Punishment : Summary
Punishment is a notable literary work by Seamus Heaney. A complete discussion of this literary work is given, which will help you enhance your literary skills and prepare for the exam. Read the Main texts, Key info, Summary, Themes, Characters, Literary devices, Quotations, Notes, to various questions of Punishment.
Summary
The poem “Punishment” is completely based on assumptions where his assumptions may or may not be true. Around 1975, he visited a dead body that was two thousand years old. Seeing this dead body, various ideas were born in his mind which he expresses through this poem “Punishment”.
He immediately assumed after seeing the dead body that it was a woman’s body, although it was impossible to guess that from a two-thousand-year-old skeleton. He also assumed that the woman died due to some past anti-social activities; was murdered by someone or was buried according to some past custom. It is also possible that someone tied it to a rock by pulling a rope around its neck from behind. Or maybe tied to a tree branch or rod. Also, the woman’s eyes were tied with a dirty cloth.
Maybe she was punished for the crime of adultery. All these thoughts came to his mind and he expressed them through this poem.