Punishment

Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 1975

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Poem Analysis

Themes

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Related Poems

“The Tollund Man” by Seamus Heaney (1975)

Another poem from North, “The Tollund Man” focuses on a specific, well known bog body, the Tollund Man, who was found in a bog in Denmark. “The Tollund Man,” like “Punishment” and other examples of Heaney’s bog body poems, addresses cultural and cyclic violence.

“Bogland” by Seamus Heaney (1969)

One of, if not the first of, Heaney’s bog-centric poems, “Bogland,” describes the literal appearance of a bog. This poem focuses less on violence, past and present, and more on the physical impact of bogs on the landscape of Northern Ireland.

“The Grauballe Man” by Seamus Heaney (1975)

“The Grauballe Man” was also published in Heaney’s North collection. This poem focuses on another bog body found in Denmark. “The Grauballe Man” specifically centers on the body and does not pivot to consider the Troubles as much as “Punishment” or some of the other North poems.

Further Literary Resources

Troubles Archive by the Arts Council of Norther Ireland (2014)

This website archives the artistic work of artists and writers associated with the Troubles in Northern Ireland. It includes a helpful timeline of events, as well as poems, stories, and essays from Northern Irish writers, including Seamus Heaney.

“Irish Nationalism and Irish Catholicism: A Study in Cultural Identity” by Lawrence J. McCaffrey (1973)

This academic article discusses important concepts relevant to Heaney’s writing, background, and the content of his poems, providing a more in-depth, scholarly analysis of Irish Nationalism and culture.

“What were The Troubles?” Imperial War Museums (2020)

This recent video gives a quick, simple overview of The Troubles for someone who is not familiar with the conflict.

“Europe’s Famed Bog Bodies Are Starting to Reveal Their Secrets” by Joshua Levine (2017)

This article, published in the Smithsonian Magazine in 2017, details some of the research surrounding the bog bodies found in Northern Europe. This article gives up-to-date information about the reasons behind the deaths, the preservations of the bodies in the bogs, and helpful historical context about the ancient peoples of Northern Europe.

“Windeby Girl and Weerdinge Couple” by Jarrett A. Lobell and Samir S. Patel (2010)

This article provides the name of the bog body upon which “Punishment” is thought to be based. However, due to recent findings and research, the body’s historical background has changed since the writing of Heaney’s “Punishment.”