Follower
Discuss the poet’s relationship with his family presented here
Follower is one of the poems by Seamus Heaney from the collection Death of a Naturalist 1966. It depicts a daily life of the poet’s father and himself as a child. The text is spoken through the first person narrative of a child’s perspective and the use of diction and metaphors further conveys the poet’s relationship with his family.
The first person narrative is useful in displaying the poet’s relationship with his family. It allows us to enter the character’s innermost thoughts and view the world through their eyes. As a reader, it is possible to see the father and son relationship between the poet and his father. The technique used shows the poet’s admiration and idolisation for his dad “I wanted to grow up and plough”. The child of the poem wants to follow in his father’s footsteps, reflecting on how Seamus Heaney as a child desired to follow Irish tradition. He wishes to be skilled so that he can become “an expert”, to plough as a farmer. He doesn’t want to watch him be a farmer, instead become one alongside him.
The poet also uses adjectives to describe how the poet feels for his father. Heaney looks up to his father for a physical sense “broad shadow” he is strong and powerful. He appears to be capable of overpowering him as he casts a shadow over him. Furthermore, “His shoulders globed like a full sail strung”, the connection made with globe and world emphasizes his father’s place in his life. It suggests the father’s great strength and what he means to Heaney by giving the impression that he is almost like the whole world to him. Not only that, it also metaphorically refers to the strength of love that the father has for the poet. His tender love and care for him means that he is able to tolerant him even if he is an annoyance. “I was a nuisance, tripping, falling, yapping always”. It brings across the message that the relationship between father and son is powerful...