Storm On The Island

Question 1

Who wrote Storm on the Island

Answer 1

Seamus Heaney

Question 2

Seamus Heaney - context

Answer 2

Born in Northern Island
Dad was a farmer
Writes about the vulnerability in the face of nature

Question 3

Storm on the Island Context

Answer 3

At face value the poem seems to be about a storm.

It could also have a double meaning, talking about ‘the troubles’ which was a time of conflict throughout Ireland

Question 4

Storm on the Island - Quotes

Answer 4

‘We build our houses squat’ → protective / sturdy strong (short and wide)

‘Nor are there trees which might prove company’ - no protection from nature (vulnerable)

‘No trees no natural shelter’ - isolated / exposed / vulnerable

‘Exploding comfortably’ - destructive power → requires little effort (oxymoron)

(Refering to spray from the ocean) ‘Spits like a tame cat turned savage’ - nature is animalistic / feral + ruthless, wild, unpredictable

‘Bombarded by the empty air’ → links to violence and the troubles (militaristic)

‘Huge nothing that we fear’ - oxymoron (wind carries immense power, yet it is just simple air)(invisible)

Question 5

Storm on the Island - structure

Answer 5

Caesura is used throughout the poem to draw out the effects of the storm
(Turned savage. We just sit tight while the wind dives)

It is one stanza which emphasises the isolation

Question 6

Tone in Storm on the Island

Answer 6

Fear
Over-confidence

Question 7

Storm on the Island summary

Answer 7

Describes the experience of being on a cliff top cottage during a storm.
The people in the cottage are vulnerable and isolated.
As the storm arrived their confidence disappeared

Poem ends with the storm hitting the island