death of a naturalist

Question 1

overview

Answer 1

Death of a naturalist is based on Seamus Heaney’s own experience with nature from when he was living in the Irish countryside. In the beginning, he likes all of nature and even the parts others would find disgusting. The use of blank verse in the poem makes it sound like someone is talking to the reader and retelling the story which makes it seem more personal. By the end of the poem, his opinion has changed and he is scared of frogs. His horror towards the end shows how he has lost his childlike innocence. This could link to the loss of the author’s brother which would’ve caused a change in him too.

Question 2

beginning

Answer 2

• He starts by describing how the ‘flax-dam festered.’ The word ‘festered’ suggests how the flax-dam is growing and rotting and is therefore beginning to smell. However, the casual and light-hearted tone the poet uses suggests how he loves it despite the awful smell.
• He then describes how ‘bubbles gargled delicately.’ The author uses descriptive vocabulary to create an impression of how the bubbles sounded and uses an oxymoron to contrast the harsh ‘gargling’ to the ‘delicate’ sound.

Question 3

middle

Answer 3

• He continues to describe his love of nature by saying that the ‘best of all was the warm thick slobber of frogspawn.’ The poet is using descriptive language to create the impression of how slimy and disgusting the frogspawn is. However, the phrase ‘best of all’ suggests how he loves it more than anything else.

Question 4

end

Answer 4

• By the final stanza, his view has changed as he describes how in the summer ‘angry frogs invaded.’ The frogs are personified to be ‘angry’ which makes them seem more human and more of a threat to the boy which shows his fear. The word ‘invaded’ also suggests how the boy thinks the frogs are unwanted and that they don’t belong. It could also link to war and how other countries would invade to take control which emphasises the boys fear.
• He finally describes the frogs as ‘gross-bellied’ which suggests a complete change from before. He is no longer fascinated by the frogs and is disgusted by them.

Question 5

form & structure

Answer 5

• The first stanza has an innocent and adventurous tone which could suggest his love for nature but the second stanza has a more disgusted tone which emphasises the change in the boy.
• The first stanza uses lots of enjambment and all his words are spilling onto other lines which suggests how he can’t control his excitement so all his words are coming out in a rush. This shows how he wants to share all his knowledge about nature with everyone.