Burgio & Guglielmone
Fascination
Heaney’s fascination with the people of the bog commenced with the publication of a book, The Bog People, by P.V. Glob, who describes the significance of the people buried under the peat. The English translation of his book appeared in 1969, the year the killings began. The book explained that the bodies of men and women recovered from the peat, buried since the Iron Age times, were sacrifices to the Goddess Nerthus. The belief was that she needed new bridegrooms each winter, to ensure fertility of the crops next spring. Heaney analogised the ritual sacrifices of yesteryear to the sacrifices of the lives of the Irishmen, in order to save the lives of their fellowmen.
Dedication
A Tollound Man
"The soul exceeds its circumstances". Yes.
History not to be granted the last word
Or the first claim
The Tollund Man is the naturally mummified corpse of a man who lived during the 4th century BC, during the period characterised in Scandinavia as the Pre-Roman Iron Age.[1] He was found in 1950 buried in a peat bog
He Expresses some sort of dedication or quotes somebody. Maybe from his childhood, someone he admires.
Introduction
Childhood
''into your virtual city I'll have passed
Unregistered by scans, screens, hidden eyes,
Lapping time in myself, an absorbed face''
Here Heaney sets the backround, where he
explains where does the poem will be set.
In the last paragraph he uses the first person writing to prove he has some experience on the subject, on a real life basis.
''And my own? As a man would, cutting turf,
I straightened, spat on my hands, felt benefit
And spirited myself into the street.''
Heaney Starts his poem by setting a scene in which the Tollound man is semi introduced. ''To you and yours, out under seeding grass
And trickles of kesh water, sphagnum moss,
Dead bracken on the spreadfield, red as rust.
I reawoke to revel in the spirit''