1. Digging
by Seamus Heaney
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Link to Bitesize video on slide 4

2. The poem Themes/ideas Man’s relationship with nature
Parent/Child relationship
Nature
Key terms:
Metaphor
Symbolism
Onomatopoeia
Enjambment
Alliteration
Sibilance
Repetition
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3. Between my finger and my thumb The squat pen rests; as snug as a gun. Under my window a clean rasping sound When the spade sinks into gravelly ground: My father, digging. I look down Till his straining rump among the flowerbeds Bends low, comes up twenty years away Stooping in rhythm through potato drills Where he was digging. The coarse boot nestled on the lug, the shaft Against the inside knee was levered firmly. He rooted out tall tops, buried the bright edge deep To scatter new potatoes that we picked Loving their cool hardness in our hands. By God, the old man could handle a spade, Just like his old man. My grandfather could cut more turf in a day Than any other man on Toner's bog. Once I carried him milk in a bottle Corked sloppily with paper. He straightened up To drink it, then fell to right away
Nicking and slicing neatly, heaving sods Over his shoulder, digging down and down For the good turf. Digging. The cold smell of potato mold, the squelch and slap Of soggy peat, the curt cuts of an edge Through living roots awaken in my head. But I've no spade to follow men like them. Between my finger and my thumb The squat pen rests. I'll dig with it.
lug (line 10)
the flattened top edge of the spade blade, against which the digger pushes with his foot 5
potato drills (line 8)
parallel ridges in the earth for growing potatoes 10 15
Nine stanzas of varying length; this could reflect the unpredictable nature of memories as the come back to the poet
Heaney sees his father, an old man, digging the flowerbeds. He remembers how his younger, stronger father used to dig in the potato fields when Heaney was a child - and how his grandfather, before that, was an expert turf digger. 20 25 30
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4. Digging Physical digging of the father and grandfather
Heaney’s ‘digging’ into the past (memories)
There is more than one possible meaning to this title. What are they?
Digging
Between my finger and my thumb The squat pen rests; as snug as a gun. Under my window a clean rasping sound When the spade sinks into gravelly ground: My father, digging. I look down Till his straining rump among the flowerbeds Bends low, comes up twenty years away Stooping in rhythm through potato drills Where he was digging. The coarse boot nestled on the lug, the shaft Against the inside knee was levered firmly. He rooted out tall tops, buried the bright edge deep To scatter new potatoes that we picked Loving their cool hardness in our hands.
Heaney mixes tenses to emphasise the act of remembering
Present tense, immediacy 5
Enjambment between stanza 1 and 2 shows his mind ‘running’ into the memory
This stanza marks the start of his reminiscence and he describes it visually, mixing tenses 10
Past tense until the last two stanzas as Heaney ‘digs’ back into the memory
Sibilant ‘s’ sounds suggest the slicing of the spade whilst the alliterative ‘g’s suggest the resistance of the ground
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5. Heaney describes his holding of the pen in similar detail to his father holding the shovel. Why?
Digging
Fits in his hand and is powerful, much like the spade of his father’s
Between my finger and my thumb The squat pen rests; as snug as a gun. Under my window a clean rasping sound When the spade sinks into gravelly ground: My father, digging. I look down Till his straining rump among the flowerbeds Bends low, comes up twenty years away Stooping in rhythm through potato drills Where he was digging. The coarse boot nestled on the lug, the shaft Against the inside knee was levered firmly. He rooted out tall tops, buried the bright edge deep To scatter new potatoes that we picked Loving their cool hardness in our hands.
The poet looks down on his father; this contrasts with the later image of him ‘looking up’ to him as a child. What does this suggest about heir relationship
This attention to his father allows him to describe the process in detail
Emphasise his father’s skill and connection with the land and the work
Heaney remembers helping his father when he dug potatoes. It evokes an image of a young Heaney closely watching his father at work. Possibly with the childlike admiration that seems to be in this poem
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6. Heaney metaphorically digs further into the past
Simple explanation of how he admires his father. Could it be tinged with regret that his father is no longer the powerful man he was?
The repeated phrase could give a sense of the loving bond shared across the generations
Heaney metaphorically digs further into the past
By God, the old man could handle a spade, Just like his old man. My grandfather could cut more turf in a day Than any other man on Toner's bog. Once I carried him milk in a bottle Corked sloppily with paper. He straightened up To drink it, then fell to right away
Nicking and slicing neatly, heaving sods Over his shoulder, digging down and down For the good turf. Digging. 15 20
Heaney’s pride extends to his grandfather too. He was strong and skilled and hard-working and once again, Heaney helped him
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7. Onomatopoeia forces the reader to share in the vividity of the memory
As do the other appeals to the senses throughout the poem
Alliterative ‘c’ sounds emphasise the neatness of the cuts his grandfather made
The cold smell of potato mold, the squelch and slap Of soggy peat, the curt cuts of an edge Through living roots awaken in my head. But I've no spade to follow men like them. Between my finger and my thumb The squat pen rests. I'll dig with it. 25
What are the meanings of ‘living roots’ and how can they awaken in Heaney’s head? 30
Does he regret not having the spade?
Why does he have ‘no spade’?
Change of culture meaning he’s not required to dig?
Does he feel as if his father and grandfather would be disappointed in him?
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8. Repetition of the opening stanza without the gun simile
What is the significance of this decision?
Return to the present tense and then into the future at the end. Emphasising Heaney’s determination
The cold smell of potato mold, the squelch and slap Of soggy peat, the curt cuts of an edge Through living roots awaken in my head. But I've no spade to follow men like them. Between my finger and my thumb The squat pen rests. I'll dig with it. 25 30
Heaney’s pen now becomes a spade with which he will explore his past in the same way as he has in this poem
This is a return to his roots, in a sense
What is the effect of the repetition of ‘digging’ and ‘dig’ throughout the poem?
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9. Comparisons Song of the Old Mother
Both poems deal with the relationship between generations, and both describe hard, physical work
But the Old Mother is bitter about the drudgery which she must do; while Heaney's poem celebrates the work as creative.
Catrin
Both poems are intensely personal
Both poems deal with the bonds between the generations - in Clarke's poem a mother addresses her child, while in Heaney's a son talks about his father and grandfather.
What other comparisons are there?
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10. Review
How does the poem explore ideas of heritage and family tradition?
What does the poem suggest about physical labour?
Explain in your own words the image in the last line of the poem.
What is Heaney’s relationship with nature?
Should this poem be read with pride, regret or sorrow? Find quotations to prove all three possibilities.
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