The poem closes with ‘Each year…they would not’7. The berries which were once like ‘thickened wine’6 now smell of rot. ‘…grey fungus’5, another reference to colour. How the lusciousness of the fresh fruit fades out and ‘fur’3 and ‘rat grey fungus’4 set in. Carrying on from this idea, Heaney moves on to explain how quickly a berry perishes. Murder of the blackberries, how once picked the berries will soon perish. Here Heaney uses a simile the dark sticky blackberry juice on the collector’s hands to the blood on Bluebeard’s hands.Here Heaney makes a direct linkage to murder. The complete line reads ‘Our hands were peppered With thorn pricks, our palms sticky as Bluebeard’s’2. The idea in the previous line has an abrupt end and then carries on into the next line. At first, the example seems irrelevant as a fairy tale character and blackberries have nothing in common.

Bluebeard is a fairy tale character who murders his wives.

The poem is a metaphor on living life to the fullest and not wanting anything of beauty and wonder in life to fade away.The fervour was such that the hoarders took containers of every shape and size ranging from milk cans to jam pots.Towards the end of the first half Heaney makes a reference to Bluebeard. The purpose (theme) in the poem 'Blackberry-Picking' written by the poet Seamus Heaney is embracing all that is bountiful, fresh, wonderful, and beautiful in life and enjoying it with exuberance.

‘ Exposure‘ – discusses the poet’s role in a society that is tearing itself apart and how he might contribute helpfully to the discourse of the time.įAQs What is the main idea in the poem Blackberry-Picking? ›.

‘ Out of the Bag‘ – a complex, touching poem that speaks on the pains and joys of birth, life, sickness, and death.

‘ The Other Side‘ – is a depiction of the sectarianism between Protestants and Catholics in the 70s by looking back to the poet’s youth.

Readers who enjoyed ‘Blackberry-Picking’should also consider reading some other Seamus Heaney poems. There are a few similes in ‘Blackberry-Picking.’These include comparisons like “flesh was sweet / Like thickened wine,” “dark blobs burned / Like a plate of eyes,” and “ our palms sticky as Bluebeard’s.” Similar Poetry

Blackberry picking poem analysis