Poetry Comparison of Out, Out- by Robert Frost and Mid-Term Break by Seamus Heaney

The both oems are set at the homes of the boys who have passed away. Out, Out- is set in America in the middle of nowhere in the 1920’s. Mid-Term Break seems to be set in a small town as there is a large number of people at the funeral who don’t know the eldest brother. This gives the impression that they live someweherre that is larger than a village as everyone knows each other in a village. Mid-Term Break is set in the 1950’s.

Out, Out- is set only at one scene, the scene where the boy cuts off his hand unlike Mid-Term Break which is set at three different places, the college sick bay, at home with his gfamily and strangers and in the room where the corpse lay.

The condition of the narrators in the two poems differ. Out, Out- is more panicky and the poem is set at the scene of where the boy dies.  Therefore the poet wrote about the scene and the happenings that took place at the scene when the boys hand was cut by he saw. Whereas Mid-Term Break is set at the scene of the dead boy’s home after the tragic event tool place.  Therefore, it is more sad, and mellow as funerals are sup;posed to be peaceful.  As Mid-Term Break is about Seamus Heaney’s younger brother, he is writing about how he feels and not how he thinks he’d feel it that event occurred.  Heaney knows how it feels and knows how people react in different, and sometimes strange ways.

In Out, Out-,Robert Frost is third person narrative and is talking about the accident as if he was an onlooker to the event.  Whereas Seamus Heaney is first person narrative and is talking about the happenings after the tragic event as they took place.

Robert Frosts poem, ‘Out,Out-’ is very effective for various reasons.  The title is from one of William Shakespeares plays, MacBeth, when MacBeth learns about his wife’s death, he is talking aobut how he feels about the tragedy he uses the words ‘Out, Out-’ which is the title of the poem.  Through