Response to "Some approaches to Seamus"-Mr Mason

• Sound Effects in Death of a Naturalist

There are many examples of sound effects in "Death of a Naturalist" by Seamus Heaney. For example:

-"gargled delicately". This is an oxymoron that indicates the strangeness of nature, and shows how it can be a beautiful thing, but also very ugly.

-"gauze of sound". This in onomatopeia and is the sound that insects make when they are flying through the air, so this makes the reader feel that they are in Heaneys memory.

-"slobber". This shows the ugly aspect of a child school project growing frogspawn. This is to show the reader that even a harmless thing such as frogspwawn can be savage and ugly.

-"coarse croaking". This is alliteration used to emphasise how ugly the noise that the frogs are making is.

-Rhyme of "cocked and hopped". This is a rhyme of a hard sound and shows how nature doesn't stop, and will always look ugly when you are older. You are scared of it, unlike when you were a child.

-"farting". This is a slang word, and slang is classed as ugly and dirty words.



Response to Death of a Naturalist-Mr Mason

• To conclude, the most successfull devices used by Heaney are...

-Imagery and Sound Effects 

-The metaphor of Heaney running away

• This is because...

-The imagery makes the reader feel Heaneys joy of nature in the first stanza (when he was young) and his fear of nature when he has grown up. The reader can relate their own experiences to Heaney's and share his anxiety.

-The metaphor of Heaney running away shows him growing up and leaving the things he used to play with when he was young in his past. He has an ambiguous relationship with nature.

Response to Death of a Naturalist-Mr Mason

AHHH KILLER FROGS!

• Why does the poet create a a sense of fear and anxiety at the end?

Heaney creates a sense of fear and anxiety to show how, when you are young, you do not mind getting dirty and messing about with nature and animals. However, when you get older you become fearful of nature and dirt, and are wary of the destrucative power it can have. Heaney is scared of the frogs he used to play with when he was young, and him running away is an metaphor to show him leaving his past and growing up.

Response to Death of a Naturalist-Mr Mason

• Heaney uses sound effects...

-Onomatopoeia: "slap and plop".
This has an impact as it is gives the reader the impression of the frogs jumping in the muddy fields, getting closer to Heaney and threatening him. It is an ugly noise, whuich gives the reader a negative impression of nature.

-Personification: "bubbles gargled delicately"
This has an impact as the reader can imagine the bubbles gracefully popping andd making a gargling noise, which is quite peacful; just like nature.

-Alliteration: "coarse croaking"
This has an impact as the reader can imagine the frogs loudly croaking. The fact that it is coarse, this gives the reader a negative impression of the frog, as this noise would be quite frightening, and would make you want to run away, which is what Heaney does.

Response to Death of a Naturalist-Mr Mason

• Some early thoughts....

- I think that the poem is about the landscape and nature around the area where Seamus Heaney grew up, and also of his Primary School, learning about frogs. The opening lines evoke nature beautifully. This is because Heaney uses images such as: "festered", "green", "rotted", "sods", "sweltered" and "punishing". He also creates a vivid impression of learning about the tadpoles at school by uisng pharses like "jellied specks", "fattening" and "nimble-swimming". This gives the reader the impression of the tadpoles growing steadily throughout the year and eventually bursting gracefully into life. The poem explores ideas linked to nature and growing up. This is because; the lessons he learnt in Primary School were all about animals and nature and especially in this poem frogs are mentioned.

In the second stanza the tone changes. The language is different. The poet uses words and phrases related to violence, for example "rank", "invaded" and "grenades". These are here because they show how the frogs are attacking and killing the crops, which Heaney finds very scary and intimidating. It creates a sense of fear from the reader and they get anxious about Heaneys safety.

Response to Death of a Naturalist-Mr Mason

• As you grow up, how do yopur feelings change about these things?

They become childish and boring and your ideas of fun change, so you no longer want to play or do those things. You find new things that your peers have as well, which satisfies them and your individual needs so you "fit in". The old things often get forgotten and left behind as you grow up.

Response to Death of a Naturalist-Mr Mason

• Make a list of things you may have done/played with when you were a child , but would not enjoy now:

-Toys e.g. remote control cars
-Drawing things
-Running about everyewhere instead of walking
-Pretending to do things e.g. Drive a car