Follower

• "My Father worked with a horse plough"
• "An expert."
• "I stumbled in his hob-nailed wake"
• "All I ever did was follow"
• "I was a nuisance, tripping, falling, yapping always"
• published in 1966 by Seamus Heaney
• He grew up on his father's farm in Ireland
• "But now it is my Father who keeps stumbling Behind me, and will not go away"
• "His shoulders globes like a full sail strung"
• What is the main theme of the poem "Follower"?

  Father-son relationship and admiration
• When was Sheamus Heaney born?

  1939
• What profession did Sheamus Heaney's father actually have?

  Cattle dealer
• What does Heaney's early poetry focus on?

  Childhood experience, identity, and rural life
• What was the title of Heaney's first poetry collection?

  Death of a Naturalist
• How does the poem "Follower" reflect on Heaney's childhood?

  It contrasts his childhood aspirations with reality
• What does the term "the furrow" refer to in the poem?

  The long trench made by the plow
• What does "hob-nailed" refer to in the context of the poem?

  Boots with nails for extra grip
• What is the significance of the line about the father stumbling behind the speaker?

  It shows the reversal of roles over time
• How does the structure of the poem contribute to its meaning?

  It reflects the order and skill of farming
• What is the rhyme scheme used in "Follower"?

  ABAB rhyme scheme
• What is iambic tetrameter?

  A line of eight syllables with alternating stress
• How does the use of full rhyme differ from half rhyme in the poem?

  Full rhyme has matching vowel sounds
• What does the use of half rhyme signify in the poem?

  It reflects the speaker's clumsiness compared to his father
• What are the main themes explored in "Follower"?

  • Father-son relationship
  • Admiration and respect for the father
  • The passage of time and changing roles
• How does the poem's structure relate to its themes?

  • Ordered structure reflects farming skill
  • ABAB rhyme scheme emphasizes relationships
  • Iambic tetrameter quickens the pace of reading
• What literary devices are used in "Follower"?

  • Metaphor (thatching for writing)
  • Full rhyme vs. half rhyme
  • Iambic tetrameter
• How does Heaney's background influence "Follower"?

  • Farming heritage shapes themes
  • Personal experiences inform the narrative
  • Reflects cultural values of labor
• What type of rhyme is described as half rhyme?

  Half rhyme has stressed consonants that rhyme
• How does half rhyme relate to the boy in the poem?

  It reflects his inability to match his father
• What does enjambment in the poem signify?

  It reflects the continuity of action in plowing
• Why does the poet use enjambment at the stanza change?

  To emphasize the father's skill in plowing
• What does the full stop in stanza 2 signify?

  It reflects the boy's admiration for his father
• How does the focus shift in the poem's stanzas?

  The focus shifts from father to the boy himself
• What does the title "Follower" imply about the boy's relationship with his father?

  It suggests he idolizes and mimics his father
• What does the metaphor of "hob nailed boots" suggest?

  It indicates the boy is following in his father's footsteps
• How does the poem's final line change the meaning of "follower"?

  The father becomes the follower of Seamus
• What is the significance of the sailing imagery in the poem?

  It highlights the father's skill in plowing
• How does the metaphor of sailing relate to the father's role?

  It portrays him as a skilled captain of the plow
• What does the phrase "stumbled in his hob nailed wake" imply?

  It suggests the boy struggles to keep up
• What are the themes explored in the poem "Follower"?

  • Changing parent-child relationships
  • Admiration and love for the father
  • The art of plowing as a metaphor for skill
  • Nostalgia for rural life and lost traditions