Symbol Analysis
This is not a Chuck Norris action movie. Nor is there a single weapon mentioned in this poem. No one, as far as we can tell, even has to whip out a Band-Aid at any point. However, this poem has a seriously violent undercurrent, and Mother Nature is the baddest baddie of them all. This storm isn't merely an inconvenience for the island residents; it's something they have to prepare their homes for with armor-like reinforcements. The wind rips through the land, and the sea spray spits at their windows. Forget the peaceful, soothing aspects of nature, this is Mother Nature's ugly, violent side.
- Lines 6-7: Just the word "blast" makes us think of violence. The wind when it's blowing this hard is threatening and violent.
- Line 10: "Pommel," or pummel, means to beat. It doesn't get much more violent than beating. The wind is beating the you-know-what out of these houses.
- Line 13: An explosion makes us think of bombs and other weapons—not exactly something that can be done "comfortably." What Heaney means here is that, from a distance, the water doesn't look threatening. It looks soft and foamy, even though it's really crashing violently against the cliff.
- Lines 14-16: Don't try to "here, kitty kitty" this wild beast of an ocean. There's nothing cuddly about the word "savage." There's no taming something this wild and violent.
- Lines 16-18: "Strafe" means to attack repeatedly with bombs or machine guns; "salvo" is a number of weapons firing at the same time; "bombard" means to attack continuously with bombs. If that isn't violent language to describe a violent storm, then we don't know what is.