Follower Flashcards
What is “Follower” about?
poet describes a memory of following his father ploughing a field, tracks a relationship over time
What is the form of the poem?
iambic pentameter, six regular quatrains, regular rhyme structure that emphasises order in the parent-child relationship
What is the structure of the poem?
cyclical structure with son following father then the other way around (strong paternal bond, roles between child and parent change over time)
quatrains (organised and neat) mirrors well ploughed fields poem references
What is the context of the poem?
Seamus Heaney was the oldest of nine children and so was under a lot of pressure to be competent and conform to the expectations of him
What does the title suggest?
extended metaphor to show admiration
Who wrote the poem?
Seamus Heaney
Finish the quote: “His shoulders _______ like ___________” LINE 2
“His shoulders globed like a full sail strung”
Analyse the quote: “His shoulders globed like a full sail strung”
-Father has the weight of holding relationship together being the older and more experienced of the two
globed- admiration, father is the world + powerful, strong figure
sail- simile + metaphor, compares father’s back to ship (nautical imagery), father in control of plough as a captain of a ship
What quotes suggest the son puts the father on a pedestal?
“an expert” - father made inferior to reader, admirable, knows everything just as children believe about parents when younger
“sod rolled over”
“head rig”
“single pluck”- competence, rural
we are viewing his father through his lens which is competence and perfection
Analyse the quote: “I stumbled” LINE 13
the son is clumsy and inexperienced and requires the fathers competence
Finish the quote: “_______ he rode me _________ LINE 15
“sometimes he rode me on his back”
Analyse the quote: “sometimes he rode me on his back”
-son is playing passive role whilst father plays active role
-takes place away from the field= paternal bond strengthen by quality time away from work
Finish the quote: “in his __________ the farm” LINE 20
“in his broad shadow round the farm”
Analyse the quote: “in his broad shadow round the farm”
-size of father contrasted with smallness of speaker
shadow- never leaves, dependent on father
What is the last line of the poem?
“it is my father who keeps stumbling behind me, and will not go away”
