Seamus Heaney

Seamus Justin Heaney (b. April 13 1939) is an Irish poet, writer and lecturer from County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. Awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1995, he is one of the most widely known and important poets working in English, or perhaps any language, today.

Works

His work often deals with "the local"—that is, his surroundings and everything inclusive of them. Inevitably this means Ireland, and particularly Northern Ireland. Hints of sectarian violence, which began just as his writing career did, can be found in many of his poems, even works that on the surface appear to deal with something else. Despite his many travels much of his work appears to be set in rural Derry, the county of his childhood. Like the troubles themselves, Heaney's work is deeply associated with the lessons of history, sometimes even prehistory. Many of his works concern his own family history and focus on characters in his own family, they can be read as elegies for those family members. He has acknowledged this trend.

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The Anglo-Saxon influences in his work are also noteworthy, his university study of the language having had a profound effect on his work. It also led to a small revival of interest in the verse forms of Anglo-Saxon poetry amongst a number of poets influenced by Heaney. He has also written critically well regarded essays and two plays. His essays, among other things, have been credited with beginning the critical re-examination of Thomas Hardy. His anthologies (edited with friend Ted Hughes) The Rattle Bag and The School Bag are used extensively in schools in the UK and elsewhere.

Related Topics:
Anglo-Saxon - Thomas Hardy - Ted Hughes

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In addition to his original works, Heaney has published translations, including a highly regarded verse translation of Beowulf from Old English in 1999, and of Sophocles' Antigone in 2004.

Related Topics:
Beowulf - Old English - Sophocles - Antigone

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His influence on contemporary poetry is reckoned to be immense. Robert Lowell has called Heaney "the most important Irish poet since Yeats". A good many others have echoed the sentiment. His influence is not restricted to Ireland but is felt world wide. However some critics have attacked Heaney for not dealing more directly with the political situation in Northern Ireland. His Nobel Prize nomination ran "for works of lyrical beauty and ethical depth, which exalt everyday miracles and the living past."

Related Topics:
Robert Lowell - Yeats

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