storm on the island - seamus heaney

Question 1

Give a plot summary for Storm on the Island.

Answer 1

storm on the island - seamus heaney:

• the speaker describes how their houses are well equipped to last through the storms
• the land doesn’t grow hay or trees, which is difficult in high winds, but means they have a wide landscape
• the waves are dangerous
• the air is compared to gunfire
• they fear the storm, but they actually fear “a huge nothing”

Question 2

When was Storm on the Island written? What is the relevance of this time?

Answer 2

Storm on the Island was written in 1966. This was the beginning of ‘the troubles’ in Ireland. At the time, loyalists and nationalists were attacking each other as the loyalists wanted Northern Ireland to stay in the UK, and the nationalists wanted to become separate with the rest of Ireland. The poem is a political allegory for this conflict. (Heaney grew up and lived in Ireland)

Question 3

Give seven key quotes from Storm on the Island.

Answer 3

storm on the island - seamus heaney:

• “we are prepared”
• “you know what I mean”
• “can raise a tragic chorus”
• “you might think that the sea is company, exploding comfortably”
• “spits like a tame cat”
• “we are bombarded by the empty air”
• “it is a huge nothing that we fear”

Question 4

Give five relevant points about structure or form in Storm on the Island.

Answer 4

storm on the island - seamus heaney:

• blank verse (no rhyme)
• irregular enjambment and caesura
• half rhyme at beginning and end
• present tense
• long sentences

Question 5

Give three key themes present in Storm on the Island.

Answer 5

storm on the island - seamus heaney:

• power of nature
• effects of war
• power of thoughts