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Out-Out by Robert Frost and Mid Term Break by Seamus Heaney Essay

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Analyse the two poems Out-Out by Robert Frost and Mid Term Break by Seamus Heaney by paying particular attention to the similarities between the two poems

'Out-Out' was written by Robert Frost who was an American poet born in
1874. He moved to the New Englandfarm country, where most of his poems were inspired. 'Mid Term Break' was written by Seamus Heaney, who was born on a farm in county Londonderry in Northern Ireland.

The two poems are very similar and are both about the deaths of a young child, one about a boy who loses his hand whilst using a buzz saw; unfortunately, he also loses his life. In Mid Term Break the boy loses his life in a car accident. He was only left with

"A poppy bruise on his left temple"

There …show more content…

Both could be relevant to the poem.

The poem is based on the story of a young boy who died whilst doing a man's job which he couldn't cope with.

"Big boy doing a man's job"

He was working in the garden when he cut his hand with the buzz saw he was working with. The injury was so bad he had to go to hospital for it to be amputated due to the extent of the injury. Unfortunately during the operation, inevitably the young child died.

The title of the poem is significant because it refers to the play
Macbeth, written by William Shakespeare, when Macbeth hears about the heath of his wife.

"Out, Out, brief candle! Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player…"

this is saying that life can end very quickly. As the young boys life did in the poem.

The poet sets the scenery of the poem by describing

"Sweet-scented stuff"

He describes the scenery of beautiful mountains and sunset. When he describes this, it seems as though everything is perfect in the poem and that nothing could go wrong.

There is a quick shift in the poem as Robert Frost introduces the rattling and the snarling. There is a lot of repetition of 'rattled and 'snarled' in the poem, which in my opinion is creating the image of an evil snake ready to attack , as a snake rattles and snarls.
Another thing that relates to a snake is the way the saw leaped out at the boy.

"Leaped out at the boys hand"

In a snake like manner.

"And nothing happened: day was all

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