Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
The Big Picture
• During this unit you will:
• Read the poem Mid-Term Break by
Seamus Heaney
• Discuss the themes and meanings of the
poem
• Understand what is meant by the terms:
euphemism, simile and metaphor.
• Write an exam style answer on the poem.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Exam Question
• Poems often deal with emotional
situations. Write about a poem with an
emotional theme. Say what the poem is
about and show how successful the author
was in describing an emotional time.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Who is Seamus Heaney?
• Seamus Heaney (born 13 April 1939) is an
Irish poet, writer and lecturer from County
Londonderry, Northern Ireland.
• Heaney was born the eldest of nine
children at the family farmhouse called
Mossbawn, near Castledawson, thirty
miles to the north-west of Belfast, in
Northern Ireland.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
What are the characteristics of
Heaney’s work?
• Heaney's work often deals with the local — that is, his
surroundings and everything inclusive of them. Inevitably
this means Ireland, and particularly Northern Ireland. Hints
of sectarian violence, which began just as his writing
career did, can be found in many of his poems, even in
works that on the surface appear to deal with something
else.
• Despite his many travels much of his work appears to be
set in rural Derry, the county of his childhood. Like the
Troubles themselves, Heaney's work is deeply associated
with the lessons of history, sometimes even prehistory.
• Many of his works concern his own family history and
focus on characters in his own family: they can be read as
elegies (funeral speech or song) for those family members.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
What is Mid-Term Break about?
• The poem is about the death of Heaney's
brother, Christophe, and how people,
including himself, reacted to this.
• The poem is written from the point of view
of a young Heaney, summoned from
school after his brother died.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Mid-Term Break
I sat all morning in the college sick bay
Counting bells knelling classes to a close.
At two o’clock our neighbours drove me home.
In the porch I met my father crying –
He had always taken funerals in his stride –
And Big Jim Evans saying it was a hard blow.
The baby cooed and laughed and rocked the pram
When I came in, and I was embarrassed
By old men standing up to shake my hand
And tell me they were “sorry for my trouble”,
Whispers informed strangers I was the eldest
Away at school, as my mother held my hand
In hers and coughed out angry tearless sighs.
At ten o’clock the ambulance arrived
With the corpse, stanched and bandaged by the nurse.
Next morning I went up to the room. Snowdrops
And candles soothed the bedside; I saw him
For the first time in six weeks. Paler now,
Wearing a poppy bruise on his left temple,
He lay in the four foot box as in his cot.
No gaudy scars, the bumper knocked him clear.
A four foot box, a foot for every year.
Seamus Heaney
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Mid-Term Break
I sat all morning in the college sick bay
Counting bells knelling classes to a close.
At two o’clock our neighbours drove me home.
In the porch I met my father crying –
He had always taken funerals in his stride –
And Big Jim Evans saying it was a hard blow.
The baby cooed and laughed and rocked the pram
When I came in, and I was embarrassed
By old men standing up to shake my hand
And tell me they were “sorry for my trouble”,
Whispers informed strangers I was the eldest
Away at school, as my mother held my hand
In hers and coughed out angry tearless sighs.
At ten o’clock the ambulance arrived
With the corpse, stanched and bandaged by the nurse.
Next morning I went up to the room. Snowdrops
And candles soothed the bedside; I saw him
For the first time in six weeks. Paler now,
Wearing a poppy bruise on his left temple,
He lay in the four foot box as in his cot.
No gaudy scars, the bumper knocked him clear.
A four foot box, a foot for every year.
Seamus Heaney
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Mid-Term Break
Sense of isolation / immediate suggestion of
sickness and death.
I sat all morning in the college sick bay
Onomatopoeia – idea of funeral bells.
Counting bells knelling classes to a close.
Long, drawn out event, lots of time to think.
At two o’clock our neighbours drove me home.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Mid-Term Break
Sense that the young poet is shocked to see his
father display grief openly instead of hiding his
feelings.
In the porch I met my father crying –
Death had been experienced before, although not in this way.
He had always taken funerals in his stride –
And Big Jim Evans saying it was a hard blow.
Cruel (though not done out of spite) pun on
the boy being knocked down by a car. Also
an example of a euphemism and colloquial
language.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Mid-Term Break
Baby is an innocent, unaware of the events that are taking place.
The baby cooed and laughed and rocked the pram
When I came in, and I was embarrassed
Although Heaney has taken on the role of an adult, he still has the feelings of a child.
