‘But I've no spade to follow men like them. Between my finger and my thumb The squat pen rests. I'll dig with it.’
‘I rhyme
To see myself, to set the darkness echoing.’
‘A good poem allows you to have your feet on the ground and your head in the air simultaneously. ’
‘Our shells clacked on the plates.My tongue was a filling estuaryMy palate hung with starlight:As I tasted the salty PleiadesOrion dipped his foot into the water.’
‘The way we are livingTimorous or boldWill have been our life.’
Are there any exhibitions about Seamus Heaney?
Yes, there are two – one in Northern Ireland and one in Dublin. Seamus Heaney HomePlace is an award-winning arts and literary centre dedicated to the life and work of the poet, located in his home village of Bellaghy, Co Derry. It features a fully interactive exhibition over two floors. More information here.
Seamus Heaney: Listen Now Again is a National Library of Ireland exhibition about the life and work of Seamus Heaney, filled with his manuscripts and notebooks, and housed in the Cultural and Heritage Centre at Bank of Ireland, College Green, Dublin. More information here.
Who were Seamus Heaney's poetic influences?
Early on, Seamus Heaney was influenced by Irish and British poets such as Gerard Manley Hopkins, Patrick Kavanagh and Ted Hughes, later a friend with whom he edited The Rattle Bag. Later in life, he greatly admired the Polish poet Czeslaw Milosz.
Where is Seamus Heaney's archive?
Seamus Heaney donated his literary papers to the National Library of Ireland in 2011. These include manuscripts, drafts, notebooks and letters. There is also an archive of his letters at the Rose Library in Emory University, Atlanta.
Where can I read more about Seamus Heaney?
We recommend these two pieces: a 2009 interview in the Observer and this extract from ‘Stepping Stones’.