‘Mid-Term Break’

‘Mid-Term Break’ by Seamus Heaney

PRE-READING: COMMUNICATING

1 What do you know about the traditions of funerals in Ireland? 2 Listen to ‘Tears in Heaven’ by Eric Clapton: edco.ie/chdb 3 What emotions or feelings is the song trying to convey to the person listening? 4 Listen to ‘See You Again’ by Wiz Kalifa: edco.ie/8wd3 5 What is the message in this song about grief and loss? 6 Listen to Seamus Heaney reading ‘Mid-Term Break’: edco.ie/yv6m Then complete the personal response quad in your activity book (see page 34). Then share your thoughts with your partner.ACT IVITY All about ‘Mid-Term Break’ Seamus Heaney is one of Ireland’s most well-loved and respected poets. This poem was written by Heaney about the loss of his brother, who was hit by a car and killed when he was only four years old. ‘Mid-Term Break’ by Seamus Heaney 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 nurses. Next morning I went up into 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. ©The Educational Company of Ireland

READING

ACT IVITY

1 Complete the summary activity in your activity book (see pages 35–36). 2 Who is the speaker in the poem? How do you know? 3 What is the subject of the poem? 4 How did you feel at the end of the poem? Why? 5 How would you describe the tone of the poem? 6 Complete the quote quest task in your activity book (see pages 36–37) to practise your quotation skills. 7 What is the most effective word in the poem that the poet uses to describe his grief, in your opinion? Why did you choose that word? 8 What do you think is the theme of this poem? 9 The poet uses a dash in the following lines: In the porch I met my father crying— He had always taken funerals in his stride— Why do you think the poet has chosen this punctuation mark for these lines? 10 Does this poem connect to any other text you have studied? WRITING During times of hardship, communities tend to pull together and support each other, just like the community in this poem support the poet’s family in their grief. Think about a time where you have heard about or experienced a community pulling together and helping each other out. Describe what happened in a short paragraph. Writing Tips If you can’t think of anything, you could use the internet to search for news stories about communities supporting each other around the world in times of need. ©The Educational Company of Ireland