By old men standing up to shake my hand
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Mid-Term Break
Euphemism
And tell me they were “sorry for my trouble”,
Sense of secrecy
Whispers informed strangers I was the eldest
Heaney attended a boarding school so had been absent for the actual event – guilt?
Away at school, as my mother held my hand
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Mid-Term Break
Enjambment / Suggestion that she has been crying for a while
In hers and coughed out angry tearless sighs.
Idea of a long day / Ambulances usually help
At ten o’clock the ambulance arrived
With the corpse, stanched and bandaged by the
nurse.
Removes the sense of humanity from the
body – no longer his brother / Idea that they
tried to save him / ‘stanch’ to stop blood (or
tears)
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Mid-Term Break
Next morning I went up to the room. Snowdrops
Adds a calm peaceful tone. White/ innoce
And candles soothed the bedside; I saw him
No longer a bedroom, now a place of mourning. Calm and relaxing compared to other room.
For the first time in six weeks. Paler now,
Sense of guilt / Realisation that things happen while you are
away / Heaney has a memory of his brother prior to this.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Mid-Term Break
Seems unreal, as if it could be removed
Poppy signifies Remembrance.
Wearing a poppy bruise on his left temple,
He lay in the four foot box as in his cot.
Euphemism, does not mention a coffin
Simile - cot, for a child, is a place of safety.
No gaudy scars, the bumper knocked him clear.
He looks perfect / No sign of violence
Sudden death.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Mid-Term Break
A four foot box, a foot for every year.
•Signifies the brevity (shortness) of the child’s life.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Stanza
Analysis
I sat all morning in the college sick bay
Counting bells knelling classes to a close.
At two o’clock our neighbours drove me home.
•Sense of isolation / immediate suggestion of sickness and death.
•Onomatopoeia – idea of funeral bells.
•Long, drawn out event, lots of time to think.
In the porch I met my father crying –
He had always taken funerals in his stride –
And Big Jim Evans saying it was a hard blow.
•Sense that the father is outwith the grief of the house, hiding his feelings.
•Death had been experienced before, although not in this way.
•Cruel (though not done out of spite) pun.
The baby cooed and laughed and rocked the pram
When I came in, and I was embarrassed
By old men standing up to shake my hand
•Baby is an innocent, unaware of the events that are taking place.
•Although Heaney has taken on the role of an adult, he still has the feelings of
a child.
And tell me they were “sorry for my trouble”,
Whispers informed strangers I was the eldest
Away at school, as my mother held my hand
•Euphemism
•Sense of secrecy
•Heaney attended a boarding school so had been absent for the actual event –
guilt?
In hers and coughed out angry tearless sighs.
At ten o’clock the ambulance arrived
With the corpse, stanched and bandaged by the nurse.
•Enjambment / Suggestion that she has been crying for a while
•Idea of a long day / Ambulances usually help
•Removes the sense of humanity from the body – no longer his brother / Idea
that they tried to save him / ‘stanch’ to stop blood (or tears)
Next morning I went up to the room. Snowdrops
And candles soothed the bedside; I saw him
For the first time in six weeks. Paler now,
•No longer a bedroom, now a place of mourning.
•Colour White has associations with innocence, purity, heaven.
•Sense of guilt / Realisation that things happen while you are away / Heaney
has a memory of his brother prior to this.
Wearing a poppy bruise on his left temple,
He lay in the four foot box as in his cot.
No gaudy scars, the bumper knocked him clear.
•Seems unreal, as if it could be removed / Poppy signifies Remembrance.
•Euphemism, does not mention a coffin / Simile - cot, for a child, is a place of
safety.
•He looks perfect / No sign of violence / Sudden death.
A four foot box, a foot for every year.
•Signifies the brevity of the child’s life.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
How does the young Heaney feel?
•
•
•
•
•
•
Guilty:
“I saw him / For the first time in six weeks. Paler now,”
“Whispers informed strangers I was the eldest / Away at
school,”
Isolated:
“I sat all morning in the college sick bay”
“At two o’clock our neighbours drove me home.”
Embarrassed: “I was embarrassed / By old men standing up to shake my
hand”
In denial:
“Wearing a poppy bruise”
“with the corpse”
Confused:
“In the porch I met my father crying –”
Comforted:
“Snowdrops / And candles soothed the bedside;”
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Poetic Techniques
•
Enjambment: the running on of the thought from one line, couplet, or
stanza to the next without a pause (no full stop/comma etc.)
•
Purpose of enjambment: Enjambment is the continuation of a
sentence or clause over a line-break.
• If a poet allows all the sentences of a poem to end in the same place
as regular line-breaks, a kind of deadening can happen in the ear,
and in the brain too, as all the thoughts can end up being the same
length.
