Seamus Heaney, Brainstorming

Seamus Heaney wrote about everything and anything that he loved and hated, everything that caught his eyes. Some of his work is based over spans of time and others are very obvious based on a mere moment in time, a simple conversation or situation.

His work is dripping in visual tongue tying symbolism, to me he has succeed in a way only a true artist can, he makes you feel, feel not just emotions but situations, he makes you believe you are right there looking at the crackling fire or nubby knees, he puts the reader so easily in the situation it is no wonder he is considered one of the poetry giants of the 20th century, he makes someone who doesn't like nor read poetry love his words. 

As i said his work built up over the span of his lifetime so its clear enough to see his writing and perspectives change, i will focus on one theme or era in particular in my animation. He ranges from innocent to admiring the innocence of youth, he goes from focusing on the raindrops and small things in life to the harsh realities of the bigger picture and getting nostalgic in his old age as anyone would. All of these attributes in his work make it very difficult to focus on the one situation, or poem, or theme. 

Seamus Heaney (1939-2013) in a nutshell, was an inquisitive bright country boy, he grew up in my own local area so i can really see and feel the places he talks about. He was the eldest of nine, a working family similar to my own, so i am already swaying to focusing on his work that relates specifically to home or his more positive and nostalgic pieces. 

While reading his poetry, some of which i have read before, i felt i didn't know enough about poetry to really understand what some of it actually meant, To know his work i felt i really needed to know Seamus as a person and how his childhood and family circle would've moulded his life and personality. So i have researched his life and background more so than his poetry.

Understanding Seamus Heaney himself and similarities we share was a an essential part of my research, it was positive and really allowed me to understand his personal views, therefore i could understand his work that little bit more so i could really bring the most comprehensive and detailed version of his word to life through animation.

Once i had Seamus the person clear enough in my head his work made alot more sense, so did his overall themes, some of which i felt more confident in protraying than others. 

I began to brainstorm and narrow down themes i felt i could portray more than others and would be more interested in pursuing for this project. 

Because it is such a vague and open project it is that bit more difficult to determine specifically what to do, because of this i wanted to decide on a specific theme early in the project, that way i would know which poems, essays, and work to thoroughly research and focus on.