Short course
Opening Ground: Seamus Heaney’s Early Poems
Course status:
Applications being accepted
Dates and time:
24/02/2027 - 24/03/202710:30 - 12:30
Study format:
In-person weekly
Fees:
£190.00
This course will explore a selection of Seamus Heaney's most important poems from his first four collections, the majority of which draw on multiple pasts – familial, cultural, literary, linguistic, historical, political – and regularly address ethical concerns that confront us today.
Born in April 1939, shortly before the Second World War, Heaney's childhood, adolescent years and adult life were overshadowed by brutal conflicts. Though these permeate his work, offset against that is his deep responsiveness to the natural world and landscape, and profound respect for the achievements of past and contemporary artists. Painters, sculptors, musicians and writers regularly feature in his work throughout his career.
While much of its emphasis will be on developing skills in textual analysis – not least in picking up on the musicality of his verse, and seeing the stages of composition a poem goes through – students will enhance their understanding of Ireland's and Northern Ireland's history, and the impact of decisions made in Westminster. With that end in mind, there will be opportunities to view clips from documentaries about Heaney and the diverse times his poetry addresses.
Book this course
Book your place online using the button below.
Course starts Wednesday 24 February 2027
This is an in-person course which requires your attendance at the weekly meetings in Oxford on Wednesdays, 10.30am-12.30pm.
Week 1: A study of poems from Heaney’s debut collection, Death of a Naturalist (1965), which evoke vividly the figures and terrain of his Co. Derry childhood.
Week 2: Door into the Dark (1969) illustrates Heaney’s ever-widening interest in Ireland and beyond (‘In Gallarus Oratory’, ‘Requiem for the Croppies’, ‘Bogland’), along with an early concern with gender (‘The Wife’s Tale’, ‘Mother’).
Week 3: Wintering Out (1972) is one of his most accomplished, meticulously constructed collections, offering a remarkable, varied range of responses to the terrible escalation in violence in the province he witnessed first hand on his return from the United States to Northern Ireland in August 1971. Many of its most exceptional poems, such as ‘The Tollund Man’, turn to history from different periods for answers as to the origins of the conflict.
Weeks 4 and 5 North (1975). Heaney described this collection as the ‘book all books were leading to’. These two sessions will examine how Heaney sought to address explicitly this appalling, deteriorating situation and its causes. Students will have the opportunity to see drafts of some of North‘s most contentious poems, before examining contemporaneous and later critiques of the volume.
Course aims
Course aim:
To deepen and enrich students’ understanding of how poetry works, and the multiple factors that can affect its making.
Course objectives:
1. To analyse and evaluate the diverse range of concerns Seamus Heanney’s poetry addresses and literary methods and techniques he deploys.
2. To develop an understanding of the political, historical and cultural contexts from which his poetry has emerged.
3. To consolidate the student’s sense of confidence in their own authority as a reader of texts.
Learning outcomes
By the end of the course students will be expected to:
1. Convey through their contributions to class discussions their knowledge and understanding of a range of poems, demonstrating their ability to analyse their meanings and the methods Heaney has employed in their construction.
2. Recognise the significance of the particular cultural, political and historical contexts in which texts have been produced.
3. Grasp more fully the careful processes through poems emerge by exploring the multiple drafts of a number of Heaney’s poems.
Level and demands
The Department’s Weekly Classes are taught at first year undergraduate level.
Prospective students can get in touch with me, via the Weekly Class Office, if they feel unsure about any aspects of the course.
Teaching methods
This course will be taught by means of seminars. Tasks will be assigned weekly to pairs or small groups of students who will then present their findings, providing a basis for general discussion. This is intended to foster an active, participatory approach to learning, enhancing the students’ critical faculties and confidence, and consolidating and developing their oral and written skills. In addition students will receive communications weekly which will include an outline of the following week’s session as well as links to invaluable reading materials.
Assessment methods
This course is not accredited, so there are no assessments or coursework.
Prof Michael Parker
Michael Parker has worked as a tutor for Oxford University’s Department for Continuing Education since 2016. His career has involved teaching in secondary schools and at universities in the UK, Europe and the United States. His nine published books to date explore modern and contemporary poetry, fiction and drama and their historical contexts, drawing on a long-standing interest in British, Irish, European and Postcolonial Writing. He is currently completing Seamus Heaney: Legacies, Afterlives, a critical study of the poet’s middle and late career.
Digital badge
Upon successful completion of this course, you will be issued with an official digital badge from the Department for Continuing Education, University of Oxford. In order to be issued with your badge, you will need to have attended at least 80% of the course.
After the course, you will receive an email with a link and instructions on how to download your digital badge. You will be able to add this badge to your email signature and share it on social media if you choose to do so.
Fees
| Description | Costs |
|---|---|
| Course fee | £190.00 |
Funding
If you are in receipt of a UK state benefit, or are a care-leaver in the UK, you may be eligible for a reduction of 50% of tuition fees. Please see the below link for full details:
Concessionary fees for short courses
Recommended reading
Recommended reading is optional and you are not required to purchase these books to study this course.
Library facilities
All weekly class students may become borrowing members of the Rewley House Library, part of the Bodleian Libraries, for the duration of their course. Prospective students whose courses have not yet started are also welcome to use the Library for reference.
- More information about the Library can be found on the Bodleian Libraries website.
- This guide for Weekly Class students also provides further information.
Preparatory reading
- Seamus Heaney and the Language of Poetry / O’Donoghue, Bernard
Module code: O26P456LTW
How to enrol
Please use the ‘Book now’ button on this page.