• Enjambment is one way of creating interest through the unusual
sound of a sentence running on when you expect it to pause.
This suggests how Heaney was feeling at the time (i.e. confused,
unsure etc.)
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Euphemism
• The act or an example of substituting a
mild, indirect, or vague term for one
considered harsh, blunt, or offensive
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Term
Definition
Alliteration
Repetition of sounds at the
beginning of words.
Assonance
Repetition of the same vowel
sound
Couplet
Two lines of poetry paired
together by rhyme
Metaphor
Comparing two things, as if
one actually is the other
Onomatopoeia
When the sound of a word
echoes or suggests its
meaning
Pathos
The writer provokes feelings
of sadness, pity or sympathy
in the reader
Simile
Comparing two things, using
‘like’ or ‘as’.
Symbolism
Use of one thing to represent
another
Example
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Effect
Exam Question
• Poems often deal with emotional
situations. Write about a poem with an
emotional theme. Say what the poem is
about and show how successful the author
was in describing an emotional time.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
What are you being asked to do?
• Poems often deal with emotional
situations. Write about a poem with an
emotional theme. Say what the poem is
about and show how successful the author
was in describing an emotional time.
Identify what the theme is.
What techniques does the poet use?
Why is this theme emotional?
Is the poem explicitly emotional?
Why is this particularly
emotional?
How has the poet’s word choice etc.
conveyed the emotion of the event?
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Introduction
•
•
•
•
•
•
Your introduction must include:
Title
Author
Genre
Link to Question
Short Summary
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Sample Introduction
• A poem that deals with emotional themes is ‘MidTerm Break’ written by Irish poet, Seamus
Heaney. The poem describes the aftermath of the
death of Heaney's infant brother (Christopher)
and how people (including himself) reacted to
this. The poem is written from the point of view of
a young Heaney, summoned from school after
his brother died. The poem successfully conveys
Heaney’s sense of grief through various poetic
techniques such as metaphor, simile and
alliteration.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Paragraph Planning
• Every internal paragraph (not introduction
and conclusion) must contain:
• Point
• Context
• Quotation
• Evaluation
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
How does Heaney convey the grief
felt?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
His own sense of isolation
The reactions of his parents
His feelings of embarrassment
The description of the body
His time spent with the body
His description of the coffin
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Writing Topic Sentences (Point)
• The first part of your paragraph should be
your topic sentence or point.
• This should tell the reader exactly what this
paragraph will be about.
• It should be one short, concise sentence.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Writing Topic Sentences (Point)
•
•
Every paragraph MUST begin with a topic sentence.
A topic sentence advises the marker of which topic will be covered in
the paragraph.
• A topic sentence has to do two jobs:
1. it must refer to the question
2. it must state what topic is being covered in the paragraph.
•
•
•
Look again at your essay question.
What exactly are you being asked to do?
What information must you include in each topic sentence?
•
Poems often deal with emotional situations. Write about a poem with
an emotional theme. Say what the poem is about and show how
successful the author was in describing an emotional time.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Writing Topic Sentences (Point)
•
1.
2.
•
His own sense of isolation
it must refer to the question
it must state what topic is being covered in the paragraph.
Poems often deal with emotional situations. Write about a poem
with an emotional theme. Say what the poem is about and show
how successful the author was in describing an emotional time.
Sample Topic Sentences:
•
Heaney’s shows his isolation throughout the poem by conveying
his grief.
•
Heaney’s sense of isolation highlights to the reader how grief has
affected the young boy.
•
The poet’s isolation throughout the poem suggests that death has
forced Heaney to become separated from his family.
•
Heaney’s description of his isolation suggests to the reader that
grief is a personal emotion.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Context
• The paragraph should contain information
about what is happening in the poem when
these events occur.
• This is the context.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Quotation
• Each paragraph must contain a quotation.
• A quotation must be written in your essay
exactly as it is written in the text (line by
line).
• A quotation must always be put inside
quotation marks.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Evaluation
• After you have written your quotation you must explain
how the quotation helps you to answer the question.
• Does the poet use any poetic techniques?
• Do you think he is effective is getting his point across?
• How does this analysis help you to answer the question?
• This is the evaluation of the quotation.
Your analysis must be detailed and specific.
Do not write ‘This shows…’.
Identify the specific word(s) and the technique(s) utilised
by the poet.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Conclusion
•
•
•
•
•
•
Your introduction must include:
Title
Author
Genre
Link to Question
Your personal opinion on the poem.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney