Death of a Naturalist by Seamus Heaney | ISC Class 11 | Rhapsody | Summary in English

Summary in English of the poem Death of a Naturalist by Seamus Heaney (ISC Class 11 Rhapsody)

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Transcript: The poem Death of a Naturalist by Seamus Heaney has two parts. The first part paints a picture of a 'flax-dam', a place where flax is left to break down under the hot sun all year long. Flax is a plant which is used to make products like ropes. But before products can be made, the flax plants are tied together and kept soaked in water, which the poet is referring to here as “the dam.”

This dam, where flax was stored to soften its fibers, was in the middle of the farm. This process made the dam produce gurgling noises. Blue flies, known as bluebottles, created a buzzing sound around the dam. The dam was also a home for dragonflies and butterflies with spots. The most fascinating thing, however, was the frogspawn, which are frog eggs that look like jelly. The frogspawn thickened in the cool shadows of the bank.

Every spring the poet would collect this frogspawn in jars. He'd put the jars on his home's window sills or school shelves and eagerly watch as the eggs in the jelly came to life as wiggling tadpoles. The poet also recalls a lesson taught by his teacher, Miss Walls, about how a male frog, known as a bullfrog, croaks and how a female frog lays hundreds of tiny eggs known as frogspawn. Frogs would appear yellow in the sun and brown in the rain.

The second part of the poem talks about a later part of the poet's life when he has grown up and his way of thinking has changed. It starts by indicating a passage of time. The tiny tadpoles have now become fully grown frogs. One day, with the smell of cow dung heavy in the fields, the poet finds that the flax dam is now overrun by angry frogs. He tried to avoid them by moving around bushes, but the noise of their croaking was everywhere. The frogs, with their unattractive bellies, sat along the dam. Their throats pulsed like the sails of a ship. Some of them hopped around. The poet found their splashing and croaking threatening. They reminded him of dangerous grenades ready to explode. Their croaking sounded to him like an unpleasant 'farting' noise.

This scene scared the poet. He felt a sense of disgust and ran away. The frogs seemed ready for revenge. The poet realized that if he were to touch the frogspawn now, it would grab onto his hand and not let go. This indicates a shift in the poet's mindset. While his actions were innocent as a child, he now understands that the frogs' reaction has changed due to his actions. The aggressive behaviour of the frogs makes him think that his actions, though innocent, might have hurt them.

This poem is about the loss of innocence that comes with growing up. As a child, the poet was curious about how frogs grow from eggs. So, he used to go to the flax-dam, which was an interesting place with its strong smells. He wasn't repulsed by anything in nature then. He would collect the frogspawn and take it home or to school, waiting to see how the eggs would turn into lively tadpoles.

However, when he revisited the flax-dam after some time, he was shocked to see big, menacing frogs there. Their sounds and actions scared him, and he felt as though they were taking revenge on him for stealing their eggs. Scared and repulsed, he ran away from the dam. This poem shows us that innocence in childhood doesn't last forever.

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