Seamus Heaney - from "Wintering Out" (1972) Quiz

Answer: to see through and survive a crisis.

Seamus Heaney has always been perceived as quite a 'political' poet and it is therefore no surprise that some readers of poetry and critics alike often approach his poems with the sole intention of "discovering" some political undertone. But it has to said that each of his poems can also be enjoyed without such single-minded analysis.

Therefore while "Wintering Out" may indeed refer to the Troubles of Northern Ireland, the poems that make up this particular collection can also stand alone, to be judged on their own merit.

Answer: Edmund Spenser.

Seamus Heaney's "Bog Oak" continues themes explored in previous publications - that Ireland's bogland is museum-like in that each layer reveals something about the history of the country. In this respect, Heaney's reference to Edmund Spenser is far from complimentary. Most of us know Edmund Spenser as the acclaimed author of "The Faerie Queen", when in fact he was also a cold oppressor of Ireland.

When referring to Spenser in "Bog Oak", Heaney's words seem sarcastic. He describes Spenser's administrative ideals as "dreaming sunlight". Sunlight of course, has no substance, and the implication here is that Spenser's ideals had no substance either.

Answer: place of clear water.

"Anahorish" is the first of Seamus Heaney's place name poems, otherwise known as 'dinnshenchas' - poems in which names are an evocation of place. It is a poem that just has to be read aloud in order to be able to appreciate its brilliance.

Answer: Catholicism and Protestantism.

The poem "The Other Side" is based on Heaney's own childhood memories of his Protestant neighbour, which highlight the difference between Catholic and Protestant. This is a poem which deals with the sense of awkwardness and mistrust between religious camps, and their inability to talk about important matters. Yet I feel, whenever I read this poem, that there is also a sense of longing, a longing to bridge this particular gap - which is felt keenly on both sides.

Answer: Denmark.

The poem "The Tollund Man" refers to a preserved body lifted from the bogs of Jutland - a body believed to have been placed there as an offering to the Norse goddess of fertility of the soil.

Answer: Fishing.

The word 'limbo' can mean an intermediate inactive state, but is also the hell of unbaptised babies - especially in the Catholic faith. In the poem "Limbo", the infant is likened to fish. It is caught by "Fishermen at Ballyshannon", along "with salmon".

The rhythm and rhyme of this poem is almost comedic - almost limerick, which is at odds with its content. It takes a while to register the truth, that a baby has been caught in the nets along with the fish. The fact that this discovery could easily have been overlooked only serves to emphasis the idea that this child was unwanted.

Answer: Sound has stopped in the day

The line, "Sound has stopped in the day", actually comes from Seamus Heaney's "Wedding Day", which is also included in his collection "Wintering Out". This particular poem emphasises the uncertainty that partners feel on their wedding day. The title "Wedding Day", suggests a happy day, but in fact this poem is riddled with insecurity and fear. "Sound has stopped in the day" and "the sap of mourners rises" in the "waving guests".

This funeral image is unexpected, and is followed by further references to pain.

The groom's face depicts "wild grief" and the bride's actions are described as "demented". However, the final line can be read in many ways. On the one hand, "Let me sleep on your breast to the airport" could suggest that their fears and uncertainties have been resolved.

But another way of looking at it is suggests that they are simply ignoring the problem. The line hints at physical closeness, but the references made to "sleep" and "airport" suggest a need to escape.

Answer: Bye-Child.

"Bye-Child" is a poem that was inspired by a true story of a boy abandoned in a chicken shed by his mother. The details of this story are horrific and while Heaney's poem does not shy away from the horror of the poor boy's plight, it does in a way commemorate the child's tenacity and will to live.

Answer: California.

In "Westering", Seamus Heaney remembers his journey from Ireland to America. There is a sense of ease in Heaney's journey and the framework of the poem helps to create this sense of freedom and relaxed leisureliness. Indeed it is quite fitting that "Westering" marks the end of "Wintering Out", as Heaney has "escaped" Ireland for the moment.

He will of course come back to it again, in his next collection, "North".

Answer: Yes

Like "Anahorish", "Broagh" is also a place name poem. Like "Anahorish", "Broagh" also centers around the idea that place and name are an inherent part of each other.