house too. But there are no trees, no natural shelter. You might think that the sea is company, Oxymoron: Exploding comfortably down on the cliffs Two opposites. But no: when it begins, the flung spray hits The very windows, spits like a tame cat Military Metaphor Similie This tells us that there aren’t many people on the Island.

This part of the poem describes the attack of the storm on the Island. Turned savage. We just sit tight while wind dives And strafes invisibly. Space is a salvo. Attack We are bombarded by the empty air. Attack Paradox Strange, it is a huge nothing that we fear. Military Metaphor How is it possible to fear nothing? Paradox?