The three poems which I have selected to study the devices used by Seamus Heaney are `Digging', `Follower' and `Death of a Naturalist'. Heaney was born in 1939 and grew up on his family's farm in County Derry. He was the eldest of nine children, and as a child was fascinated by his father's work on the farm. His interest in nature as a child can be seen in `Death of a Naturalist' and his admiration for his father is shown in both `Digging' and `Follower'. Heaney uses a connection between humans and the natural world in most of his poems.

One device used by Heaney is how he titles his poems. The titles `Digging', `Follower' and `Death of a Naturalist' all are significant to the rest of the poem. The title `Digging' gives us an immediate image of the up and down movement and this feeling is continued...