How does Heaney show the childs thoughts in Mid-Term Break?

The poem Mid-Term Break, by Seamus Heaney shows us how a child perceives a close and direct family death, and the thoughts he encounters during this time of tragedy. Heaney portrays the childs thoughts, generally, without directly referring to them, but through the events in the poem and the use of diction. A childs sibling has passed away, and his thoughts and feelings about this tragedy are expressed throughout the poem, depicting the theme of mortatlity. In the first stanza, Heaney builds suspense and gives the reader, the sense and impression that there is something wrong or out of place as; At two oclock the neighbours drove the child home from school. Heaney used this event to arouse suspicion and suspense portraying that the child is obviously skeptical, confused and curious of what the situation is. The term bells knelling classes to a close in line two, is associated to mourning or an ominous signal, showing the child felt that something obviously quite severe has happened; possibly life-threatening or even a death. Heaney is passing the information on slowly indicating that there is too much to say, and that it is a tragic event. By building suspense in the first stanza of the poem, and not yet fully revealing the situation at this point of time, along with his clever use of diction, Heaney portrays the skeptical and suspicious thoughts of the child at this stage of the poem. In the second stanza, the author reveals that there has been a tragic death; I met my father crying-He had always taken funerals in his stride, not only was it revealed that there has been a death but that this situation was quite tragic. The childs thoughts have now begun to change into more worried and feared thoughts as his father is usually not largely affected by funerals. However this time, in this particular situation it seems to be different as his father has reacted more emotionally, meaning that unlike any other previous deaths or tragic moments they as a family have encountered, this death seems to be considerably more prejudicial or damaging to the family, and one in which they will suffer from. The childs thoughts and feelings therefore change as the people around him react in an unfamiliar and peculiar manner, causing his thoughts to become apprehensive and anxious. As the poem progresses and the events continue to change so do the childs thoughts and feelings; I was embarrassed by old men standing up to shake my hand/and tell me they were sorry for my trouble. The anger, the bitterness, the frustration of having to face a tragedy are not taken away, as the child realises that it is his sibling, his brother that has died, He lay in the four foot box, as in his cot/a foot for every year. Heaney displays the childs thoughts in the final stanzas by relating them to the events taking place around him; whispers informed strangers I was the eldest/my mothercoughed out angry tearless sighs.

Heaney uses the suspense, diction, and the events in the poem Mid-Term Break, to portray a childs thoughts during a time of great tragedy and death. A childs four year old sibling has passed away, and he goes through a series of thoughts from anxiety, embarrassment to frustration and anger.