earticle

영어

This paper focuses on “silence” as one of the aesthetic devices in Seamus Heaney’s Station Island. There are two kinds of silences. One is the silence heard throughout the poem. This silence is like the one when an orchestra plays, a silence that becomes part of the music by emphasizing the sounds of the instruments. The other is the silence of the character who prompts the persona to develop a poetic discourse. The persona’s monologue is only one part of the poetic discourse. Readers, who take the role of the silent auditor in this monologue, should try to participate actively in developing the monologue into a dialogue. In the first part of Station Island, Heaney arranges a setting where the persona develops the discourse. This discourse is framed to recall his immature past self. Since another important person is silent while the poetic discourse is being framed, the reader should consider the view of the silent listener and the persona’s intention. In the second part, Heaney attempts to bring out the oppressed, silenced voices from his consciousness.