Element of Irishness in Seamus Heaney’s poem ‘Digging’

Seamus Heaney is considered one of the greatest poets of the postmodern era, his name and fame travelled across the Irish borders by winning the 1995 Nobel Prize in literature. Seamus Heaney was born in Ireland; he was the only child in his family to attend the school, His family members were traditional potato farmers. Seamus Heaney broke his family tradition of farming by choosing to become a writer. While growing up to become a first graduate among his family Seamus Heaney’s mind was captured by this sense of gloom that he was unable to follow his family tradition of farming. Seamus Heaney promises himself that he will pay rich tribute and let the world know about the hardships of Irish farming life. Seamus Heaney’s main concern for writing poetry was to keep alive Irish culture and its heritage alive. Since Ireland was under the colonial rule of England and Seamus Heaney was of the view that colonization is not only a political problem, but it destroys the country's culture and identity. This was the main reason that Heaney’s poetry revolves around Irishness, its people and culture. There is an enormous reflection of Irish identity and culture in his poetry. This paper will focus on elements of Irishness in Seamus Heaney’s poem ‘Digging’.