Keep Digging

"Digging"

Within the first few lines of Heaney's poem, the separation between the author and his father is illustrated. Seamus, indoors with a pen in hand, and his father, outside, handling a spade.  Already there is a difference between the father and son. Also, it is said the pen rests, "snug as a gun." (730) Heaney most likely chose the word gun as a metaphor to explain how the he defends his passion for writing in a farming community through words. Further along in the poem, the lines "...the old man could handle a spade/Just like his old man," (730) appear. This indicates how long the author's family has existed at the old farm and dug up potatoes. However, it also makes Seamus' writing seem that much more unordinary because it is breaking a century or more of tradition. Finally, after much vivid imagery relating to the author's father and grandfather digging in the fields, shift happens. Seamus states, "But I've no spade to follow men like them." (731), and then proceeds to say he'll dig with his pen. This is a brilliant metaphor because the majority of the poem is describing the way in which the Heaneys dug, and how well they could dig. When applied to the author's writing you have an excellent rendering of the skill and potential of Seamus.

Manifesting that order of poetry where we can at last grow up to that which we stored up as we grew.
-Seamus Heaney