Follower - Quotes Flashcards
(3 cards)
“tripping, yapping and falling”
1 - onomatopoeic sound “yap” allows imagery of him being clumsy more vivid - formative memories of the speaker of his clumsiness
2 - compared to the father whos shoulders once “globed like a full sail strung” - he idolises his father greatly, even calling him an “expert”
3 - the speaker “stumbles” in his wake, presents the father as an immense figure, extreme admiration
“he rode me on his back”
1 -he, me, his syndactically close together, showcases the immense closeness he feels with his father
2 - he is literally being carried in his father’s wake - symbolic of the physical and emotional support a child needs, he is “carried” on his back and relies on his father in every way
3 - it humanises the father figure - one of deep affection, not just a skilled worker but a loving father, a perfect paternal figure and Heaney is retrospectively idolising this figure
“but today, it is my father who keeps stumbling behind me”
1 - flipping of roles acts as a reminder of the loss of agency that comes with old age - “stumbling” suggests frailty and loss of control
reminds us of the brutality of growing up
2 - perhaps it is not literal but a symbolic representation of the father, he has perhaps died and the memory now persists in his head, and follows him wherever he goes
3 - idea of “keeps” suggests it is not just a passing moment, yet an ongoing reaity - implies a burden the speaker now carries - guilt or regret - it shows a shift in perspective, the speaker who once struggled to follow may struggle to lead or support his follower.
