Get out the microscope, because we’re going through this poem line-by-line.
Lines 5–6
An expert. He would set the wing
And fit the bright steel-pointed sock.
- Call him what you like: expert, number one stunnah—the speaker confirms the father's expertise quite frankly in line five.
- Continuing the crash course in Farming Terminology 101 (FT101 on your transcript): the wing and steel-pointed sock are elements of the actual plow (the part that cuts into the earth) as it's dragged by the horse and steered by the person.
- Not only does the father know how to drive a plow, but he knows how to handle the equipment expertly, too. He's got mad farming skills.
Lines 7-8
The sod rolled over without breaking.
At the headrig, with a single pluck
- FT101 continued: Sod is the surface of the ground, usually with something like grass growing on it. The plow's job is to cut the earth on the surface in order to rotate the nutrient-heavy and nutrient-depleted soil (to mix things up so the next batch of crops will have their dirt vitamins when they're planted).
- To roll it over without breaking is desirable, because all of the nutrients in the top of the soil are getting flipped over (where the new plants will draw nutrients from). So it's like flipping a pancake from one side to the other, as opposed to having it crumble.
- This is yet another example of how skilled the father is. He's no amateur sod-flipper-over-guy.
- When Heaney refers to the "headrig," he just means the starting place of each plowed row. So he begins at the headrig, plows the land, then turns to continue where he left off (basically making rows up and down the field).
- Rhyme check time: we get another perfect end rhyme ("wing" and "breaking") and another slant rhyme ("sock" and "pluck"), which depends on consonance to carry the rhyme attempt. So what's up with this neat pairing of rhymes, and not-so-neat pairing of rhymes? Knowing Heaney, if we had to bet, we'd say he keeps that rhyme scheme going as straight and steady as the farmer keeps the neatly plowed rows in this poem. Better check out "Form and Meter" to make sure.