Storm On The Island- Seamus Heaney

Question 1

What line gives the reader a sense of community?

Answer 1

“ we are prepared. We build our houses squat”

Question 2

What is the poem about?

Answer 2

A poem about a community of of islanders who are preparing for a storm
> investigates nature vs man
> centres on experience of the storm and how it effects the people on the island as they wait for it to pass.

Question 3

Which line has connotations of war?

Answer 3

“ we just sit tight while wind dives And strafes invisibly”
> allusion to Wilfred owen- military connotation
Strafe- attack repeatedly with bombs in a low-flying aircraft
> Violent verb
> invisibly- makes the storm seem even more terrifying as they can’t predict it.

Question 4

Which line has the reader thinking about what the poem or the people are defending?

Answer 4

“ Strange, it is a huge nothing that we fear”
> metaphor?- there may not actually be a storm?
> potential nihilistic message, extreme atheism, what is it we fear most?

Question 5

What line shows Seamus Heaneys respect for the world and nature?

Answer 5

“ this wizened earth has never troubled us”
> personification- the lane is much more wise and knowledgeable than humans
wizened= old and wrinkled with age

Question 6

Which line shows that nature and man can work together at time?

Answer 6

“Nor are there trees Which might prove company”
> personification of trees being comforting to the people shows that nature is somewhat a humans friend when we treat it well
> absence of the trees showcases vulnerability.

Question 7

Which line shows that the storm is extremely powerful and connotes war?

Answer 7

“When it blows full Blast”
> use of capitalised ‘Blast’ shows the increasing aggression of the storm and the sheer power it has over man

Question 8

What shifts the fact that nature may not be as helpful?

Answer 8

“You might think that the sea is company, exploding comfortably on the cliffs”
> oxymoron of “exploding comfortably” suggests that the ocean is aware of the power it possesses and does things with ease.
> the sea is effortlessly powerful and intimidating to man
> exploding- allusion to conflict, sea could metaphorically represent the violence of the troubles in Ireland