2026/05/21
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
The Big Picture
• Read through the poem and ask yourself:
• What does it make me think about?
• How does it make me feel?
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
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2026/05/21
Who is Seamus Heaney?
• Seamus Heaney (born 13 April 1939) is
an Irish poet, writer and lecturer from
County Londonderry, Northern Ireland.
• He currently lives in Dublin.
• Heaney was born the eldest of nine
children at the family farmhouse called
Mossbawn, near Castledawson, thirty
miles to the north-west of Belfast, in
Northern Ireland.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
What are the characteristics of
Heaney’s work?
• Heaney's work often deals with the local — that is, his
surroundings and everything inclusive of them. Hints of
sectarian violence in Ireland, which began just as his
writing career did, can be found in many of his poems,
even in works that on the surface appear to deal with
something else.
• Despite his many travels much of his work appears to be
set in rural Londonderry, the county of his childhood.
Heaney's work is deeply associated with the lessons of
history, sometimes even prehistory.
• Many of his works concern his own family history and
focus on characters in his own family: they can be read
as elegies (funeral speech or song) for those family
members.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
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2026/05/21
What is Mid-Term Break about?
• The poem is about the death of Heaney's
infant brother (Christopher) and how
people (including himself) reacted to this.
• The poem is written from the point of view
of a young Heaney, summoned from
school after his brother died.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Mid-Term Break
I sat all morning in the college sick bay
Counting bells knelling classes to a close.
At two o’clock our neighbours drove me home.
In the porch I met my father crying –
He had always taken funerals in his stride –
And Big Jim Evans saying it was a hard blow.
The baby cooed and laughed and rocked the pram
When I came in, and I was embarrassed
By old men standing up to shake my hand
And tell me they were “sorry for my trouble”,
Whispers informed strangers I was the eldest
Away at school, as my mother held my hand
In hers and coughed out angry tearless sighs.
At ten o’clock the ambulance arrived
With the corpse, stanched and bandaged by the nurse.
Next morning I went up to the room. Snowdrops
And candles soothed the bedside; I saw him
For the first time in six weeks. Paler now,
Wearing a poppy bruise on his left temple,
He lay in the four foot box as in his cot.
No gaudy scars, the bumper knocked him clear.
A four foot box, a foot for every year.
Seamus Heaney Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
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2026/05/21
Mid-Term Break
I sat all morning in the college sick bay
Counting bells knelling classes to a close.
At two o’clock our neighbours drove me home.
In the porch I met my father crying –
He had always taken funerals in his stride –
And Big Jim Evans saying it was a hard blow.
The baby cooed and laughed and rocked the pram
When I came in, and I was embarrassed
By old men standing up to shake my hand
And tell me they were “sorry for my trouble”,
Whispers informed strangers I was the eldest
Away at school, as my mother held my hand
In hers and coughed out angry tearless sighs.
At ten o’clock the ambulance arrived
With the corpse, stanched and bandaged by the nurse.
Next morning I went up to the room. Snowdrops
And candles soothed the bedside; I saw him
For the first time in six weeks. Paler now,
Wearing a poppy bruise on his left temple,
He lay in the four foot box as in his cot.
No gaudy scars, the bumper knocked him clear.
A four foot box, a foot for every year.
Seamus Heaney Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Title suggest a
happy weekend
Mid-Term Break away from school
but this time
around, it is a
Sense of isolation / immediate suggestion disruptive and
of sickness and death. tragic trip home.
I sat all morning in the college sick bay
Onomatopoeia – idea of funeral bells.
Counting bells knelling classes to a close.
Long, drawn out event, lots of time to think.
At two o’clock our neighbours drove me home.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
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2026/05/21
Sense that the father is out of
the grief of the house, hiding his feelings.
In the porch I met my father crying –
Death had been experienced before, although not in this way.
He had always taken funerals in his stride –
And Big Jim Evans saying it was a hard blow.
Cruel (though not done out of spite) pun.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
Baby is an innocent, unaware of the events that are taking place.
The baby cooed and laughed and rocked the pram
When I came in, and I was embarrassed
Although Heaney has taken on the role of an adult, he still has the feelings of a child.
By old men standing up to shake my hand
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By Seamus Heaney
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Euphemism
And tell me they were “sorry for my trouble”,
Sense of secrecy
Whispers informed strangers I was the eldest
Heaney attended a boarding school so had been absent for the actual event – guilt?
Away at school, as my mother held my hand
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By Seamus Heaney
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Enjambment / Suggestion that she has been crying for a while
In hers and coughed out angry tearless sighs.
Idea of a long day / Ambulances usually help
At ten o’clock the ambulance arrived
With the corpse, stanched and bandaged by the
nurse.
Removes the sense of humanity from the
body – no longer his brother / Idea that
they tried to save him / ‘stanch’ to stop
blood (or tears) Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
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Next morning I went up to the room. Snowdrops
Transferred epithet
And candles soothed the bedside; I saw him
No longer a bedroom, now a place of mourning. Calm and relaxing compared to other room.
For the first time in six weeks. Paler now,
Sense of guilt / Realisation that things happen while you are
away / Heaney has a memory of his brother prior to this.
An epithet is a word which makes the reader see the
Mid-Term Break
object described in a clearer or sharper light. It is both
By Seamus Heaney
exact and imaginative.
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Seems unreal, as if it could be removed Poppy signifies Remembrance.
Wearing a poppy bruise on his left temple,
He lay in the four foot box as in his cot.
Euphemism, does not mention a coffin Simile - cot, for a child, is a place of
safety.
No gaudy scars, the bumper knocked him clear.
He looks perfect / No sign of violence
Sudden death.
