The word “storm” has literal meanings associated with weather, but also has connotations of conflict and strife. In Storm on the Island this personal background is used to realistically describe a small isolated community facing the sea during a tempest. Seamus Heaney was an Irish poet who grew up in a rural farming community.
Whilst the poets differ in their presentation, both utilise remarkably similar techniques and structure (including unrhymed verse, anecdotal asides and vivid personification) to investigate mankind’s real and symbolic conflict when faced with the vast power of nature. Heaney explores this theme from the inclusive “we” of a rural, coastal community, whilst Wordsworth tackles the subject matter from a far more personal and subjective “I” perspective. In Storm on the Island by Seamus Heaney and the extract from The Prelude by William Wordsworth, both poets explore the power of nature and the inherent conflict between humanity and the natural world we inhabit. BBC Teach have a great guide (presented by Akala, a rapper, writer, activist and poet) on The Prelude: Remember, PEEZAP paragraphs are our guide, but don’t feel you have to stick to this too rigidly – especially if it is interfering with the clarity of your arguments.īefore getting started, make sure you’re familiar with each poem. Have a read through the essay (try highlighting in different colours each time a theme, key bit of context, quote or literary terminology is used) and pay special attention to essay structure. To help you get started on this theme, I’ve written an in-depth comparison of Storm on the Island and The Prelude. Storm on the Island by Seamus Heaney, Wilfred Owen’s Exposure and William Wordsworth’s The Prelude are the three most direct comparisons here.
Whilst this might not seem like an obvious theme, many of the poems deal with the natural world in some way or another. The theme of nature, and our societal and personal battles with the natural environment, forms a key part of the AQA GCSE Power and Conflictpoetry anthology.
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