Fodder: Plot

Fodder: Plot

“Fodder: Detail Summary”

Overview

• “Fodder” is part of Seamus Heaney’s collection “Opened Ground” which was published in 1998.
• The title “Fodder” refers to food, particularly dried hay or straw, given to cattle or other livestock.

Core Elements

• The poem opens with a description of dried hay being baled and stacked in a barn for winter feed for cows.
• The speaker reminisces about the scent of the hay and the sound of rain on the barn’s roof.
• He subsequently reflects on the laborious, yet critical process of stacking the hay and its importance for the survival of the livestock.

Reflections

• Towards the poem’s end, the speaker reflects on the passing of time and the cyclic nature of farming.
• The poem closes with a sense of peaceful acceptance of the cyclical nature and inevitability of life and death.
• As with many of Heaney’s other poems, the sense of deep connection to the land, past traditions and rural life are invoked in “Fodder.”

Use of Imagery

• Heaney uses vivid pastoral imagery throughout the poem to immerse the reader in the rural environment.
• Phrases such as ‘its warm wheaten breath’ and ‘damp air humming’ exemplify Heaney’s skill in employing sensory language to create vivid and tactile imagery.

Thematic Connection

• “Fodder,” like several other poems in “Opened Ground,” works to preserve Irish agrarian tradition and serves as a testament to the significance of understanding and appreciating our roots.
• The poem exemplifies Heaney’s recurring exploration of themes such as the beauty and harsh reality inherent in rural life, the value of hard work, and the cyclical aspect of nature.