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Death of a Naturalist

Death of a Naturalist. Seamus Heaney. Prediction . Discuss in groups, what you think this poem might be about/what it might discuss. Use your knowledge of: Seamus Heaney and his concerns as a writer The title of the poem Your understanding of the theme, loss of innocence.

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Death of a Naturalist

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  1. Death of a Naturalist Seamus Heaney

  2. Prediction • Discuss in groups, what you think this poem might be about/what it might discuss. • Use your knowledge of: • Seamus Heaney and his concerns as a writer • The title of the poem • Your understanding of the theme, loss of innocence.

  3. Reading the poem 

  4. Summarising • What experience is Heaney discussing in this poem? • At what point in life does this experience occur? • Does the persona’s perception change in the poem? How? • How is this poem similar to Blackberry Picking?

  5. Vocabulary • Find and record the meanings of the following words: • Frogspawn (explain what this is) • Festered • Sods • Gauze • Vengeance

  6. Frogspawn, Tadpoles, Frogs

  7. Structure • The poem is structured in 2 stanzas. • The first stanza is much longer than the second (1=20 lines, 2=12 lines) • Briefly describe what is discussed in each stanza. • Stanza 1= the persona’s positive experience/memory of collecting frogspawn as a child. • Stanza 2= the change in the persona’s perception of frogs/nature.

  8. The Title • “Death” has many negative connotations- what are some you can think of? • Ultimately it signals the profound point of change which will appear in the poem. It references the persona’s loss of innocence. • “Naturalist”, of course refers to the persona’s relationship with nature which is discussed in the poem. • It is also links Heaney to the persona- nature being a prominent theme in all of Heaney’s poems. He suggests that in spite of this he does not consider himself an naturalist.

  9. The Persona/Speaker • Describe the speaker/persona of the poem. • HOW do we know this? (quotes/aspects of the poem which provide clues).

  10. Analysis of Language • We are going to undertake our analysis of the language used in Death of a Naturalist in groups. • Each group will be assigned an aspect of language in a section of the poem to analyse. • You will be provided with guiding questions to help you with your analysis. • Once you have completed your analysis it needs to be typed and emailed to me. • I will collate your analysis into a powerpoint and your group will present your ideas to the class.

  11. Section One- Sound Devices • Identify examples of the following sound devices; • alliteration • assonance. • Explaining the Effect: • What do these sound devices help us to understand about the persona’s relationship with nature? • How?

  12. Section Two- Sound Devices • Identify examples of the following sound devices; • Consonance • onomatopoeia. • Explaining the effect: • What do these sound devices help us understand about how the persona is feeling about nature? • How?

  13. Section One- Imagery • Identify an example of a metaphor. • Identify any other important images. • Explaining the effect: • What do these images/techniques help us to understand about the persona’s relationship with nature? • How?

  14. Section Two- Imagery • Identify an example of personification and a simile. • Identify any other important images. • Explaining the effect: • What do these images/techniques help us to understand about the persona’s relationship with nature? • How?

  15. Section One- Diction • Identify examples of words with negative connotations that are used to describe the experience/environment? • Is contrasting diction used in this section? How? • Explain how the narrator feels about these aspects of his environment? • How does Heaney use these words to help the reader understand the persona’s relationship with nature?

  16. Section Two- Diction • Identify examples of words with negative connotations. • Is contrasting diction used in this section? What is the effect of its use or absence? • How does the persona feel about his environment? • How does Heaney use these examples of language to help the reader understand the persona’s changed relationship with nature?

  17. Theme • Brainstorm some ideas which Heaney discusses in this poem. • What does Heaney help us to understand about the idea of ‘loss of innocence’ in this poem? • What techniques help Heaney to develop his readers’ understanding of this theme?

  18. Purpose • It is important when studying any text to consider what the author’s purpose is. • When thinking about purpose we should consider: • What are the main ideas and what does the author want us to think about them? • Does the author want us to change the way we think and act? For what reason? • Can the text be linked to any issue or concern in society? What does the author hope to achieve by making this link?

  19. Purpose in the Poem • Discuss in groups what you think Heaney’s purpose is in this poem. • Heaney wants us to understand that losing one’s innocence is an important turning point in a person’s life. • He discusses the range of emotions which can be associated with this loss of innocence. • Heaney wants his readers to understand that losing innocence is inevitable- we cannot escape it, and with it will come changed perception of the world and our environment.

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