"Epic" by Patrick Kavanagh
I have lived in important places, times
When great events were decided, who owned
That half a rood of rock, a no-man's land
Surrounded by our pitchfork-armed claims.
I heard the Duffys shouting "Damn your soul!"
And old McCabe stripped to the waist, seen
Step the plot defying blue cast-steel -
"Here is the march along these iron stones."
That was the year of the Munich bother. Which
Was more important? I inclined
To lose my faith in Ballyrush and Gortin
Till Homer's ghost came whispering to my mind.
He said: I made the Iliad from such
A local row. Gods make their own importance.
When great events were decided, who owned
That half a rood of rock, a no-man's land
Surrounded by our pitchfork-armed claims.
I heard the Duffys shouting "Damn your soul!"
And old McCabe stripped to the waist, seen
Step the plot defying blue cast-steel -
"Here is the march along these iron stones."
That was the year of the Munich bother. Which
Was more important? I inclined
To lose my faith in Ballyrush and Gortin
Till Homer's ghost came whispering to my mind.
He said: I made the Iliad from such
A local row. Gods make their own importance.
- Written in sonnet form
- Display of irony – traditional epics are very long and deal with important events. This poem is short and deals with small, insignificant, local events.
- Perhaps a hint at the ignorance of the farmers – there are important things going on in the world at this time, but all they seem to care about is who owns a rock.
- Rhyme scheme – half rhymes
Times + Claims > M and S
Owned + Land > N and D - Munich bother – Kristallnacht
- Chooses town names that are very common – Ballyrush and Gortin
- Places from Iliad are now only known because poet made them famous – tells Kavanagh to do the same
- Homer’s words get a full internal rhyme
- Contemporary material vs. classical material