Polish Sleepers Analysis

Polish Sleepers

In this poem Heaney describes the polish sleepers, the trains that has long since used. The word “once” brings the readers back in time, to Haney’s childhood during the Second World War. The use of alliteration- “block-built”, “criss-cross”- describes the trains in an ingenious way of versification. The mentioning of “pure creosote” evokes the sense of smell, which gives the readers a holistic impression about the train. Compound words here such as “half-skirting”, “half-stockade” and “ground-cover” constructs a feeling of obsoleteness, suggesting that the now useless sleepers are overtaken by nature. However, the trains still stand strong despite the erosion of nature, shown by “the washed gravel pathways showed no stain.” “Balwark”, used in military defense, implies the strength of the sleepers. The rhyme of “rain” and “stain” adds a natural flow to this poem. Heaney recollects his childhood, when he listened and waited for the trains to come and bring him novelty from faraway places. “Rust, thistles, silence, sky” shows the extreme quietness after the rumbling of the trains dies away, creating a tranquil atmosphere of nostalgia.

In a broader sense, this poem is not just about childhood recollection. Here, the polish sleeper is the metaphor for the polish concentration camp of the Second World War. Just like those sleepers, the bloody concentration camps used for genocide are long since used. In fact, they have turned into museums to show tourists the past atrocity. Although decades have past, the gory concentration camps have never faded away, just like the trains that stand against nature. “Rust, thistles, silence, sky” could also be the deathly silence after the massacre. The past acts of crime have brought scars of painful memory to people’s hearts that never heal. The past could not be changed.

When being interviewed, Heaney said that he