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By Seamus Heaney
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A four foot box, a foot for every year.
•Signifies the brevity (shortness) of the child’s
life with the tragedy emphasized by the single
line stanza.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
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Stanza Analysis
I sat all morning in the college sick bay •Sense of isolation / immediate suggestion of sickness and death.
Counting bells knelling classes to a close. •Onomatopoeia – idea of funeral bells.
At two o’clock our neighbours drove me home. •Long, drawn out event, lots of time to think.
In the porch I met my father crying – •Sense that the father is outwith the grief of the house, hiding his feelings.
He had always taken funerals in his stride – •Death had been experienced before, although not in this way.
And Big Jim Evans saying it was a hard blow. •Cruel (though not done out of spite) pun.
The baby cooed and laughed and rocked the pram •Baby is an innocent, unaware of the events that are taking place.
When I came in, and I was embarrassed •Although Heaney has taken on the role of an adult, he still has the feelings of
By old men standing up to shake my hand a child.
And tell me they were “sorry for my trouble”, •Euphemism
Whispers informed strangers I was the eldest •Sense of secrecy
Away at school, as my mother held my hand •Heaney attended a boarding school so had been absent for the actual event –
guilt?
In hers and coughed out angry tearless sighs. •Enjambment / Suggestion that she has been crying for a while
At ten o’clock the ambulance arrived •Idea of a long day / Ambulances usually help
With the corpse, stanched and bandaged by the nurse. •Removes the sense of humanity from the body – no longer his brother / Idea
that they tried to save him / ‘stanch’ to stop blood (or tears)
Next morning I went up to the room. Snowdrops •No longer a bedroom, now a place of mourning.
And candles soothed the bedside; I saw him •Transferred epithet
For the first time in six weeks. Paler now, •Sense of guilt / Realisation that things happen while you are away / Heaney
has a memory of his brother prior to this.
Wearing a poppy bruise on his left temple, •Seems unreal, as if it could be removed / Poppy signifies Remembrance.
He lay in the four foot box as in his cot. •Euphemism, does not mention a coffin / Simile - cot, for a child, is a place of
No gaudy scars, the bumper knocked him clear. safety.
•He looks perfect / No sign of violence / Sudden death.
A four foot box, a foot for every year. •Signifies the brevity of the child’s life.
Mid-Term Break
By Seamus Heaney
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Mid-Term Break - Questions
1. What is unusual about the title of this poem? (2)
2. Looking at stanza one, how do you think the poet was feeling? Quote to
support your answer. (3)
3. Why does the poet choose the word “knelling” when writing about the
school bells? (2)
4. What type of school did the poet attend? Give reasons for your answer.
(2)
5. What did the poet find strange about his father’s behaviour? (2)
6. Why is what “big Jim Evans” says an unfortunate pun? (2)
7. Why was the baby the lucky one that day? (2)
8. Why was the poet embarrassed by the old men shaking his hand? (2)
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By Seamus Heaney
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Mid-Term Break
9. Contrast the reactions of both parents. With whom, do you think, is the
mother angry? (3)
10. What is unusual about the poet’s use of the phrase “the corpse”? Answer
fully. (3)
11. Comment on the line “Wearing a poppy bruise on his left temple”. (2)
12. Comment on the simile in the third last line. (2)
13. What do you think of the last line of the poem? (2)
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By Seamus Heaney
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Poetic Techniques
• Enjambment: the running on of the thought from one line, couplet,
or stanza to the next without a pause (no full stop/comma etc.)
• Purpose of enjambment: Enjambment is the continuation of a
sentence or clause over a line-break.
• If a poet allows all the sentences of a poem to end in the same place
as regular line-breaks, a kind of deadening can happen in the ear,
and in the brain too, as all the thoughts can end up being the same
length.
• Enjambment is one way of creating interest through the unusual
sound of a sentence running on when you expect it to pause.
This suggests how Heaney was feeling at the time (i.e. confused,
unsure etc.)
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Poetic Techniques
• Transferred Epithet: device of emphasis
in which a characteristic of one thing is
attributed to another closely associated to
it.
The calm mood is beautifully shown in the
transferred epithet, “Snowdrops/And
candles soothed the bedside” - literally
they soothed the young Heaney.
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Euphemism
• The act or an example of substituting a
mild, indirect, or vague term for one
considered harsh, blunt, or offensive
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Term Definition Example Effect
Alliteration Repetition of sounds at the beginning Mirrors the idea of time
of words. “…four foot box…”
passing
Assonance Repetition of the same vowel sound Mirrors the sound of the
“…bells knelling…”
bells.
Couplet Two lines of poetry paired together by “No gaudy scars, the bumper Signifies the end of the
rhyme knocked him clear. poem. The act of death
A four foot box, a foot for followed by the realisation.
every year.”
Metaphor Comparing two things, as if one ‘wearing’ suggests the
“…wearing a poppy bruise…”
actually is the other bruise could be removed.
Onomatopoeia When the sound of a word echoes or “…bells knelling…” Reminds us of funeral bells.
suggests its meaning Shows innocence / happiness
“baby cooed and laughed…” in contrast to what is going on.
Pathos The writer provokes feelings of Signifies pure grief, ‘all cried
sadness, pity or sympathy in the reader “…angry, tearless sighs…” out’
“…I met my father crying…” A child’s realisation that adults
are flawed, have emotions etc.
Personification Objects are given human
characteristics for effect
Simile Comparing two things, using ‘like’ or “He lay in the four foot Suggestion of safety.
‘as’. Child looks at peace, as if
box as in his cot.”
sleeping.
Symbolism Use of one thing to represent another “…wearing a poppy ‘poppy’ signifies remembrance.
bruise…”
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