Comparative Essay on Mid Term Break and Death of a ...

Look at the poem Middle Term Burglary which Heaney writes regarding life and loss. Select one other composition written by Heaney which as well deals with these themes. Evaluate how the two poems handle Heaney’s thoughts and feelings.

In the poem “Mid Term Break” Heaney deals with his thoughts and feelings about life and loss. These ideas are also addressed in “Death of a Naturalist”. The poet uses a range of poetic processes to convey the demise of his childhood and the dysfunction of normal order.

The portrayal of death in the poems connote the poet’s feeling that life is in vain; these designs combine to provide Heaney’s emotions on life and reduction. Primarily, Heaney portrays the demise of his childhood in “Mid Term Break”, clearly showing his dejected, sullen and resigned thoughts towards existence in the event of damage. The image of the time and fatality in stanza one, “I sat almost all morning…counting bells knelling…at two o’clock” evidently show his sense of logical memory during a particularly morbid amount of time in his life.

The rapport of the early morning and the representational death bells represent the premature end to his brother’s existence and the damage of his own child years. This shows sullen resignation towards the function of loss in his life. This years as a child demise is also presented in DOAN. However , Heaney presents this in a more dramatic manner. Stanza you are longer compared to the second stanza, presenting how a poet revelled in his times of innocence.

Additionally, it contains a tone of mystery and natural wealth, “bubbles gargled delicately, bluebottles/wove a strong gauze of sound…” through the use of synesthetic verbs to personify mother nature, Heaney shows his sentimental feelings toward this period of childhood chasteness. This is emphasised through enjambment, which makes a sense of freedom. The demise of this is seen through the tonal switch, “then one hot day” in stanza two, shifting the reader into the harshness of his adult life.

The distinction in terminology is also proof of this, it becoming ridicule and scared, “gross bellied… obscene threats…farting heads…mud grenades. ” Associations of war, vengeance and threat are apparent, depicting his childhood demise through his unfavorable perceptions of nature. Therefore, it is crystal clear from the two pieces that Heaney has varied thoughts about life and loss. In MTB you learns of his misunderstandings and resignation as a result of his experience of death.

However , DOAN presents a metaphorical depiction of how the child years is shed as a result of the harsh and oppressive adult community.