Analysis of the Poem “The Blackbird of Glanmore” by Seamus Heaney
As humans, it is natural to fear the uncertainty of when and how our death will transpire. For most, we root this anxiety in the belief that we will be left with no one apart from ourselves. As apparent in Seamus Heaney’s poem, “The Blackbird of Glanmoe”, the subject of death looms over the speaker. Hence, the speaker represents Heaney during the later years of his life when he faces his mortality. In many ways, the speaker can come to terms with the inevitability of death at the end of his well-lived life. In “The Blackbird of Glanmore,” Heaney uses the blackbird as an analogy for the impermanence of life in the wake of the speaker’s impending death.
“The Blackbird of Glanmore” begins with Heaney’s acknowledgment of the glorious blackbird he sees upon his return to Glanmore. Heaney remarks that the bird is “Filling the stillness with life, but ready to scare off, at the very first wrong move”. These lines indicate that the blackbird has a far more distinguished purpose in the poem, as opposed to simply being viewed as an insignificant bird residing on the grass. In the blackbird's absence, lifeless scenery void of meaning surrounds him. However, this feeling of liveliness is short-lived because the bird can leave without warning, just as his death will arrive regardless of whether he accepts it. The poem continues, “It’s you, blackbird, I love. I park, pause, take heed. Breathe”. The speaker does not intend to disrupt the peacefulness of the moment. Through the description of the bird, the reader soon learns that the blackbird is symbolic of something greater, something of exceptional significance to the speaker. Angela Leighton supports this claim by stating, “Heaney writes, invoking the old love-formula, to the blackbird who will go on singing, on the grass or in the ivy, whatever dark shadows are left on the road“. The sight of the bird fills the speaker with a sensation that life is manifested in him through his connection to the bird. As the poem progresses, the blackbird allows the speaker’s emotions to evolve and mature, directing him towards the eventual acceptance of his foreseeable death.
Consequently, embracing the unknown is difficult, but the fact also remains that sitting in the uncomfortableness of uncertainty is necessary. The speaker proves this to be true when he confesses that he wishes for the bird to remain in its place, motionless. The speaker’s connection to the bird inspires him to hope for something of even greater magnitude:
'And lines I once translated
Come back: “I want away
To the house of death, to my father
Under the low clay roof.”
The translation of these lines enables the speaker to hide behind a facade. Moreso, he cannot admit that he welcomes his death and instead embraces suitable words spoken and, or written by someone else. In doing so, the speaker distances himself from the weight of death by expressing his emotions through an alternative outlet. As stated by Neil Corcoron, “‘The Blackbird of Glanmore’ steadies itself into...the knowledge that the habit of arriving and leaving will ultimately be broken by the final leave-taking of all, when the self eerily or uncannily becomes its own shadow”. Therefore, the overall development of the speaker’s thoughts assists the reader in concluding that the blackbird signifies death. Throughout the poem, the speaker’s beliefs and actions reveal that wise people never fear death. In several instances, the subject of death is unwelcome because it provokes dread in people. Ironically, the speaker continues to admire the blackbird, even after he acknowledges that its ubiquity evokes sentiments of death.
In addition, Heaney relies on his vivid sense of memory to develop and reflect upon images of his brother. In doing so, Heaney uses his situation to portray the speaker in a way that allows his brother’s spirit lives on as a presence that he feels connected to at all times. Hence, his brother consumes his consciousness: “And I think of one gone to him… Haunter-son, lost brother… So glad to see me home”. In these lines, Heaney refers to the loss of his younger brother in an accident, relaying his heartbreak through the speaker’s relationship with the blackbird. The speaker puts his emotions on display, embracing death and his appreciation for the blackbird. According to Chris Agee, “Minded that the twin of grief is silence, the curt economy of feeling here”. In sharing the memory of his brother with the reader, the reader is provided with insight into the mental state of the speaker. Thus, the description of the blackbird indicates that his beloved brother will always be with him, even in his final days. Hence, it is apparent that the speaker does not fret about his death because his life is a constant reminder of the pain he endured because of the loss of his brother. Through this example, Heaney demonstrates that in life, everyone will have to experience the death of loved ones and then we, ourselves, will also die.
Moreover, it becomes clear to the reader that the blackbird represents the speaker’s dead brother. Specifically, Heaney uses the blackbird to represent two very contrasting symbols: spiritedness and misfortune. The liveliness of the bird causes the speaker to recall vivid memories of his brother. However, these recollections are overshadowed by darkness, a heavy reminder that his brother is deceased. The blackbird is synonymous with his impending death: “I’ve a bird’s eye view of myself, a shadow on raked gravel, in front of my house of life”. When the bird flies away after being frightened, the speaker becomes more aware of his physical condition. Although the speaker’s interpretation of the shadow appears ambiguous, he experiences an intellectual awakening that prepares him for the end of his life. Agee’s writing supports this though in greater depth: “With true poetic alchemy, the stanza manages to mimic the actual physical jerkiness and nerviness of the blackbird in a way that, nonetheless, becomes metaphorical for something that Heaney admires…fixity and death”. As such, the poem reflects Heaney’s personal trials and tribulations that he faces as a result of the obstacles he faced during his life. The blackbird slinks around like an ominous shadow, but the speaker embraces its presence rather instead of dreading its connotation. Evidently, this excerpt proves that the speaker is in a constant state of reflection that allows him to accept the likeliness of his mortality.
Furthermore, the final stanzas of the poem convey that Heaney sees his brother as a representation of the blackbird. The speaker declares, “I am absolute, for you, your ready talkback, your each stand-offish comeback”. Indeed, he is infatuated with the bird because he can draw a connection to his brother. Thinking of the bird, the speaker recounts the strong bond he once shared with his brother. During this recollection, it appears that the bird exhibits distinct qualities that remind him of his brother. Despite the notion that “ the blackbird of Glanmore seems a beneficent substitute for the bird of ill omen,” it also represents a brighter time in the speaker’s life, the days when his brother was alive. While the blackbird is a symbol of death, the speaker cherishes its presence because it reunites him with his brother again, albeit through the process of dying.
Seamus Heaney uses “The Blackbird of Glanmore” to explore his relationship with the cycle of life, specifically his approaching death. Heaney’s poem portrays the life process as something that occurs naturally and must be embraced rather turned away from. There are many uncertainties that face us in life, but death will always be for certain. As we go about our daily lives, death occurs in several forms: and when we overcome a hurdle, our old awareness dies and a new one is born. In this way, death need not be something we fear, nor should we refer to it as ‘the end’ because no one truly knows for certain what lies beyond.
