Heaney injects a note of tranquillity to the poem when he describes the ‘snowdrops’ and ‘candles’. This description adds a sense of peace and goes someway to softening the tragedy.
The body of his brother does not seem to have been damaged apart from the poppy bruise, but this is not really seen as part of the boy because he is ‘wearing’ it.
The poet’s feelings are understated in this poem until the final devastating line, which leaves us in no doubt about the bitterness felt by Seamus Heaney.
‘A four foot box, a box for every year.’
This poem has a clear structure with three line stanzas. The many run-on lines and some colloquial language give a conversational tone to the poem which enables the poet to present an unemotional, terse description of the event. Mid-Term Break is a very straight forward but prosaic poem and Heaney describes only what he sees.
The second poem I am going to study is a poem by John Donne called Death Be Not Proud.
John Donne was born a Catholic in England then became an Anglican. He went on to write many poems.
Unlike Heaney’s poem this is written in archaic language which was the language of the time. This poem is about Donne undermining death’s power. Donne personifies death to make death appear as a person to be ridiculed.
In the second line of the poem he denies the power of death, death is not all-powerful, since it is part of God’s creation. Furthermore death is not an end to life. Rather, it is a middle stage to cross before being reunited with God.
‘Soonest our best men with thee do go’ is used by the poet to remind us that death is an occurrence each of us will endure. The fact that even ‘our best men’ will embark on death’s journey is targeted at those who fear death as the final chapter.
The poet’s next two lines wound death’s pride and diminish its power since Donne argues death cannot act alone. An accomplice is needed to complete its deeds. A rather comprehensive list of partners is presented: ‘fate, chance, kings and desperate men’
Deaths might must bow down to mere chance at times, and humans such as kings and beggars can obligate death to act. Thus, death is nothing special, if it can be ordered by men of such different walks of life.
Donne is convinced that both death and sleep are the same type of action, and as a result, he makes no distinction between them.
The poem ends by remarking that after the resting period that death constitutes, humans will enter the afterlife, a period in which death will cease to exist.
The final line of the poem is a paradox, as Donne concludes: ‘…and death shall be no more, Death thou shalt die.’
When I first read both poems I was drawn immediately towards Mid-Term Bread only because of the simplicity of the language used. However, after carefully studying both poems my preference now lies with Death Be Not Proud. It is an interesting poem that expresses the act of dying as something natural and pleasant; abandoning the reputation it has for being frightening or powerful. It expresses that death is not the end of life, but only the beginning.
The two poems I am going to compare are Mid-Term Break by Seamus Heaney and Death Be Not Proud by John Donne.
Seamus Heaney was born in County Derry. He attended St. Columb’s College in Derry where he was a border. Heaney went on to win the Nobel Prize for Literature.
John Donne was born a Catholic in England then became an Anglican. He went on to write many poems.
The title of Mid-Term Break is somewhat ambiguous as it would suggest a holiday of some sort, whereas the poem is actually about the death of Heaney’s young brother who was killed in a tragic accident.
The thoughts of death are brought to the fore almost immediately as the poem begins with a funeral note in line two,
‘…counting bells knelling classes to a close.’
The word ‘knelling’ reminds the poet of the church bells tolling for a funeral.
Heaney recalls the embarrassment he felt when the adults sympathised with him and paid him deference saying ‘they were sorry for my trouble.’ This seemed to perplex him as it was a reversal of roles.
Heaney’s reference to his brother as a ‘corpse’ seems to suggest that the poet is emotionally detached. It is only in the final, devastating line, that we are left in no doubt of the bitterness felt by Heaney.
‘A four foot box, a box for every year.’
In Death Be Not Proud John Donne personifies death to make death appear as a person to be ridiculed.
In the second line of the poem he denies the power of death, death is not all-powerful, since it is a part of God’s creation. Furthermore death is not an end to life. Rather, it is a middle stage to cross before being reunited with God.
Donne is convinced that both death and sleep are the same type of action, and as a result, he makes no distinction between them.
The poem ends by remarking that after the resting period that death constitutes, humans will enter the afterlife, a period in which death will cease to exist:
‘One short sleepe past, wee wake eternally,’
Although both poems are written on the same theme there is little else that links them. There is a stark contrast between the languages used by each poet. Heaney uses a simplistic modern language, while Donne’s poem is written in archaic language.
The issue of death is approached differently also. Heaney deals with the emotions felt when a death occurs. He shows how it effects those left behind and the way a community comes together to give support and comfort.
Donne, on the other hand, deals with the mystery and fear that sounds death. Although we will all have to die eventually it is still something that scares us but Donne tries to alleviate those fears by telling us that death is just another part of life that will lead us to eternity.
Heaney seemed to be emotionally detached throughout his poem until the final line whereas Donne was very passionate about his feeling from the start.
When I first read both poems I was drawn instantly towards Mid-Term Break only because of the simplicity of the language. However, after carefully studying both poems my preference now lies with Death Be Not Proud. It is an interesting poem that expresses the act of dying as something natural and pleasant; abandoning the reputation it has for being frightening or powerful. It expresses that death is not the end of life, but only the beginning.
