What do the potatoes represent in when all the others were away at Mass?

What do the potatoes represent in when all the others were away at Mass?

The simile which compares the falling potatoes to l ‘solder weeping off the soldering iron’ foreshadows the weeping that will take place around the poet’s mother’s deathbed. The companionable silence of the octet is gone.

When All the Others Were Away Seamus Heaney?

When all the others were away at Mass by Seamus Heaney has been named Ireland’s best-loved poem from the past century. It was chosen from ballots cast by the public, and announced by Irish President Michael D. Higgins.

When All Others Were Away at Mass sonnet?

When all the others were away at Mass I was all hers as we peeled potatoes. They broke the silence, let fall one by one Like solder weeping off the soldering iron: Cold comforts set between us, things to share Gleaming in a bucket of clean water. And again let fall.

When all the others were away at Mass by Seamus Heaney meaning?

This is a personal poem on a precious incident between mother and son that will always be remembered. Both are engaged in a domestic task working in unison and perhaps of more importance is that they had the time together to share in potato peeling while the rest of the family was away at Mass.

What poetic techniques are used in base details?

“Base Details” Poetic Devices & Figurative Language

• Alliteration. Alliteration portrays the “scarlet Majors”—the generals in charge of the army—as gluttonous, greedy, and ugly.
• Allusion.
• Assonance.
• Caesura.
• End-Stopped Line.
• Juxtaposition.
• Understatement.

What is the poem clearances about?

‘Clearances’ forms part of a series of sonnets in which Heaney examines his relationship with his mother, and focuses on her death. ‘Clearances’ forms part of a series of 8 sonnets about Seamus Heaney’s relationship with his mother and the townland of Mossbawn where he spent his formative years.

What literary devices are in the road not taken?

Poetic Devices: Alliteration: Repetition of ‘f’ sound in ‘first’ and ‘for’. Repetition: The word ‘way’ has been repeated twice. Imagery: The poet gives a beautiful description of both the roads that morning.

Why is Base Details a good poem?

‘Base Details’ is a passionate attack on the majors in World War One. It is a short poem but the poet’s use of language makes it very hard-hitting. Even the title is full of meaning. The poet employs a pun on the word base as it refers to the base camp of the soldiers as well as base in a low moral sense.

What is the meaning of the poem Base Details?

“Base Details” is a bitingly satirical war poem that takes aim at the World War I military establishment. The poem’s speaker imagines what his life would be like if he were one of the comfortable top officers of the British Army.

What is the theme of Clearances?

Themes and Meanings. As one would expect in an elegiac sequence, “Clearances” is about mortality. Rather than understand mortality narrowly as “death,” however, one does well to consider mortality as pertaining broadly to life and death.

Which poetic device is used in the poem?

Theory:

What poetic techniques are used in the poem Base Details?

“Base Details” is an example of his often expressed anti-war sentiment. Technically this lyric poem is organized around an alternating ABABCDCDEE rhyme scheme. The rhymed couplet at the end is reminiscent of Shakepeare’s use of couplets to express key ideas, in this case, Sassoon’s own contempt.

What is the imagery in Base Details?

In short, Sassoon utilises visual imagery to criticize the older officers who profited at the expense of young soldiers. As readers, this poetic device enables us to grasp a better understanding of the bitterness that is expressed throughout the poem. “Base Details” is an example of anti-war sentiment.