Blackberry Picking

A detailed Summary of Blackberry Picking


Seamus Heaney's "Blackberry-Picking," expresses desire, hope, and disappointment, through his love for nature. The poem moves eloquently into the last stanza, where he reveals that he is unable to fulfill his desires.

The first line of the poem provides the tone, "Late August, given heavy rain and sun" (1). The setting is late August, one of the hottest months of the year, insinuating the poems context as lustful or passionate. Heaney includes that in this month there was "heavy rain and sun," heavy rain and sun can represent moods of depression or letdown and hope, which sets up the contrasting views throughout the poem. Heaney begins to describe the blackberry picking process. He mentions that it begins with just one, "a glossy purple clot." I think he is reflecting on how the feeling of wanting and yearning begins with the knowledge that there in fact does exist such a temptation. It is not until you experience the temptation first hand, however, that the attraction is strengthened, "You ate that


The final stanza reveals the disappointment of unfulfilled temptations. The picking that caused bleached boots and thorn punctured hands resulted in rotten blackberries. Heaney mentions that "Once of the bush/The fruit fermented, the sweet flesh would turn sour" (20-21). The beauty and sweetness of the blackberries changed into ugliness and sourness when they were taken from their natural setting. Heaney's love for nature is apparent in many of his poems and he felt letdown by being denied the enjoyment of the blackberries, "I always felt like crying/It wasn't fair" (22). This line reminds me of a child whining because he did not get his way. The last line displays Heaney's destructive nature to continue trying to satisfy his temptations even though he knows it will always end in failure, "Each year I hoped they'd keep, knew they would not" (24). I can almost feel Heaney's disappointment in this line. I perceive this line as an adult view of the situation, which contrasts with line 22. Heaney reali

Some common words found in the essay are:
Late August, Heaney's Blackberry-Picking, heavy rain, heavy rain sun, rain sun, reminds child, late august, flesh sweet, love nature, stanza reveals, bleached boots,

Approximate Word count = 682
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English

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