Seamus Heaney - Formative Years

Formative Years

Memory and place are prominent in the work of Seamus Heaney. In the following clips from a variety of interviews, Seamus Heaney talks about his childhood, home, school and his awareness of growing up in a community of two traditions.

"My First Sense of Myself..."

Seamus Heaney recalls his earliest childhood memories and a young boy's fascination with the place names on the radio dial.

Local Boundaries and Parents

In conversation with David Hanly, Heaney describes the local geographical boundaries of his home place, Mossbawn, which features in so much of his writing. He also speaks about his father, a cattle dealer and "a man much devoted to not speaking", and his mother, who came from a family where argument and speech were prominent.

"A Woman of Great Strength and Forcefulness"

Seamus Heaney, who was one of nine children, talks about his mother and a generation of women who had great religious faith. For these women, the church was also an important point of social contact. The poet recalls a moment of stillness at home as he peeled potatoes on a Sunday morning with his mother, a scene recorded in a sonnet from "Clearances 3", which he reads here.

Primary School Days

Fairy tales, new copy books and learning to write are strong memories for Heaney from his early school days. He also talks about moving up to Master Murphy's room for algebra, Irish, Latin and preparation for secondary school.

Books, Comics and Writing Proper Compositions

As a child, Heaney read books about savages and explorers from a box that served as school library. Comic books played a prominent role in children's reading during the 1940s and 1950s. However, children were taught to write in a formal, conventional style that led to everyone writing in the same way.

Growing Up In a Divided Community

Here, Seamus Heaney describes his awareness as a child of growing up in a mixed community and how communities in rural areas have rituals which bind them but also highlight their differences. He remembers a realm of banter between neighbours from different religious and cultural backgrounds, but also a more serious feeling of threat from the "B" Specials.

St Columb's College

Seamus Heaney attended secondary school at St Columb's College, Derry. Here, he reflects on the ethos of a school devoted to academic excellence. He recalls influential teachers and fellow pupils who would later come into the public eye. He also talks about the experience of reading Chaucer, Wordsworth and Keats.